Trying to eat my way through this world......

So,
If you are reading this I must say this is the longest mission I have ever taken on. It is a battle that is hard to do alone and usually that's how it ends up a lot of the time.I am a self diagnosed celiac. And ding ding ding, I also cannot tolerate dairy, which I found out first. Many years covered in unexplainable hives from head to toe literally. Long story short, I gave up dairy. I must tell you I should have been a dairy queen solely based on the fact that I accounted for ten percent of the dairy intake in America I'm sure!! But, even an inkling of my skin possibly looking normal for giving this stuff up? I was all over it. I should tell you celiacs all have different symptoms, mine of course is the rare skin rash that comes with a wheat intolerance. It is called dermititis herpetiformes, and before you ask, it has nothing to do with herpes. Also I get to enjoy cramping and stomach bloating and all the other stuff that goes along with it. So out went dairy and it was sooooo hard. However, in a month I was less tired, less heavy feeling, and generally felt better. The skin rash had stopped rushing at me and was now only coming on here and there. I was enamored. It was the best thing I had ever done. At this point I had struggled with my weight for twenty one years. Around twenty one I lost about 80-90 pounds. Much to my dismay had gained and lost 30 pounds like a yo-yo until I gave up dairy. It is the only time I had ever maintained my weight and it was so easy. Months later the skin rash was still pretty bad much better than before the dairy but still embarrassing and extremely itchy. To the point where I scratched till they bled because they would stop itching. It's gross I know, I was desperate. You know everyone always says "oh you just need cortisone, or "you need an allergist" and my favorite "stop itching
them!" No one ever thinks that something is wrong and your body is telling you something. No, everyone just wants to put a "band-aid" on things. Well, not me! So, at twenty eight finding it easier eating out as a vegan I became one. I gotta tell you at first, I felt awesome. Really awesome. My skin was glowing, I had loads of energy, my hair looked better. It was awesome but, because I couldn't or rather had no idea how to cook beyond a microwave, I heavily relied on vegan chk pattys, tofurkey, and fake bacon(yum), and of course bread, starches, and carbs. Now I was really smart buying only whole grain breads, hemp bagels with every seed you can imagine toasted on top(so good I could cry), and even sort of went to tofu. So I learned a little as I went along. A month or so into this way of eating and I was feeling good. About two months in I noticed something. Something I had never seen happen to me, I was stick thin. Sooo thin that I looked gross. Not only was I thin, I was looking a little undernourished and sallow. Dark eye circles even my face was so think hated looking at it. After weeks and months of even more research I realized not only could I not tolerate dairy but, when I gave it up I was really only eating gluten and in massive amounts. Most vegan foods are made with gluten. It's what the "fake" is in most vegan meat substitutes. I was floored. I had all the symptoms of celiacs and then some. Cramping, stomach pain, skin rash, weight loss(and gain in some cases), and the big one. Rotting teeth. It sounds nasty but it's the closest thing to what was happening to me. I did not have one cavity until I was twenty and then bam...five, two, six. I literally am facing about twenty grand in dental work whenever I decide to sell my soul to get that done. So after all this rambling, I am starting a blog to post recipes. Recipes with no dairy, no gluten, and no perservatives. There are so many things that contain gluten. Msg, gravy, prepared foods, caramel color, natural flavor, artificial flavor, modified food starch, soy sauce. This list could literally go on forever so you get the idea. These are not blah recipes, some of them are downright damn delicious. If you can wrap your head around "natural cooking" you will love this! I have been tinkering, researching, created, throwing..lol, experimenting and literally divulging myself with food to make things that mimmic or exactly replace things I love that I can no longer have in a healthy way. I do not call myself an expert or professional chef by any means. I have worked in the food industry for over twelve years so I sometimes am very inspired by food. I would love if people commented or added their own recipes. If you can get creative you can fool even the harshest critic and eat amazing food. Any questions or comments are appreciated! Now onto the food!!

GLUTENFREEME