Take a few moments and watch this video to learn about how sugar (and hidden sugar) affects your ability to lose weight.
As Dr Eric Berg suggests, get more potassium into your diet. How do you know when you are in ketosis (fat burning)? You won’t crave sugar.
When I saw that I could get a big ‘ol bag of carrots at Sams for around $3, my mind instantly began turning thinking up ways to make my crew (and me) something tasty in the baking department. Introducing gluten-free carrot cake muffins.
I quickly learned that there are a lot of recipes out there. So, I decided to test two options that I found online and ended up adapting both after trying them out on my crew. Turns out that half of my crew liked version one and the other half liked my second version. Win-win!
So, I thought I’d include both options here on the blog, so that you could try either or both options based on whatever was in your pantry for supplies. I also wanted to taste-test the difference between a muffin made with almond flour and compare it against a muffin made with gluten-free oat flour.
I preferred the second recipe, as did my hubby, my 3 year old daughter, my six year old son, and one of my 15 year olds. My other 15 year old son (I have identical twin sons) liked the first recipe as did my 11 year old son. Had we not done a side by side comparison, I think either would have been quickly devoured.
You can store in a ziplock freezer bag and toss into the freezer as a grab-n-go breakfast or snack option.
Make both and tell us which one you like best in the comments below!
INGREDIENTS:
• 1 ¼ cups of blanched Almond Flour
• 2 TBSP Coconut Flour
• ½ tsp Aluminum-Free Baking Powder
• ¼ tsp Iodized Salt
• 1 ½ tsp Cinnamon, Ground
• ½ tsp Ginger, Ground
• ¼ tsp Allspice Organic Powder
• 2 large eggs, room temp and beaten
• 1/3 cup Pure Canola Oil
• 1/3 cup Honey
• 2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract, Certified Organic
• 1 very ripe banana (if you want your muffin to be more moist)
• ½ cup finely grated carrots
• 1/3 cup of finely grated Pecan Chips
• ½ cup of Organic Sun Dried Raisins
INSTRUCTIONS:
This recipe is Gluten-free, Lactose-free, Corn-free, and Refined Sugar-Free
INGREDIENTS:
• 1 ½ cups of Organic Oat Flour, 24 oz.
• 1 tsp Aluminum-Free Baking Powder
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 ½ tsp Cinnamon, Ground
• ½ tsp Allspice Organic Powder
• ½ tsp Ginger, Ground
• 1 very ripe banana
• ¾ cup Honey
• 1 egg, brought to room temp and beaten
• 3 TBSP of Pure Canola Oil
• 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract, Certified Organic
• 1 ½ cups of finely grated carrots
• ½ cup of Organic Sun Dried Raisins
• ½ cup of Pecan Chips
INSTRUCTIONS:
Note: Most people can tolerate oat flour if they have a gluten sensitivity. If you have celiac disease, be sure you get a gluten-free oat flour as it will not have been milled at a facility where wheat, barley, and rye are processed.
This recipe is Gluten-free, Lactose-free, Corn-free, and Refined Sugar-Free
It’s time for our next “Eat THIS instead of THIS”!
Check out the following infographic on why you should be swapping out that white rice for quinoa! And that includes reading those supposedly “gluten-free” ingredients on boxes… Remember, every day you can change your life one bite at a time!
Snack: Beat that sweet craving with these sweet and good for you Dark Cherry Pops!
You’ll need 2 cups of frozen cherries, 1 cup of dark Black Cherry Juice
If you have joint pain or arthritis, you need to be adding cherries to your diet. Dark Cherries not only fight inflammation in the body, but dark cherries have been found to reduce belly fat! Cherries also reduce post-workout pain. Dark cherries have anthocyanins which have been found to block two enzymes (COX-1 and COX-2) involved in the production of inflammatory compounds known as prostaglandins. Plus, they help to fight cancer – important to women suffering with PCOS as we are higher risk for ovarian cancer. A 2011 study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that dietary intake of anthocyanins may help prevent high blood pressure. If you can’t stand the taste of the dark cherry juice, you can also take Tart Cherry Capsules
With so many benefits, you need to be making this for the freezer now! 😘
– Erin
This recipe is refined-sugar free, gluten-free, corn-free, and lactose-free.
#pcos #pcosbites #pcosdiet #pcosfood #pcostips #pcosfighter #pcosdiva #pcosweightloss #pcosawareness #pcoswarrior #pcoscysters #pcossupport #cysters #paleo #paleodiet #paleofood #weightwatchers #thm #trimhealthymama #whole30 #arthritis #jointpainrelief #jointpain #snacksmart #onebiteatatime
Lunch: Tossed Romaine Lettuce with red and yellow sweet peppers, feta, #raw pumpkin seeds, #gojiberries , topped with fun-spiralized carrot and a dollop of sun-dried tomato hummus to the side.
Tip : you don’t use as much dressing if you mix it in a tossed salad. Stretches your dollar and lowers your caloric intake.
And those pumpkin seeds… Super beneficial for type O or A Blood Types! Sneak them in whenever you can!
“With a wide variety of nutrients ranging from magnesium and manganese to copper, protein and zinc, pumpkin seeds are nutritional powerhouses wrapped up in a very small package. They also contain plant compounds known as phytosterols and free-radical scavenging antioxidants, 1 which can give your health an added boost.” – Mercola
If you are blood type B or AB – leave them off as they will cause agglutination in your blood.
This recipe is refined-sugar free, gluten-free, corn-free, and lactose-free.
#pcos #pcosbites #pcosdiet #pcosfood #pcostips #pcosfighter #pcosdiva #pcosweightloss #pcosawareness #pcoswarrior #pcoscysters #pcossupport #cysters #paleo #paleodiet #paleofood #paleolife #paleofriendly #keto #ketodiet #weightwatchers #thm #trimhealthymama #whole30 #healthymom #eatclean #onebiteatatime
Today’s dish is a result of me getting in the test kitchen sort of mood, as I decided to make lemon-aide from lemons you might say — or in this case, Fried Green Tomatoes from a “whoops” in the garden.
Five days ago, my husband and I were in the garden tending it and noticed that the Early Grow Tomato plant was very happy and becoming heavy-laden by four tomatoes it had produced on one vine. Our original support was just not doing the job and it needed something stronger to support the growing fruit. So, we tried adding a sturdier cage while gently lifting the vines. We were able to manipulate it in such a way that we felt confident the new structure was secure. He walked away satisfied, but no, I had to go give it one more little push into the ground. That’s when my ears heard a ***snnnnnap!!!*** and my heart dropped to my stomach. Sure enough, the stem that was heavy laden with four beautiful Early Grow Tomatoes had snapped at the base and was separated from the main plant. Ugh! I stared at my mishap. Double UGH! I thought.
So, I pulled the tomatoes off the broken vine and put the broken stem and leaf in my compost pile and hauled my four (very green) tomatoes up to the house sad that I had just spoiled my first crop in an aim to put that support in the ground perfectly. They sat on the counter all week as I didn’t have the heart to throw them out. No ripening, they just sat there, staring back at me and reminding me of my mishap. But then I got an idea… Remember that recipe that I used to coat chicken breast that my kids loved? What if we did a Southern thang’ and tried it on my green tomatoes?!
I sliced into those Early Grow (very green) tomatoes and they were beautiful. I gave them a bath in one whipped egg and coated them with my Gluten Free Breaded-but-without-bread Chicken Strips recipe. I backed off on the cayenne pepper by half and left out the turmeric (although it would be great in there as well.) And threw it in a hot pain sizzling with some bacon grease (my ghee wasn’t ready yet – ghee would be healthier, but the flavor was fantastic using the bacon grease.)
The first batch got a little burnt (see below pic), because I kept it on too high of heat (it was just above medium heat) for too long. The next batch turned out perf’ after I turned the heat to just below medium heat and then flipped the green tomato after about 40-seconds of grill time in my little sauce pan.
I only did a few at a time as they cook quickly.
Flip when the edges start turning light brown. I added a little bit of ranch on the side to balance out the spices in the Gluten Free Breaded-but-without-bread Chicken Strips recipe. My guys LOVED it! My picky 6-year-old and my sometimes picky 11 year-old both gave me two thumbs up! And their father came back for seconds! Whoop whoop!
Tomatoes have long been linked to heart health. Fresh tomatoes and tomato extracts have been shown to help lower total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides. Tomatoes help in the regulation of fats in the blood — numerous phytonutrients in tomatoes have been shown to help prevent excessive clumping of our platelet cells. (This ability is usually referred to as an “antiaggregatory effect.”)
Tomatoes also have outstanding antioxidant content, including, of course, their oftentimes-rich concentration of lycopene. Research has shown that there is an important connection between lycopene, its antioxidant properties, and bone health. In a 4-week study of post-menopausal women, it was shown that those who did not consume lycopene-containing foods (like tomatoes) experienced increased signs of oxidative stress in their bones and unwanted changes in their bone tissue.
They are also very low on the glycemic index which means you can enjoy without worrying about a spike in your insulin levels.
And lastly, there have been some studies that show that tomatoes have anti-cancer benefits. As you know, in Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), there is a greater risk for Ovarian Cancer, so tomatoes may be beneficial.
One word to my PCOS Cysters — if you are experiencing severe joint pain and suffering from an arthritic condition, you may want to skip this snack/side dish idea. Joint pain can be caused by high uric acid in your body or because of arthritis. Night shades (which tomatoes are considered) are pro-inflammatory in some body types so you may want to check with your physician treating your arthritis before consuming this type of dish.
If you try making this recipe, I hope you share your pic and feedback in the comments below! Enjoy! (PS: Maybe even watch the movie “Fried Green Tomatoes” while eating this! Ha!)
INGREDIENTS:
Gluten-Free Coating Mix:
• 1 cup Almond Flour
• ½ tsp Garlic Powder
• ½ tsp Onion Powder
• ¼ tsp Cayenne Pepper, Ground
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 TBSP Organic Kelp Granules
• ½ tsp Thyme
• ½ tsp Turmeric
• 1 tsp Ground Cumin
• Ghee or Bacon Grease for frying
Main Ingredient:
• Organic Green Tomatoes
Egg Bath:
• 1 Egg
TOOLS:
• Cutting Board and Knife
• Frying Pan
• Spatula for flipping fried green tomatoes
• small open bowl large enough to place tomato into for egg bath
• small open bowl large enough to place tomato into for coating mix
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Heat your frying pan at just below medium heat.
2. Slice green tomatoes to about 1/8″ to 1/4″ thick.
3. Whip one egg in a small open bowl that is large enough to place a tomato into the egg bath coating both sides of the tomato with raw egg.
4. Move green tomato immediately into the gluten-free coating mix and coat both sides of the green tomato with gluten-free coating mix.
5. Add a ½ tsp of bacon grease to the hot pan (make sure the pan isn’t too hot or it will splatter). It should melt quickly. You want to move the pan so that the bacon grease coats the entire bottom of the pan.
6. Add your green tomato coated with the egg batter and gluten-free coating mix into the pan.
7. Allow your green tomato to cook in the pan for about a minute. The edges will turn a light-brown. Flip and cook for about the same time on the other side.
8. Remove from heat and serve with a little bit of ranch dressing (optional).
This recipe is refined-sugar free, gluten-free, corn-free, and lactose-free.
When you have seven people eating out of one fridge, getting creative about cost-savings becomes essential when it comes to snacks. At $10+ for a 12 oz. jar, feeding a family of seven a healthy treat can get expensive — fast!
Nut butter is a great to use for a quick spoon full when you feel your sugar-levels dropping. (I sometimes eat two scoops before I make dinner to hold me over until it’s time to eat.) You can use on Life Changing Crackers or even on a slice of Ezekiel Bread toast. I don’t recommend eating this (found in the freezer section in the health food area of your grocery store) sprouted grain bread more than one time a day, 3 times a week at the most. Ezekiel bread is a great transition if you are just starting to go gluten-free, but your goal should be to be off all bread if at all possible if you suffer from Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS).
This recipe makes about 3 small 12 oz. mason jars full.
INGREDIENTS:
• 1 full cookie sheet of Almonds
• 1/3 cookie sheet Pre-shelled Walnuts or Pecans (whichever you have on hand)
• 2 tsp Finely Ground Pink Himalayan Salt
• 1/4 cup of Date “Sugar” (optional – leave out if going for sugar-free, but this will have a low-glycemic response compared to other sugars)
• 2 TBSP Honey (optional – leave out if going for sugar-free)
• 15 shakes of Cinnamon (a great inflammation fighter)
• 1/2 pkg of Dried Blueberries or 1/3 cup of Craisens or 1/3 cup of dried Cherries (helpful antioxidants)
OTHER TOOLS YOU MIGHT NEED:
• High-power mixer/blender
• Bowl
• Rubber Spatula
• Mason Jar
• Small spoon for compacting nut-butter mix into your jar as you add it.
• Knife and cutting board if you’re chopping up dried cherries into smaller bits. No knife needed if you are using dried blueberries or Craisens.
INSTRUCTIONS:
Above:Beginning to turn to butter.
Above: Almost all converted into nut butter
(Above: Incorporate any mix-ins you desire.)
If you want to try another version, make just as directed above, but instead of blueberries, put in dried chopped cherries or Craisens and 1 tsp of Vanilla.
This recipe is refined-sugar free, gluten-free, corn-free, and lactose-free.
See why you should make the switch to almond milk if you are drinking dairy milk. You’ll get the most benefit from making your own almond milk as you can control what goes into it. See our post on how easy it is to make your own (plus, you can save the left over almond bits, dry out and use your Cuisinart to make almond flour that can be used in other recipes. If you’re going to spend the money, you might as well not only stretch your dollar, but also get other beneficial by-products to use!)
Make this one change today and change your life one bite (or drink in this case) at a time!
My guys love waffles. I enjoy them too, but I don’t like making them for a large crew, because they are painfully slow to crank out. I stand there for about 40 minutes slowly feeding child after child. Pancakes are more my speed for feeding a hungry crew fast. So waffles are an exercise in patience for me.
But, today, for some strange reason, they just sounded better than pancakes. I was determined to feed my hungry crew some gluten-free waffles. I adapted a recipe I found online by Gina Matsoukas. First off, when I followed the recipe I had found (I was doubling it), it would stick to my waffle iron, even though it seemed fully cooked through. My solution was to add some tapioca flour and that seemed to help it release. I also felt like it needed something more and added some raisens for a little bit of sweetness in every bite. You could also use carob chips or blueberries to mix in — whatever you fancy!
Kids had one each and there was enough to feed all seven of us a 6″-7″ size waffle. I served peaches with it and my littlest gobbled hers up and the crumbs her big brother (age 6) had left. Definitely a kid-friendly recipe. As a Mama with PCOS, I would go lightly with the toppings as maple syrup can create an insulin response.
Tip: If you don’t have as large of a family to feed, make the whole batch and throw the extras in the freezer for a quick breakfast on another day!
OTHER THINGS YOU MIGHT NEED:
• Waffle Iron
• A non-stick spray
• Spoon (to scoop out sweet potato from skins)
• Mixing bowls (one for dry and one for wet ingredients)
• Whisk (for wet ingredients)
• Spatula (to scrap the bowl and scoop onto the waffle iron gluten-free waffle batter)
• Cookie sheet (for cooking your sweet potatoes on)
• Parchment paper (for cooking your sweet potatoes on)
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Place 4 small to medium sized sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet lined with parchment. Poke the sweet potatoes with a knife towards the center about 5-7 times in various spots throughout each sweet potato. Bake for about 40 min or until soft in the center. Remove from heat and cool.
2. Take a spoon and scoop out all cooked sweet potato and place into your blender. Once you’ve emptied all the sweet potatoes from their outer skin, blend until a smooth puree. Set aside.
3. When sweet potatoes are finished cooking, plug in your waffle iron to preheat while you mix the ingredients.
4. Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
5. Whisk together all the other (wet) ingredients in a medium bowl.
6. Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Fold in your pureed sweet potatoes into your bowl of mixed ingredients. Combine until fully incorporated.
7. Open up your waffle iron and spray upper and lower sections with a non-stick spray. Add a small scoop of gluten-free waffle batter to the center and spread. It should only cover about 1/2 of the bottom. When you press down, it will expand to make a larger waffle.
8. Set your timer for about 7 minutes.
9. When timer goes off, take a fork and gently pry around edges all the way around until it lifts out of the waffle mold.
10. Top with your choice of fruit and/or maple syrup. Enjoy!
This recipe is refined-sugar free, gluten-free, corn-free, and lactose-free.
This morning, I tried a recipe that I’d seen floating around Facebook. I had never tried making sweet potato hash browns and I loved the idea of doing a whole pan full to feed my crew of 5 + my hubby. It took about 10 minutes to prep the sweet potato hash browns.
I used to eat white and red potatoes and loved the hash browns from Waffle House. But, here’s the deal — sweet potatoes are such a better choice if you’re going to eat a potato. Here’s a quick infographic comparing the two. Which is better to put in your body? (Hint: Check out those Vitamin A numbers!) I disagree with one thing on their infographic — where they say not to forget about white potatoes (towards the bottom)… if you have PCOS, forget the white potatoes. They will make your pancreas work harder to produce more insulin which then if unused turns to fat. Steer clear of those white and red potatoes.
Vitamin A is GREAT for kids especially, because they are GROWING! It is an essential vitamin needed for growth and development, cell recognition, vision, immune function and reproduction.
The recommended intake of vitamin A varies according to age and sex. Because vitamin A is available in several forms, the vitamin A content in foods is often measured as retinol activity equivalents (RAEs). One RAE is equal to 1 microgram of retinol, 12 micrograms of beta-carotene or 3.33 IU of vitamin A. The recommended intake of RAEs for people of different ages according to the National Institutes for Health (NIH) are as follows:
* Adequate Intake (AI), equivalent to the mean intake of vitamin A in healthy, breastfed infants.
My kids (ages 3, 6, 11, and two 15-year-olds) all ate this for breakfast — even my picky six year old son! I like how this sort of portion-controls the sweet potato for the insulin response. I encourage you to give it a try and see what YOU think! Once you make it, be sure to leave your review in the comments below! 🙂
INGREDIENTS:
• 1 medium sweet potato, shredded
• 2 TBSP Coconut Oil or Canola Oil or melted Ghee
• 12 large eggs
• Kelp Seasoning
• Fresh Parsley
• Pink Himalayan Salt
• Pepper
NON-FOOD ITEMS YOU WILL NEED:
• Cupcake Tin
• Grater
• Bowl
• Peeler
• Pair of kitchen shears (to cut up your parsley)
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Grease a muffin pan with a TBSP of oil of choice or ghee.
3. Peel your sweet potato and then grate the sweet potato into a bowl, so you have a little over one cup.
4. Mix in 1 TBSP of oil of choice, salt, and pepper with the sweet potato and even coat the shredded potato with mixture.
5. Evenly divide the grated sweet potato into each muffin hole (however many you wish to make) and press the grated sweet potato down the bottom and sides so they form cups.
Tip: If you don’t have a large crew you’re needing to make these for, just fill in the number of cups you need and put the remainder in a Ziplock bag and place in the fridge to use in another dish or the next day.
6. Bake sweet potato cups for 15 minutes.
7. When the sweet potato cups are done baking, crack an egg into each cup carefully without breaking the yolk.
8. Return the pan to the oven and bake another 15-20 minutes until the egg whites are set.
Hint: You want it to be a little glossy on top when it comes out as it will continue to cook after you remove it from the heat.
9. Let it cool for 10 minutes before taking them out of the tin.
10. Top with some freshly chopped parsley (simple fold the parsley together and cut with your kitchen shears), sprinkle on some kelp seasoning for iodine benefits, and ground Pink Himalayan Salt and ground Pepper.
Tip: Add some sort of protein to this as well on the side, like a chicken or turkey sausage.
This recipe is refined-sugar free, gluten-free, corn-free, and lactose-free.
Source: Medical News Today and Cleveland Health Clinic.
PCOSbites 