Flax Bread

I did some low carb gluten free cooking today! I made a flax meal (also known as linseed meal) bread using the recipe from here. I was actually quite skeptical as sometimes flax can have a bitter taste (though, that flax was probably rancid), but it turned out quite well! It still has a seed-y sort of taste, but it's tasty enough that I think it might be a staple food during my low carb adventure.

Did I mention i'm trying out a low carb diet? One of my teachers was talking about how we should experiment with different diets to understand how our clients will feel, and while I don't think naturopaths advocate low carb diets it will be one that our clients will choose to be on for one reason or another. Plus i'm hoping i'll lose some weight >.>.....and it'll make being gluten free more interesting. I've been going down on my carb limit day by day and currently i'm on 50 g per day. I may lower this once i've gotten the hang of cooking some of the bread alternatives and whatnot, as I really can't stand eating mainly protein (and it's expensive), but for the time being 50 g per day is alright :).

Here is the recipe I used, I halved it (giving half an egg to my dog) and used two thin pieces to make a sandwich. 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flax seed meal
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder (gluten free)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1-2 Tablespoons sugar equivalent from artificial sweetener
• 5 beaten eggs
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/3 cup oil

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare pan (a 10X15 pan with sides works best) with oiled parchment paper or a silicone mat.

1) Mix dry ingredients well -- a whisk works well.

2) Add wet to dry, and combine well. Make sure there aren't obvious strings of egg white hanging out in the batter.

3) Let batter set for 2 to 3 minutes to thicken up some (leave it too long and it gets past the point where it's easy to spread.)

4) Pour batter onto pan. Because it's going to tend to mound in the middle, you'll get a more even thickness if you spread it away from the center somewhat, in roughly a rectangle an inch or two from the sides of the pan (you can go all the way to the edge, but it will be thinner).

5) Bake for about 20 minutes, until it springs back when you touch the top and/or is visibly browning even more than flax already is.

6) Cool and cut into whatever size slices you want. You don't need a sharp knife; I usually just cut it with a spatula.

Nutritional Information: Each of 12 servings has less than a gram of effective carbohydrate (.7 grams to be exact) plus 5 grams fiber, 6 grams protein, and 185 calories

Meth(otrexate) Hangover

Ugh. So the methotrexate basically kicked my butt. I went to bed fuzzy headed and slightly nauseous and woke up at 2:30 am sick. Didn't get back to sleep until about 4 or 4:30. Thankfully I have a wonderful husband who stayed home to take care of me today and allowed me to sleep for a while longer. What is worse is Milo (our pup) was also sick today :( once more, wonderful husband to the rescue <3.

I also had my first counselling appointment today. She seemed very kind and patient. Hopefully it will be a good fit :). I also was able to make the cake I wanted for valentines day. I made this cake from the lovely Pastry Affair. I did substitute rice bran oil for the butter and used dairy free chocolate to make it GF/DF. I also added a bit of powdered sugar to the icing to sweeten up the 70% dark chocolate. It turned out pretty well, the texture was maybe a bit odd but I suppose that is how it is with an egg based cake? The chocolate icing was yummy :). Though now my tummy is unhappy >.>. Maybe it's no good to eat delicious cake with a methotrexate hangover?

Pain: all over, still nauseous. Fuzzy headed and a headache all day as well. 

Chard Chips

Wrists and hands still quite sore today, a little better though. My knee was also really bad today.

On a lighter note, I made silver beet (chard) chips today :). Much like the kale chips that have been running around the blogosphere. Basically you mix ripped up silver beet with a bit of oil and salt (and a pinch of chili and garlic ;) ), and bake at 150 C for around 15 minutes. So yummy!

They May not look like much, but they were actually salty, crunchy deliciousness. Much easier than making potato chips (not to mention healthier).

I'm hoping to try and get some swimming in tomorrow, though I also have a meet up..hm.

Pain: arms, hands and wrists especially, R elbow especially. Shoulders, R hip, back, R knee especially, some toes.

Cupcakes in the Morning

Sometimes you need a cupcake.
Today I woke up groggy and sore. Sore enough that lifting a glass of water hurt. Typing hurt. MOVING hurt. Well, it's like that sometimes eh?

I'm out of GF bread :(.

So I had some crackers with the better-than-cream-cheese and some fruit for breakfast. After a while I got my glass of water, carefully carried it with two hands into the bedroom where my pills are and took my meds.

But sometimes...you just need a cupcake.

They were looking at me, the little devils carefully designed to look like sweet little GF/DF treats with delicious chocolate frosting. Taunting me. Saying "you'll feel sooOOoo much better if you just eat something yummy! Te he" the te he is especially important.

So I caved. I ate a delicious cupcake despite the fact that it was way before afternoon tea time. It sure as heck didn't make the pain any better, but it did make me feel a little happier in the way only a delicious kind-of-homemade baked good does.

After that I went shopping in the city and took a nap :D. A good day over all, if not somewhat tiring. Doctor tomorrow for a "women's health check" blah.

Pain: Arms, L shoulder especially, sternum, knees, L hip, R foot, some toes. Had a nice shoulder spasm today >.>.

Thanks for Noticing

Thank you to the two people who have chosen to follow me :). I'm afraid i'm not a very interesting person, and this is more of a boring personal type blog, but I appreciate that someone is interested in my story. I try to type at least something daily.

I'm not looking forward to visiting my GP tomorrow. I know it's something that is needed, because I know i'm not coping particularly well, but I hate the idea of doing a "mental health plan" >.>. It'll be wonderful to eventually see a therapist and learn better ways of coping with chronic illness, but it's so hard to talk about the emotionally painful things i've been through. I've decided to be strong though and accept the help that is being offered. It seems like this is the time in my life to start getting things fixed up within myself.

In other news, i've gotten a new vegan "cream cheese" which is wonderful! I've tried some vegan cheeses before and they have mostly been pretty awful, except for this one. The brand is Tofutti, it's called "better than cream cheese" haha :D. Although I wouldn't call it better, it had a nice texture and a pleasant enough taste. It also melted, which some vegan cheeses don't ever do. Now I just need some GF bagels ;).

Pain: arms, shoulders and fingers especially, back is mostly better, R knee is a bit off. Still flaring, but not as bad as yesterday. Hopefully it is going down.