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It’s not all the lions fault…

August 16, 2016 by GingerCat

Let me make something clear at the top of this post; I am not a very patient person. When patience was being handed out, I was off in either the love of animals or love of yarn queues. I know this about myself and I try to work on it, but in some situations it is the wilderbeast who is causing my impatience who is at fault and not me.

So what started this train of thought and compelled me to post? It was a story on Facebook about a woman whose teenage brother tragically died 10 days before her wedding and what she learnt in the following 15 years. I don’t know who posted it, but in the beginning I found it very touching. Then I thought on the point about patience.

In this point she used the example of going 15 mph in the left lane because you are distracted by your troubles and how we should all have compassion and not honk or give dirty looks. NO. No no no no no no no. If someone is going 15 mph in the fast lane, it is your duty to honk them because they are driving really dangerously. What if the next person is not as patient as you? What if they do something else really dangerous and cause an accident? Then many more people could be having the worst day of their lives. You don’t know what they are going through and maybe we should practice more compassion, but they need to snap out of it for the safety of everyone.

Honestly, it’s not all about you and your story, however tragic and awful. What if the person honking is on the way to see a loved one in peril? What if they are on their way to see the birth of their child? What about their stories?

The other example was about standing in the middle of an aisle at the supermarket for 10 minutes because they are obsorbed in a train of thought. Well in that situation they are not in charge of a 1 ton, fast moving hunk of metal. You can say excuse me, you can be nice.

So maybe the next time someone beeps at you because you are going 15 mph in the left lane, instead of blaming them for being impatient maybe you should raise your hand in apology and think about whether you should be driving given the enormous emotional strain you are under. Maybe you should not blame the lion….

Posted in Gripes, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

How to make kale edible

June 21, 2016 by GingerCat

Because, let’s face it, it ain’t chocolate…

  1. Chop very small
  2. Saute with onion and garlic
  3. Add a tablespoon of coconut vinegar
  4. Add freshly chopped herbs (mint and dill)
  5. Add some lamb, rice, and coconut amigos.
  6. Enjoy a tasty dinner which doesn’t even have a hint of kale about

Alternatively, blend with pineapple, cilantro, mint and avocado. Really, it’s better than it sounds.

Posted in Diet, Fibromyalgia, MS, Recipes, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Diet and Nutrition Aisle

June 20, 2016 by GingerCat

When I went to get my elimination diet book, I had to face the Diet and Nutrition aisle at Barnes and Noble. OMG, SO DEPRESSING! It took me a long time to dig through all the diet plans that promise you’ll lose 20 lbs in 30 days and find the single book on a diet that has been used by doctors and nutritionists for years to pin point food sensitivities.

Losing weight is about finding a diet you can eat for the rest of your life and moving more.The problem with diets is, if it’s not a plan you can stick too long term, the pounds will come back along with a few more of its little friends.

Under normal circumstances, I walk my dog 4 miles before breakfast and clock up 105,000 steps a week. While there are some exercises I need to add to my routine, I actually do far more exercise than a lot of people who are a “normal” weight.

Now, there are implications if one is heavier, but shouldn’t we be focusing on health first? Eating whole foods, cooking meals at home rather than eating out all the time (yes, I know this is a drag) and moving more instead of being hooked up to electronics? I am guilty of that too, so this is not a judgement, more a comment on how dependent we have become on our devices.

 

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Here I go yet again…

June 20, 2016 by GingerCat

Back to cleansing (and blogging apparently), only this time I’ve not been sold some expensive powder mix. I am working from a book, “The Elimination Diet” by Alissa Segersten and Tom Malterre (Grand Central Life & Style, March 2015). I love this book for a number of reasons:

  • It’s easy to read
  • It makes sense to me
  • It’s focus is on health and feeling well and not on losing weight (though I am)
  • It provides recipes for all stages of the diet
  • There is liberal use of ginger, garlic and fresh herbs (a plus for those of us who hate vegetables from the brassica family)
  • There are no calorie counts provided
  • The plan is laid out for you, which makes it super easy to follow.

I am on day 5 of the plan. This is the detox phase where the number of ingredients is very small (certain veg, fruits, chia seeds, garlic, ginger and fresh herbs) and everything is either blended or juiced. The book is written for a 2 day detox, but this can be extended up to 7. I had plumped for 4 days given how long I’ve felt ill and have extended this to 5 since I can smell success on the horizon!

So how do I feel? Well, tired and I’ve been having headaches, but overall I beginning to feel better. My energy has improved, my body doesn’t seem to hurt as much and the grumpy cat is actually quite happy! I am very surprised at the happy part given how miserable this made me last time, but what is even more surprising is I’m not hungry all the time. I actually have hope that this will help improve my life.

 

Posted in Diet, Fibromyalgia, MS, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Gingerbread

November 21, 2012 by GingerCat

This recipe came with the mini loaf pan I just bought. I changed it a bit so that it was gingery and spicy. It now has the taste of Tate and Lyle ginger cake. Nom nom nom nom nom

Gingerbread (makes 4 mini loafs or 1 big loaf)

  • 1 stick (4oz) of butter, softened
  • 2 1/4 cups of gluten free flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 tbsps ginger
  • 1 tbsp allspice
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2/3 cup molasses
  • 2/3 cup coconut  sugar
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  1. Heat the oven to 325F and grease a loaf or mini loaf pan
  2. Blend the butter and sugar in a mixer
  3. Add the remaining wet ingredients and mix thoroughly
  4. In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients and add the to the wet ingredients
  5. If using a mini loaf pan, divide the mixture evenly better the four pans
  6. Bake until a tooth pick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
  7. Cool in the tin for 15 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack.
  8. Serve as is or with cream

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Brownie heaven…

November 6, 2012 by GingerCat

So many gluten free products seem to end up dry or gritty. These little beauties are awesome though!

Gluten free brownies

  • 7 ounces high quality dark chocolate
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 cup coconut sugar
  • 1/2 cup almond meal
  • 1/4 cup coconut flour
  • 1/2 cup of shredded coconut
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 organic free-range eggs, beaten
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla essence
  1. Preheat oven to 350F and line an 8×8 cake pan with parchment paper.
  2. In a bowl over a saucepan of boiling water, melt the chocolate and butter together.
  3. In another mixing bowl, combine all the dry ingredients.
  4. Add the eggs, vanilla and melted chocolate/butter mixture and combine.
  5. If mixture is too stiff, add a little almond milk (or your milk of choice).
  6. Scrape mixture into prepared cake pan and bake for about 35 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
  7. Cool for 10 minutes in tin and then place on a cooling rack.
  8. ENJOY!

Posted in Diet, Recipes | Leave a Comment »

Fennel Risotto

October 23, 2012 by GingerCat

I love risotto. Normally I would make it with butter and parmesan cheese, but this version was lovely and didn’t even need the cheese. WIN!

Fennel Risotto, serves 4

  • 1 onion chopped
  • blub fennel chopped
  • 1 pepper chopped
  • 1 pack of sliced mushrooms
  • 100g of homemade pasta sauce (See Pasta Sauce)
  • pint vegetable stock
  • 3.5 cups of wild or brown rice
  1. Sauté onion with a little olive oil. Add pepper and fennel after a couple of minutes followed by the mushrooms a couple of minutes after that.
  2. Cook until the vegetables are soft and the onions translucent.
  3. Add rice and sauté for a couple of minutes
  4. Add about ¼ of the stock and simmer until it is absorbed by the rice.
  5. Keep adding small increments of stock until the rice is cooked (check package but about 50 minutes) Stir homemade pasta sauce and serve once it’s all heated.</li>

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Pasta Sauce

October 23, 2012 by GingerCat

Since I am on this cleanse, lots of foods are out and there is an emphasis on whole minimally processed foods. I love red sauce, (not just on pasta) so I decided to have a go at making and preserving my own. I have kept the ingredients to a minimum so that I can add different things depending on the meal.

Pasta Sauce, makes 2l (~64 oz)

  • 2 onions copped
  • 6-8 cloves of minced garlic
  • 1 glass red wine
  • 6lbs of tomatoes
  • Fresh basil
  1. Slit the skins of the tomatoes and blanch in boiling water until skins start to peel. Set aside to cool for a few minutes.
  2. Sauté onions and garlic on a low heat with a little olive oil stirring frequently. The aim is to cook the onions so they are translucent but not very coloured, so low and slow.
  3. Add wine and leave to reduce
  4. Peel the tomatoes, and chop coarsely removing the core.
  5. Add tomatoes, cover the pan and leave to simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally and adding the chopped basil about half way through.
  6. Using a hand blender, roughly blend so that there is still texture, but no large pieces of tomato or onion.
  7. If not using immediately, bottle and seal. For information on canning see “Boiling Water Bath Canning – Including Jams, Jellies, and Pickled Products“

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Reasons to be cheerful 1, 2, 3

October 23, 2012 by GingerCat

  1. Rain!!!! Glorious, glorious rain!
  2. Paleo breakfast cereal
  3. Wholefoods

Two days of rain 🙂 Some of it was pretty heavy too. I love the sound and the smell and the fact that it just isn’t sunny. The downside is the numpties on the roads. The drivers in this area are not good on any day in any weather, but the rain adds an extra dimension to this. You have the morons who slow down to a crawl in the 3rd lane, and the maniacs who continue to tailgate and weave. Both classes are prone to forgetting even the most basic of safety precautions such as turning on their headlights.

Paleo breakfast ceral really doesn’t have any downsides. It’s nomilicious and I know exactly what went into it.

There is a reason wholefoods is called whole paycheque. On the upside, I have found some awesome things that are making this new diet easier, such as sugar made from coconut blossom, unsweetened vanilla almond milk and cultured coconut milk. They also have lots of organic stuff. Now if they could just be a wee it cheaper, I’d be grateful.

Posted in Diet, Gripes, Weather | Leave a Comment »

Delving into disability

October 21, 2012 by GingerCat

So aparently the change in diet and daily injections was the last straw. It’s so much to get used to and with all the other stresses in the backround, it is just too much. I think I really do need to get used to the fact that I have MS and deal with some of the physical challenges it brings. My doctor thought so too, so I am signed off work for a month.

This means I have to apply for disability. Not a good word disability. It implies you are disabled. Being disabled is scary. I guess it’s a word I’ll need to get used to; if I have more exaserbations where is gets hard and extremely tiring to walk, I may need to get a blue badge. Now that really is something to think about.

 

Posted in MS | Leave a Comment »

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