Wow, life is sure getting crazy now that I am in my 3rd trimester of pregnancy. Thanks to my husband for taking over much of the cooking duty lately, though it hasn’t given me much to write about. So I thought I would share my experience with the standard test that is given at this stage of pregnancy, the glucose tolerance test for gestational diabetes.

If you are wondering, gestational diabetes is what happens to some women during pregnancy when they temporarily take on symptoms of diabetes due to elevated blood sugar levels in pregnancy. Some women with gestational diabetes, they say, will go on to develop type 2 diabetes later in life. However, there is some controversy over whether this is really true or not, and many people get inaccurately classified as gestational diabetic.

I managed to avoid doing the traditional GD test, which is where a pregnant woman has to fast for 3 hours, then drink a bottle of sugar water with 50 grams of sugar in it, and then see how her body reacts. Yikes! How cruel is that? It’s enough to get anyone started on a path to diabetes right there, including the unborn child. Anyway, I knew that would be enough to send me into a sugar coma, but at the same time I was also curious as to whether my sugar sensitivity meant I actually had diabetic tendencies. So I agreed to take an alternative test, where I was allowed to eat a regular meal but had to incorporate the sugar into it. Okay. They said have a glass of juice with the meal and some kind of dessert or something with syrup, etc. I had 8 oz of pomegranate juice (which was over 30 grams right there) with wild salmon fish tacos & mango salsa from the farmers’ market and a small dark chocolate peanut butter cup for dessert. An hour after the meal, my blood glucose level was supposed to be under 140. It was 169. And I felt like I was tripping out. They said, let’s look at your diet. I said, I rarely ever eat sugar, and only in small amounts, because I know I don’t tolerate it well. And I never drink juice. What about white flour & refined carbs, they said. I already avoid those, I’m gluten free, I said. However, the fish tacos came with white corn tortillas. They said, you might have gotten too much, let’s repeat the test.

Great. This time, I avoided the juice, and tried to get more protein, whole grains & fiber. This is what I ate: 1 large apple (22g) with almond butter, breakfast sausage, quinoa pancakes (6g, though only because we ended up using sweetened almond milk, otherwise it’s much less) with 1 tsp raw honey (7g), and 6oz vanilla sheep yogurt (15g). Seems like a really healthy breakfast, doesn’t it? Hard to believe it’s got 50g of sugar. Anyway, I felt much better after this meal than the last, and thought for sure I would pass the test. Wrong – it was better, but my level was still 160. They said, let’s check it again an hour later. I waited around and started to feel a little shaky. The 2-hour glucose level was 64 (it shouldn’t go below 80). Wow, it looks like you might actually be a little hypoglycemic, they said. I know, I said, that’s what I’ve been telling you. They said, we could do another test, this time with 75 grams of sugar, and check you at one, two and three-hour intervals, and this would confirm hypoglycemia and rule out gestational diabetes. I said, are you kidding me??? I’m not putting my body through 75 more grams of sugar!!! Why don’t you check me after one of my normal meals and see how it is then?

So they sent me home with a blood sugar testing kit and I had to check myself for several days, both fasting (first thing in the morning) and after meals. That’s what I’ve been doing, and all my levels have come back normal. Now I almost wish I had declined to take the test in the first place, it was a very stressful week and I have been pricked and poked way too many times. But at least now I know that yes, I am hypoglycemic, and no, I do not tolerate sugar well, but thankfully I do know how to eat to regulate my blood sugar levels, and no one is going to label me a “gestational diabetic.”

Black Eyed Peas With Ham, Brown Rice & Arugula

Happy new year 2012!  Hopefully you all enjoyed the holidays and all the delicious food that comes with it. Maybe you are wondering what to do with all your leftovers. Here’s a quick shot of what I had for lunch today, made from my leftover new years’ black-eyed peas and holiday ham.

Cooked brown rice

Slow-cooked or canned black-eyed peas

Diced ham

Olive oil

Splash of chicken stock

Fresh arugula

Heat the diced ham in a skillet with olive oil. Add the cooked brown rice, black-eyed peas and a splash of chicken stock to add moisture. Heat all ingredients thoroughly and serve in bowls topped with fresh baby arugula.

Got any great holiday leftover recipes? Feel free to share!

Here’s to an exciting year ahead – wishing you all a prosperous and healthy 2012!!

Teff Pancakes

I am always trying to increase my protein intake, and that’s especially important for snacks and breakfast foods, which are not always high in protein. In the mornings I eat a lot of eggs, sometimes bacon and sausage too, but also I want to choose grains that are naturally high in protein. One of those is teff, the gluten-free native African grain that is the basis for the Ethiopian bread injera (which in America is usually not gluten-free because it is diluted with wheat flour). One serving of teff contains 7 grams of protein, the equivalent of an egg.

I have tried many times to make traditional injera but without success – I have not been able to make thin crepes without the batter sticking to the pan and becoming horribly frustrated (if anyone knows how to do this properly, please let me know!).  However, a couple of times I tried making it in small batches like pancakes, and this worked much better. So here is my teff pancake recipe – it’s very simple with few ingredients, but teff has a delicious nutty flavor that is very satisfying on it’s own.

1/2 cup teff flour*

1/2 cup filtered water

1 T plain goat or sheep’s milk yogurt

1 egg

Pinch of sea salt

Coconut oil for frying

In a medium glass bowl, combine the teff flour, water and yogurt. Stir well, cover, and let soak at room temperature overnight.  (This helps to make the grain easy to digest.) In the morning, add the egg and pinch of salt. Heat coconut oil in a large skillet. Pour the batter into 3-inch pancakes and fry for a few minutes on each side (until bubbles start to form on the first side, and then brown on the other). Serve with butter and if you prefer, a low-glycemic sweetener of your choice.

Serves 2

*Note: Teff can be found at Whole Foods or other health food stores, and is packaged by Bob’s Red Mill. if they only sell the whole grain, you can grind it into flour yourself in a coffee grinder.

This weekend I went to the farmers’ market and found the tent where I would buy raw milk from Organic Pastures Dairy completely empty. The woman who normally sells it had set up a table there and was explaining to customers that the dairy had been shut down by the California Department of Food and Agriculture pending a raw milk recall and E. coli outbreak investigation.

Here are the facts:

1. Five people were diagnosed with E. coli infection and were linked because they had all purchased raw milk from Organic Pastures.

2. There was no E. coli strain present in products they had purchased from Organic Pastures

3. Organic Pastures dairy has been tested for E. coli and no evidence of any strain has been found.

4. The CDFA’s claim is simply that because these people had in common that they all consumed raw milk, that must be the source of the outbreak.

For more information:

http://www.cdfa.ca.gov/egov/press_releases/Press_Release.asp?PRnum=11-064

http://www.organicpastures.com/pdfs/CDFA%20Recalls%20Raw%20Milk%2011.15.11.pdf

I do not believe that raw milk is responsible for this outbreak. The FDA has been on a witch hunt to shut down raw dairy production for years. You never hear of such a crackdown on spinach and lettuce or conventional cattle farms, which are responsible for the vast majority of E. coli outbreaks in this country – those recalls are generally voluntary and don’t have quite the investigative urgency as the the race to blame raw milk producers. So far there has been no evidence found that the raw milk is actually the cause of this outbreak, and Organic Pastures has never been found responsible for any E. coli incident, ever. It was linked to a similar episode in 2006 but eventually cleared and the dairy received a settlement from the CDFA for the inconvenience.  I believe it will eventually be cleared in this case as well. But it’s too bad I won’t be having whipped cream this Thanksgiving.

Yes, I admit that I have consumed raw milk several times since I have been pregnant, and I have no reservations about it. Organic Pastures follows rigorous standards for cleanliness and their milk is tested twice a week for pathogens. People used to drink only raw milk for centuries, even when pregnant. It is conventional dairy products that need to be pasteurized, due to poor conditions of mass production and longer store shelf life. Of course I take precautions, like keeping it well chilled and consuming it within a matter of days to prevent contamination. And I consume it in moderation. Those who choose to judge me should know that there is a much higher risk of harm from say, getting behind the wheel of a car, than of getting E. coli or listeria from drinking raw milk, which despite all the hype, are extremely rare. (And most of us drive a car almost every day.) For me, the benefits far outweigh the risk. It has already been established that my body cannot digest pasteurized milk – and it is harmful to me and my baby to try to do so. As is not getting the nutrition I need during pregnancy. And calcium supplements are simply not absorbed well by the body without being part of a real food. So I choose to supplement my diet with a variety of digestible real dairy foods including goat cheese, sheep’s milk yogurt, and raw grass-fed cow’s milk.

For those who have not been following the raw milk saga, check out The Raw Milk Experiment Part I & Part II.

Jamie Oliver and Mark McAfee of Organic Pastures Discuss The Food Revolution (Feb. 2011)

Persimmon Galette With Brown Rice & Cornmeal Crust

*Note: Because this recipe contains butter, it is not dairy-free. You could try substituting non-dairy shortenings such as coconut oil or lard, but results may not be the same.

You may be able to tell from this more ambitious recipe that my appetite has returned! Though I continued to have morning (or rather, all-day) sickness into my 16th week, it has finally passed (phew!) and for the past couple of weeks I have been hungry almost constantly. Still craving carbs and sweets, so when I saw Martha Stewart’s recipe for a pear galette in the Chronicle last weekend I got the idea stuck in my head and decided to try a version of it using some of the lovely persimmons that are so plentiful in California right now.  Plus it was a great time to try out a pre-Thanksgiving dessert idea!

Gluten-Free Brown Rice & Cornmeal Tart Dough

2 cups brown rice flour

1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal

1 tsp xanthan gum

1 tsp sea salt

1 cup (1/2 lb.) unsalted cultured butter, chilled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

5 T cold water

Combine the flour, cornmeal, xanthan gum and salt in a food processor and pulse to mix. Add the butter and pulse briefly until the mixture is like coarse bread crumbs. Pour the mix into a large bowl and add the water, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing until the dough holds together. Use your hands to form the dough into a ball, then flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for an hour.

Persimmon Galette

5 large persimmons, thinly sliced

1 T cornstarch

1 T maple syrup (or agave or xylitol)

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 egg yolk

Optional: xylitol or raw sucanat for sprinkling

Slice the persimmons and combine with cornstarch, syrup or other sweetener and cinnamon. Set the fruit aside while rolling out the tart dough. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Cut a piece of parchment paper to the size of your baking sheet. Lightly flour the parchment. Place the chilled dough in the center of the parchment. Cover with a sheet of plastic wrap and use a rolling pin to roll out the dough between the parchment and plastic until it is almost 1/8-inch thick and about a 14 to 16-inch oval. (Martha Stewart says 18 inches, but I found it easier to roll the gluten-free dough into a slightly smaller yet thicker crust – it will hold together better.) If it breaks apart, press the torn edges together with your fingertips. When the dough is rolled out completely, you can seal the tears with a tiny dab of water. Spread the persimmon filling in the center of the dough to within a couple inches of the border. Gently fold the edges of the dough over the fruit, pressing any tears back together. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolk with a teaspoon of water. Use a pastry brush to gently rub this mixture over the top of the pastry crust. This helps to hold the crust together better and gives it a nice smooth, golden edge. Sprinkle with optional xylitol or raw sucanat. Transfer the tart, still on the parchment paper, to the baking sheet. Bake in the center of the oven for 45 minutes or until crust is light golden brown. Allow it to cool slightly before transferring to a serving plate.

I found that the crust generally held together pretty well, though parts of it did break apart easily, so don’t be frustrated if that happens! The final product did present beautifully (if not totally symmetrically), with a nice flaky texture and buttery taste. You can also try this recipe with other fall fruit such as pears or apples (however I would suggest not using as much maple syrup as these fruits are juicier and sweeter than persimmons).

Egg Salad on Gluten-Free Toast

Here’s another great comfort-food recipe that is super easy to prepare! It doesn’t use mayo, which is on the list of foods to avoid during pregnancy, though I generally don’t cook with mayo anyway. A little dijon mustard goes a long way! (Recipe is pictured above on gluten-free multi-grain toast from Mariposa Bakery in Oakland.)

2 hard-boiled eggs (preferably pasture-raised)

1 T extra-virgin olive oil

1 tsp stone-ground dijon mustard

1 green onion, chopped

pinch of sea salt

cracked pepper

Peel the hard boiled eggs and dice them. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil and mustard with a fork. Stir in the diced eggs and green onions, and season with sea salt & cracked pepper. Serve on gluten-free toast, a bed of lettuce, or a corn tortilla.

Serves 1

Mesa Sunrise Gluten-Free Cereal With Strawberries & Almond Milk

There you have it, the reason I haven’t been writing much lately, I am 15 weeks pregnant.  Now that I am at the beginning of my second trimester, I have a little bit more energy and an appetite. But until now, I have not wanted to do anything other than sleep, and the last thing I wanted to do was think about food. It’s funny, I always thought, maybe a little self-righteously, that thanks to my clean diet I would be one of those lucky people who never got morning sickness. WRONG! I had pretty much constant nausea for almost 8 weeks with absolutely no appetite. I still have a rough day now and then.  I can only thank my lucky stars that I was not one of those poor women (my heart goes out to them) who also have severe vomitting. No, I was not vomitting, but I did feel like I was undergoing a course of chemotherapy.  I’ve heard all sorts of theories about what causes morning sickness and why some women get it and some don’t, and I’ve come to the conclusion that it is simply caused by hormones, and since everyone’s hormone levels are different (and their bodies’ reaction to it) and every baby is different, there really is no rhyme or reason. It just is.

Whether or not you get morning sickness, every woman’s appetite will change in some way when she is pregnant, and the important thing is that no matter what, you still have to eat. (In fact, when I do eat, most of the time I feel a little better afterward.) But when you have no desire to eat the things you usually eat (or anything for that matter), what do you eat? And in particular, if you are gluten and dairy-free, most of the usual comfort foods are off-limits, so what do you eat then?   I can really only speak for myself and what worked for me, because many of the foods other people recommended to me either did not appeal to me or even repulsed me.  But here are some things that worked for me, and hopefully they will give you some ideas.

1. Cereal.  This is what I ate almost every night before bed so that I could fall asleep. Before I was pregnant I rarely ate boxed cereal, because it is processed and has more refined carbs than a whole-grain breakfast porridge. But you can find some good tasting gluten-free cereals (check the sugar content though, some are pretty high), such as Mesa Sunrise flakes (shown above) made from amaranth and corn, or Millet Rice cereal (Though it is not certified gluten-free because it contains oat flour, it does not contain wheat and it is sweetened with fruit juice instead of sugar). Cereal, for me, accomplished what the Saltine cracker does for most women. And since I had no energy to make my own almond milk, that box of Almond Breeze in the fridge worked wonders. Again, it’s processed, but it’s a convenient and still nutritious and allergy-free compromise when you need it.

2. Cottage Cheese. Yes, this is dairy. If you have a severe allergy to a milk protein such as casein or whey, don’t try this. But if you are simply lactose intolerant, this is a good option because since cottage cheese is cultured there is no lactose. If you are able to tolerate some dairy, you really should try to do so when you are pregnant. Cottage cheese and yogurt are easily digestible options. I have not had the stomach for yogurt lately, but cottage cheese has a mild enough flavor and for some reason is going down really well…

3. Mac-and-Cheese.  No, not the real stuff (though I have to admit I cheated and had some at a potluck party last weekend). But if you can get brown rice macaroni with some kind of non-dairy or goat cheese sauce, score! There is actually a restaurant in Oakland called Homeroom that serves only mac-and-cheese. They have gluten-free and goat cheese options on the menu. I’ve been frequenting there often as I have cravings.  But I also just found another option in my local health food store: Road’s End Organics gluten-free and dairy-free brown rice “Penne and Chreese.”

You can find it here online: http://www.edwardandsons.com/reo_shop_pastas.itml.  I am not sure what stores carry it. They have at least a couple different varieties, including cheddar and alfredo mac-and-cheese.  The ingredients are all wholesome so it’s a great comfort food snack even if you’re not pregnant!

Can you tell that I’m craving dairy and carbs? The sugar cravings are out of control…but whenever I cave in to that I feel even worse so I try to keep that in check.

After the nausea let up a couple weeks ago, I started having slight acid reflux. I never had it before I was pregnant, but it’s probably one of the most common pregnancy symptoms.  Chewable calcium tablets seem to work well as an antacid (plus they’re good for you!), as does a small glass of Perrier.

Hopefully I will be back into culinary creations soon, perhaps with some totally different ideas now that my appetite is having mood swings.  But until then, bear with me as I navigate this new challenge!!

Black-Eyed Peas with Spinach & Okra

A couple weeks ago I started seeing fresh black-eyed peas at the farmers’ markets. These are awesome because you don’t have to soak them or cook them for hours, just shell them and cook on the stove top for 20 minutes. They taste so delicious and fresh! The other day I made a wonderful batch with spinach and fresh okra.

1 lb fresh black-eyed peas or field peas, in shells

1/4 cup chopped fresh okra

1/2 small red onion, diced

3 cloves garlic

Olive oil

Spinach

1 cup water or stock

1/4 tsp sea salt

First, you have to shell the peas. This is easy, and although a little time consuming,  you can shell them outside while enjoying the fall weather or sit with a bowl on the sofa and do it while you’re watching a show on tv.  It takes about 20 minutes.  Then, in a medium skillet, saute the onions, garlic and okra in olive oil for a few minutes. Then add the peas, salt and water or stock; bring it to a boil, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. For the last few minutes, remove the cover and add a bunch of spinach; simmer until wilted, adding more water if necessary.  Serve over brown rice; season with pepper and more sea salt if desired.  It’s a nice light vegetarian meal, perfect for an autumn day

Potato Pancakes

Here’s a quick idea for what to do with those leftover mashed or boiled potatoes.  They make great pancakes the next morning and are especially yummy if they have been seasoned with herbs like chives or rosemary or garlic.  I had about one medium Yukon gold potato leftover after making chicken in a pot a couple nights ago.  This morning I mashed it up, added an egg and about 2 tablespoons of quinoa flour with a pinch of salt, fried it up in butter and made these two lovely cakes for breakfast.  If you have more than one potato, double it up and you have breakfast for two.

2 medium yukon gold or red potatoes, boiled & mashed

2 eggs

1/4 cup quinoa flour

1/4 tsp sea salt

Butter or olive oil for frying

Mash the leftover potatoes and mix together with the eggs, quinoa flour and salt. Fry in a hot skillet for a few minutes on each side, or until golden brown.

Chocolate-Quinoa-Coconut-Almond Bars

Thank you to all who posted website links and ideas for candida-diet recipes this past month.  I especially enjoyed the Ricki Heller blog Diet, Dessert & Dogs. Some creative and original ideas there!  It has been a challenge, but my husband is now in phase II (Woo-hoo!). Here’s a quick, easy dessert I came up with that works for all phases of the candida diet.

Chocolate-Quinoa-Coconut-Almond Bars

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup quinoa flakes

2/3 cup almond butter

1/3 cup virgin coconut oil

2 T raw cacao nibs

1/4 tsp stevia herb powder

Mix the dry ingredients (coconut, quinoa flakes, cacao, stevia) in a bowl and set aside.  In a double boiler, gently melt the almond butter and coconut oil until softened and blended.  Pour this mixture over the dry ingredients and stir. Press the mixture into a bread pan or small baking dish and refrigerate until firm. Slice into squares and serve.  The almond butter and coconut oil, when well chilled, help the bars to stick together and remain solid.

Notes: The quinoa flakes can be omitted if preferred, just increase the coconut to 1 cup.  Also, I used powdered stevia herb (pure green herb, not the stevia packets that look like sugar) but you can use about 8 drops of liquid stevia instead, just stir it into the melted almond butter/coconut oil mixture before adding to the dry ingredients.