Glimpse into New Year choc chip cookies

For New Year's Eve, I decided to make a quick and easy batch of cookies. I know, I know...I make up a lot of cookie recipes! But I love them! So easy to make and so yummy to eat! I used a different combination of ingredients this time, and they turned out to be probably the best cookies so far. Slightly crunchy but soft in the middle...yum!

 

Glimpse into the New Year

Today is New Year's Day. A day typically dedicated to reflection and statements of intentions. Every New Year for the past 3 years, I have made New Year's resolutions. These have all revolved around my health and improving its state of deterioration, which had begun to speed up between 2008 and 2010. Each year, I felt more determined than the previous to work harder at finding out what was wrong with me, how to fix it, and go about doing so. And at the conclusion of each year, I was left feeling varying levels of failure because of these resolutions. (Although, 2013 has probably revealed a lot more potential than other years, even if it has been one of the worst for my body.) So this year, as 2013 began to wrap up, and 2014 loomed closer, I decided to not make a resolution. I felt I did not want the self imposed pressure, when I already know that I am doing my best to improve my health. More specifically, I didn't want that added feeling of failure when reflecting on previous resolutions, when my health battles are frustrating enough.

However, on the day of New Year's Eve, as I read people's statements, and listened to them explore their purpose and decisions, I began to think that maybe I do need a New Year's Resolution. After all, it is but a goal, and I constantly have small, medium and large goals in my life, which all of you with chronic health problems will understand too well. So after mulling over what I need to improve or appreciate or stop doing or start doing, I came to this conclusion. In 2014, I will just be.

          ~ Let go. Just be. ~

I am constantly over thinking things in my head, partly due to having too much time to over think, partly due to the frustrating dead-end feeling that comes with chronic illness. I find myself unnecessarily worrying, or unnecessarily being frustrated or saddened by some one's actions, or building something up and then being unnecessarily disappointed when it doesn't happen that way. Chronic illnesses takes what you thought was normal, and throws it up in the air and causes it to land in a million different directions and angles. I have said it before and I will say it again; we need to allow ourselves to step out from the dark cloud that chronic illness is, and enjoy what we do have. Live in the moment. We don't get to do this "life" thing twice (as far as we know!), and it seems ridiculous to let it slip past us, while we let illness tarnish our thoughts, alter our plans and change our happiness. Obviously, chronic illness comes in all shapes and sizes, and inevitably our thoughts, plans and happiness will be effected. Also, chronic illness requires determination, motivation, strength and perseverance to battle, so I am not saying we can just sit back and hope all will go the way we would like.
However, somehow, in the blur of pain, confusion, frustration, and sickness, we need to find a way to see the good in a moment, not just the discomfort. In 2014, I need to, we need to, just be.
           Happy New Year!

Glimpse into brain fog

Something that a lot of people ask me about or don't understand, is the feeling of "brain fog", which is so prevalent in conditions like Myalgic Encephalmyeltis. Obviously, brain fog is not a scientific term, but it so clearly depicts the feeling.

                                                                  Pic taken from here

Glimpse into spiced pineapple syrup cake

With the wet weather recently, I have fancied a spiced fruity teacake! After an unsuccessful search with Mum one day for an open café that sold cake I could tolerate, I decided to sit at the kitchen bench and create one.
This cake is moist, gooey and tropical! It is delicious and decadent warm, and great cold!

Spiced Pineapple Syrup Cake.

Glimpse into Gembles' ultimate bowl of goodness

I very often talk about the fantastic breakfast I eat daily (and sometimes twice a day!), and have mentioned the basis of it on this blog before. Hence, I can't believe it that I haven't actually gone into detail about it on the blog!! So here it is; you are in for a treat!
This bowl of amazingness has converted yours truly from the ultimate non-morning person, who has always resisted breakfast and only eaten it as a necessity, to someone who pulls their heavy body out of bed with one thing in mind: GET A BOWL OF THAT AMAZING, ULTIMATE BOWL OF GOODNESS...NOW!!!!

                                             

Glimpse into my thoughts about chronic illness

I have chosen to write 5 things I hate about having a chronic illness, 5 things that help put a positive spin on chronic illness, and 5 things I still need to learn from or about living with chronic illness. I hope this helps people feel less alone, get some ideas, or understand other people's situation...

Glimpse into choc banana quinoa cookies

You can probably tell, I love to bake, and I love the ease of cookies! This week, I wanted to make a treat that is packed with nutrition, so healthy that I could eat it for breakfast without guilt, and that was super easy to whip up! This is what I developed...a choc banana quinoa cookie!

Glimpse into green pudding

Happy Hump Day! You have made it to Wednesday; the weekend is on its way! This, of course, has no relevance to me, as I have been too unwell to work since November, but I know a lot of you will be celebrating that you are over halfway!!

 

With my body at the level of health that it is, I need to eat regularly. Even if I am not hungry or being active, if I do not eat every 2-3 hours, I plummet quickly, and it takes me quite some time to recover. So I have learnt to eat, whether I am feeling physical hunger or not. So this means, a lot of snacks!! I love coming up with new things for my morning and afternoon teas! I have been loving the ease and chocolatey goodness of my choc nut smoothies this week, but today I was in the mood for a change!

I have seen a few blog posts of people eating their chunky green smoothies rather than blending them further into a drink, and I thought I would work on that idea today!

Glimpse into berry oat bars & a useful recipe book

A few weeks ago, I received a copy of an eye opening recipe book that was so exciting for me to discover! It is called "Flying Apron's Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book", and is written by Jennifer Katzinger, who owns a bakery in Seattle. Oh how I would love to live near her bakery!! If anyone wants to take me to Seattle, I will assure you that we will be dining in her bakery daily, possibly multiple times per day! Her recipe book is inspiring; not just for me, as someone who enjoys creating recipes, and dreams of releasing a recipe book one day, but also for those of us who have multiple food intolerances or allergies. Her recipes, like mine, cater for people who are avoiding gluten, wheat, dairy, soy and egg. Some recipes involve fructose, but are easily adapted. I thought I would share with you this book discovery so that you can enjoy it too. I will also show you the first recipe I used from the book recently. I was not feeling too well, so when we both craved sweetness, Mum made it while I directed! It was a delicious success!

Glimpse into choc nut cookies & choc nut smoothies

Cookies make me think of my little (well, not so little, but younger) brother, who lives in France, who has the nick name, among several others,  the Cookie Monster. He is the family's sweet tooth, but I am finding that I am also developing quite the sweet tooth these days, which is ironic now that I eat a low fructose diet!
I made up a batch of these cookies last week as a last minute, quick throw together for a treat for friends. This week, I have been in short supply of sweet treats, so this morning, my energy was dedicated to making another batch of these cookies.
I was not feeling fantastic this morning though, so to help me to power through while I made the cookies, I whipped up my latest favourite smoothie. I am absolutely a green smoothie convert, and love the additional serve of greens it gives you in the day. However, I have also discovered recently the wonder of adding nut butter to a smoothie! So my recent fav does not have greens, but is packed full of goodies; perfect for those moments when you want to trick your tastebuds into thinking you are having a decadent, naughty treat, but it is actually filled with great things to make your body happy!

Glimpse into Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

A couple of weeks ago, I went to see my doctor, and came out feeling like we had had a break though. I have been seeing him for close to a year now, and he has tested me for so many conditions in an attempt to explain my symptoms. I have had several tests come back out of whack, and now, along with a new result showing that I have had Ebstein Barr Virus in the past, combined with my symptoms and ruling out other similar conditions, he has officially diagnosed Myalgic Encephalitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Along with that I already knew I also have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (an autoimmune condition), multiple food intolerances, Fructose Malabsorption, low parathyroid function, and a couple of other things I will have to monitor.

 

Glimpse into nut & seed, banana power bread

Last night, as I lay wide awake with my usual night time companion, insomnia, I brainstormed ideas to make a cake/bread which contained healthy ingredients. I wanted to create something that I didn't need to feel guilty about eating, but tasted good, and would give me a hit of nutrition, energy and keep me feeling full, which is important to everyone, especially those with chronic fatigue issues. This morning, I woke with enough energy to hit the kitchen and experiment. A friend who doubted the flavour potential has taste tested, and he has given the tick of approval!

I think it would be nice toasted, with some dairy free butter or nut butter for breakfast or a snack.

Glimpse into gluten free & vegan fruity waffles

On the weekend, I treated myself to a waffle machine (and a dehydrator...posts on that to come!). I could probably count on one hand the times that I ate waffles before I had to restrict my diet, however, the idea of creating something yummy, crunchy on the outside and soft inside, and a winter meal change from my usual delicious quinoa porridge, made me excited to get my hands on a waffle iron and create! I sieved through multiple recipes and came up with a combination of ingredients which I can tolerate, and what I had in the kitchen. This is what resulted! (And I had to make them again this morning; they were so good!).

 

Glimpse into defining ourselves through illness

I read some advice recently about not letting your illness define you. This initially sounded logical, and quite a basic instinct. However upon mulling it over, I started questioning the feasibility of this concept, when you are deep in the throws of a chronic condition.

Glimpse into low FODMAP power balls

I am sure that on your quest for healthy recipes, you've probably come across nutritious balls made of an assortment of good ingredients. Most of these contain sticky, dried fruits however, and when you have fructose malabsorption, dried dates, apricots and the like are a big no no. So I decided that I wanted to come up with a mixture that is fructose friendly, delicious and provides the nutritious energy hit of these powerful super balls!

Glimpse into the misconceptions surrounding pushing through chronic illness

This morning, my mum and I were talking about people's perceptions of you when you have a chronic health problem. I know that I have touched on this before, but when you are living with an ongoing issue, it is tough enough without having to deal with people's misconceptions and judgements. We came to the conclusion that no one can really understand the situation unless they actually live through it, or are very close to someone living with it. Mum is the closest person to me in this process, and she even admits to sometimes not understanding, but she truly gets the roller coaster, the hard times, and the frustrations.

The most difficult thing I find that people don't understand, is that some days I can push through, and others I can't. I am one of the lucky ones. Some people with chronic fatigue, pain and fainting issues are in bed all day, every day, and basic things become mammoth tasks. Yes, I can sometimes have a couple of hours where I can put on a brave face, smile, and have fun, or do gentle chores. But what some people don't see, or don't choose to acknowledge, is that the process of getting myself ready, out of the house and to that point was a huge effort. They also do not see that during those smiles I am often feeling bad, and afterwards, I rest on the couch or in bed for hours or days. Sometimes, I do have to cancel plans, because I just feel too bad that there is no pushing through. But on days I can manage to push through, and hide my paleness and dark eyes with makeup, I don't miraculously feel 100%! Maybe that is part of the problem, because I do not voice and make known the invisible symptoms to people around me, or I will say that I am feeling better than I actually am. But I don't want to be "that sick girl who is always complaining"!

Glimpse into choc chip quinoa cookies

My craving for chocolate chip cookies has persisted this week, so I made these sweet treats. They are super quick and easy, and of course, a healthy choice for a treat! 

I eat whole quinoa and quinoa flakes every day in my diet. I have been keen to try quinoa flour, so decided to try it out in this recipe. It turned these cookies, with help from the dark chocolate, into quite an adult, bitter flavour, which I like. If you are looking for a softer, more sweet flavour, try milk chocolate, or substitute the flour for almond flour. Having fructose malabsorption, I was keen to try quinoa flour as I tolerate quinoa well, and although I do tolerate almond meal/flour well, I am always wary of eating nut products as I don't tolerate some very well, such as almond milk. Quinoa is a powerhouse of nutrients and protein, and is such a great way to turn a sweet treat into a healthy snack.

Choc chip quinoa cookies
 

Glimpse into the world of blogs

I have a lot of time on my hands these days while I am unable to work or socialise because of my health. Sometimes, I waste this time, watching trashy sitcoms, or mindlessly flipping through magazines, and that is what I need at those times. Then other times, I make use of brain fog free moments, and read amazing blogs, articles and books about such a range of topics that interest me. We truly are blessed with what we can access. This post is my 100th in blogland, and to celebrate, I have been reflecting on how fantastic blogs can be.

Glimpse into a life transformation

As I deal with a chronic illness that prevents me from taking part in activities that I once loved to do, I take inspiration from people who have managed to change their bodies into something amazing. Whether it is due to chronic illness, a busy and hectic lifestyle, poor choices, or a lack of resources and opportunity, there are so many reasons why people can find themselves in a body that they are less than happy with. I believe that we can all work with what we have and improve the fantastic homes that we live in - after all, it is the only one we will ever get! Whether this means that you will be able to get out of bed for a few hours a day, or whether it means taking part in an ironman, there is a level for everyone that we can aim for, and do everything in our power to reach.

I was lucky enough to interview a woman who has turned her body and life around. She describes her health in the past to have been appalling. She spent years heavily binge drinking two to three times a week, as well as smoking two to seven cigarettes a day, plus an extra pack on a night out. She ate fast and processed foods regularly and took no notice of what was in the food, such as additives and sugars. Her name is Gabrielle, and she decided, while sitting in the smoking area of a pub, intoxicated, that it was time to make a change. She is not only improving her body for her health, but will be competing in the INBA 2013 QLD State Championships for Body Building. What a goal!

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This is where Gabe found her body to be when she decided enough was enough! These are photos that have motivated her to keep going with her change.

Glimpse into a spicy banana nut slab

I got up this afternoon after a morning of resting with a craving for cookies. I managed to pull together some ingredients and came up with a spicy banana nut biscuit.

It was a fairly random effort, and though they taste pretty good (though super sweet!), they are not your normal cookie! They merged into a flat blob in the oven!! But hey, it says on my blog description that there will be some disasters! I put in a tablespoon of rice syrup too, but it made it super sweet, so I wouldn't put that in again. I think you could actually enjoy this fresh from the oven like a pudding, with a raspberry or strawberry purée, or a dollop of goat or lactose free yogurt! :-)