I worked with a client recently who was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, and it has turned her life upside down. Celiac Disease is a genetic autoimmune disorder that results in being highly gluten intolerant. When they eat gluten they suffer damage to their small intestine, this can lead to a host full of ills, including unhealthy weight loss and the inability to absorb nutrients. Working with this client and helping her understand that her life is not over and that there are so many options out there. In her world she wasn't about food, she ate for survival and ate what she liked and sounded good to her, but not really, as I call it a "foodie". So with this diagnosis it put her in a situation of the unknown, how should she be eating, what should she be eating, what are her options. Now we all know there are hundreds upon hundreds of gluten products out there to buy, but my client is educated enough to know that those aren't always the best options, many of them are processed and still have additives, too much sugar and chemicals in them. You can't make a healthy lifestyle on the gluten free products that are out there. Choosing the right foods to eat became such a chore she wouldn't eat at all, meaning she would skip lunch and/or dinner. Maybe eat some snacks she knew she could eat but not enough to sustain her and her active lifestyle. She lost weight, too much weight, and couldn't get it under control.
This brought her back into the kitchen, cooking she doesn't mind but her experience is minimal when it comes to flavors and seasonings, dressings, sauces, good food combinations. What I helped her realize and understand is that there are so many options and combinations. I gave her some recipes, we cooked together, talked about all of her options and the choices out there for her. We discussed flavors, different foods she could put together, simple recipes she can make, and for her its was all about simple. Eating well doesn't have to be difficult or a struggle, she even enjoyed spending time in the grocery store navigating the aisles and the location of the foods I had on her list, some she had never even heard of.
Whether you struggle with food choices, food limitations, food allergies or just a poor diet, you need to realize that there are so many options and resources available to you. I am happy to help you with his process.
BBQ Black Bean Burgers
Ingredients:
Olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil or high heat oil of choice
½ yellow, chopped
4 cloves
3 cups chopped mushrooms
1 tsp chili powder
2 ½ cups gluten free pretzels or other gluten free crackers
1 15 oz can black beans
¼ cup BBQ sauce*
1 tsp salt
hamburger buns
Burger fixings of choice
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees, line a cooking sheet with parchment paper
Cover bottom of skillet with cooking oil, add onion and cook until translucent, add garlic and cook another 1-2 minutes.
Add mushrooms and cook until soft and starting to carmalize, add chili powder and cook another minute.
Place pretzels in a food processor and process until they are like fine bread crumbs. Add black beans, onion and mushroom mixture and bbq sauce and salt to the food processor, process until well combined.
Make burger patties into desired size, place on cooking sheet and bake about 20 minutes on each side.
Toast your buns and add all the goodies you like on your burger.
*For the bbq sauce, you can make your own or there are a few healthy versions you can buy, gluten free, low in sugar...
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