FODMAPS and BEYOND
Almost a month into the New Year and many people are in the early stages or half way through their resolutions; diets, lifestyle changes, cleanses, etc., to start the year in the hopes of creating better, long-term habits. For some it may be cutting back on alcohol or quitting sugar and gluten or starting a new fitness routine, but for most, too much change and restriction at once causes frustration sooner than later and sends us right back into the habits we’re trying to balance.
While I am not writing this post for the purpose of those looking for weight loss specifically, hopefully it will help those looking for ideas and ways to be successful and excited throughout their resolutions, no matter the personal intended outcomes.
First of all, when changing one’s diet, especially if choosing a restricted diet, it is strongly encouraged to speak with a GI (gastroenterologist), clinical dietician or a nutritionist to be sure you are getting proper nutrients and not developing unhealthy eating habits. I am none of those, however, I have worked with one myself and what I am sharing with you is what worked for me to stay on track without feeling frustrated or missing what I was missing.
I mention FODMAPs, which is an acronym for the types of sugars in the foods being avoided, a highly restrictive diet that I had been prescribed by a GI for minor, ongoing digestive issues. It is possibly the most restrictive diet and it is not intended for long-term practice due to its highly restrictive requirements. If you are working with a dietary professional and they have recommended a low FODMAPs diet, then it is imperative you follow their directions. That said, the good news is it is easy to build off of a low FODMAPs diet for those taking on less restrictive diets.
One of the more popular diets to take on is Whole 30, which isn’t too different from a low FODMAPs diet in that no alcohol, dairy, sugar, grain, etc. is allowed, however, vegetables and protein are fair game. It is intended as an elimination diet, so not intended to be permanent but instead to help figure out which foods trigger negative physical outcomes. With a low FODMAPs diet, while excluding all of the same food groups as Whole 30, there are also many vegetables, meat substitutes, seeds and nuts that are either restricted or allowed in specific amounts at a time, and in most FODMAPs diets, no fruits until your dietician guides them back into your diet. The reason for this in layman’s terms is the way these foods break down and are absorbed through the digestion process can cause or contribute to unwanted and uncomfortable organisms in the gut. These foods aren’t bad for you overall, but for those suffering with SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) or other difficult gut ailments, it is necessary to avoid certain foods in stages in order to rebalance and reset the gut biome.
Now that I have familiarized you with two major restrictive elimination diets, let’s get into how we can follow them and build off of them successfully.
In the two weeks leading up to beginning my low FODMAPs diet, I was absolutely dreading it. I was so focused on what I would be missing and how boring everything would be, I seriously started to doubt I’d be able to finish it. Well, I did and it was fine. The first step was changing my perspective in regards to giving up so many foods, along with the obvious alcohol, sugar and gluten. One day I realized; this will be difficult, but it will only be this difficult temporarily and it will provide permanent, positive changes in my everyday life. Ultimately, I discovered I needed a little gut balancing by creating more awareness to the quality and variety of the foods I eat as part of my everyday diet. As a result of this experience, my cooking and eating habits changed for the better. Succeeding at following such a restrictive and intensive diet, all while working and living day to day life, showed me how easy it is to eat healthy and deliciously. And that is why I am sharing this. Our lifestyles are ultimately what will make us successful in maintaining our goals, not temporary fixes where results dissipate faster than they appeared.
First of all, a diet is literally what one eats, so in order to be successful with weight and/or health goals, one must be mindful of their everyday diet. This does not mean I recommend obsessing over every calorie and macro per meal or eliminating foods and drinks you love permanently, just being conscious of what you eat everyday. To be clear, diet is a very complex subject and varies person to person depending on their needs. Obviously, those with families or those in a shared household may find more challenges, in which case I would recommend speaking with your family/ shared meal partner(s) to see where they can support your success. Remember, the few recipes I am sharing pertain to temporary diets, but the ultimate goal is habitual quality eating for the longterm.
The best way to succeed in a diet, temporary or permanent, is meal planning. For many this may sound boring; the typical baked veggies, prepped proteins, etc., but it doesn’t have to be. Obviously, during an elimination diet like I mentioned before, this is often the case due to their restrictions, which is why I will share a couple elimination recipes and tips to get you on the right path. For those not following an elimination diet and just looking to create more conscious eating habits, the key will be quality with your planning.
Before I go into the recipes, I want to make it clear I only used organic, high quality, and no preservative ingredients and I continue to do so in my everyday cooking/eating with the exception of when I eat out. The reason for this is your body is intelligent; it knows exactly what it needs and how and when to use what you give it. That said, if you give it things it doesn’t need, like a preservative or processed food or low quality vegetables and meats with depleted nutritional value, it just stores those “ingredients”, ultimately contributing to what becomes excess fat.
Tip: for those specifically following Whole 30, FODMAPs, or a Carb Specific diet - take the list of foods you are allowed to eat with you to the grocery store and buy everything on it you know you’ll eat. That’s what I did, and it made figuring out what to make myself much easier. Also, I did use canned tomatoes for some recipes as well as jar products, but I found ones excluding any preservatives and only with ingredients (if there was a marinade of some sort) I knew were allowed in my diet. Double check with your dietician if you’re working with one, but I found if ascorbic acid was an ingredient it was ok as it is Vitamin-C, which in a highly restricted diet is generally allowed. Just know, whatever you buy that isn’t fresh, you will be spending a lot of time reading ingredients labels. That said, while unfortunately following any kind of healthy diet tends to be more expensive, if you are going this route, I recommend shopping at health food stores to make your time shopping easier.
I do not measure any of my ingredients, I never do, unless I’m baking, which we won’t be doing here since there is no sugar, dairy, or gluten in these recipes. Rule of thumb; you can always add but you can’t take away, so start conservative if you haven’t dabbled in the kitchen too much in the past. You will also notice no garlic or onion or most other aromatics because these are specifically low FODMAPs recipes, but you can build and add to them as you like if you are not following a low FODMAPs diet.
Full disclosure, breakfast and snacks were the most challenging while following a low FODMAPs diet. I relied heavily on eggs, usually hardboiled because I could make a bunch and take them with me, and since salt and pepper and tabasco were allowed, I could pizazz them per meal. I also followed the allotted veggie portions per serving and would prep accordingly for each day. I ordered a freezer lunch bag from Amazon just big enough to carry my breakfast and snack for the day, which was basically the same foods for breakfast and midday snacks, dinner being the all star meal for the most part. But again, my specific diet was designed to be temporary, however, the habits I developed from it are not. I am no longer following a restricted diet, but I still use my lunch bag for my breakfast during the week, and while I otherwise don’t need to worry about meal planning as much, I am still diligent about the quality of what I am eating, making almost everything from scratch whenever possible so I can always control what I’m eating. That said, I still enjoy myself and go out to eat, drink, (I love red wine) and I am a sucker for chocolate chip cookies, I just don’t do it all the time.
Homemade Bone Broth
Lamb or beef stew meat or left over bones recommended
Strip as much meat off as possible and add to a large pot of water
Bring to a boil, add more water if needed, let simmer for several hours
The more bones used, the more distinct the flavor, roughly 1/2 pound- 1 pound should be good for a regular size pot
Carrot Ginger Soup
Homemade broth - very important!
Large carrots - sliced thick, roughly six total depending how thick you like the soup
One red bell pepper - roughly chopped in chunks
Fresh Chive - chopped, added to soup as well as used as garnish
Fresh Parsley - finely chopped for garnish
Fresh ginger - finely chopped, about two tablespoons
Spices - salt and pepper, turmeric and paprika - roughly half a teaspoon for each, S n P can always be added to preferred taste
Ghee - about a tablespoon, but always add if needed
Put ingredients in a large pot and cook on medium-low heat until carrots soften. Add broth and let cook until boiling. Blend with an immersion blender until creamy. If using a vitamix, follow their soup setting instructions. If you make a large batch, about this recipe size or more, it can last about a week in the fridge as a side dish with a protein at dinner.
Eggplant Casserole
Pre heat oven to 350
Two large eggplant - thick slice, salt and let it rest about 15 minutes, then dab the water off each slice
Sliced or diced tomatoes - Two large cans, organic, no preservatives
Fresh Parsley - chopped
Fresh Chives - chopped
Green Beans - 10 if following low FODMAPs, otherwise, as many as you’d like - broken in about 1 inch chunks
Red Bell Pepper - chopped
Two Carrots - large, shredded
Fresh Spinach - 15 leaves, more if not following FODMAPs diet
Pine Nuts - 1 Tablespoon, more if not following FODMAPs diet
Olive Oil - about a tablespoon
Fresh Lemon - squeezed, half or whole lemon
Spices - rosemary, dried basil, thyme, salt and pepper - pinch of each, add as desired
Using a food processor or vitamix, combine parsley, chive, spinach, pine nuts, carrots, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and blend until smooth for a modified pesto.
In a medium sized pot combine canned tomatoes, spices, fresh parsley and fresh chive, cook on low and stir until warm.
In a glass baking pan (preferred), dribble some olive oil and place a single layer of eggplant on the bottom, use some of the sauce to cover the eggplant. Place bell peppers and green beans mixed on top of the sauce. Layer “pesto” on top of bell pepper and green bean mix. Layer remaining eggplant slices and pour desired amount of sauce on top. I like it saucy so I used the whole pot. If you have more ingredients left over, save or continue layering. Place in oven and bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Depending how much you made, can be part of dinner for 3-5 days, reheated in the oven and it was still delicious!
Vegetable Soup
Homemade Broth - very important!
Fresh Ginger - finely chopped, about 1 tablespoon
Fresh Celery - one to two stalks
Fresh Green Beans - 10 broken into 1 inch chunks if following FODMAPs diet, otherwise as many as desired
Beets - Two slices chopped if following FODMAPs, otherwise as many as desired
Cabbage - 1/4 cup chopped if following FODMAPs diet, otherwise as much as desired
Peppers (Bell and/or spicey) - chopped into chunks
Carrots - Two large sliced medium thick, I used the largest setting on a mandolin
Fresh or Canned Tomatoes - If using canned, diced, organic, no preservatives. For fresh, either whole cherry or halved organic tomatoes
Fresh Chives - about half a bundle chopped for garnish
Fresh Parsley - about half a bundle chopped for garnish
Salt and Pepper - to taste
In a large pot, combine all ingredients with broth, except parsley and chives and cook until boiling, add salt and pepper to taste. Will be chunky vegetable soup similar to a minestrone, best up to five days in the fridge and reheat on the stove.
FODMAPs Fall Salad
Fresh Radicchio - chopped and washed
Fresh Dino Kale - washed, “massaged”, chopped
Fresh Endive - washed and chopped
Fresh Chive - half bundle chopped
Fresh Parsley - half bundle chopped
Fresh Radish - any type, I used rainbow, two sliced thin on a mandolin
Fresh Beet - two slices chopped
Fresh Carrots - two small, shredded
Fresh Green Beans - 10 broken into 1 inch chunks if following FODMAPs, otherwise a few more if desired, cooked first with salt and pepper in a little olive oil
Sunflower Seeds - One tablespoon
Prep the lettuce by chopping and washing, I use an OXO salad spinner, keep the kale separate. To prep the kale, rinse each leaf and beat dry against your palm, peel off the stalks, then mash/ massage in a bowl to soften. You can also wash it in a salad spinner after for good measure. This will make it less bitter and softer. After the green beans are cooked and cooled, combine all ingredients in a large bowl to toss with dressing.
If being made to last a few days, prep the lettuce to be kept separately and do not dress anything. Serve and combine only what you plan to eat.
Citrus Dressing
Lemon - one fresh squeezed
Apple Cider Vinegar - with the “mother”, 1 tablespoon
Olive Oil - about 1 1/2 tablespoons, add if needed
Salt and Pepper
In a jar or bowl, combine and mix all ingredients. I use an eight ounce glass jar with a screw top lid so it is easy to shake and mix and store if I make extra, lasts about one week in the fridge.
I hope you enjoy! Remember, everything is modifiable to your specific needs, these are just some recipes I came up with while following a low FODMAPs diet as I found recipes for such a restricted diet hard to come by.