While trying to figure out a new direction for my blog I decided that I probably over-think quite a few things far too much. Instead of making time for the all projects I would like to do and share, perhaps I should focus on the ones I already do, no matter how mundane they might seem to me. We’ll see how that goes.
Since November our whole little family has switched to a primal/paleo diet. Not for weight loss purposes, but for health reasons. For those who do not know, my posslq, Caswallon, has a form of epilepsy caused a brain cysts he has had since birth. It is one of those unusual understudied varieties of epilepsy that they pretty much just throw drugs at until something sticks. (Note: I have nothing against medication, in all likelihood without them and his shunt Caswallon would be dead by now, so I am grateful.) There is not much that can be done to control a brain that randomly decides to mess with one’s body, but that doesn’t mean we don’t try.
So this lifestyle has have changed to is an attempt to reduce the amount of seizures Caswallon has. It is based on a modified ketogenic diet which has tremendous success in helping to control some forms of epilepsy. It is modified because a ketogenic diet is very notoriously difficult to adhere to and the modified version, which is basically a form of low carb diet works almost as well for adults and with a few modifications is suitable for the rest of us in the household. So far we have had almost a 50% reduction in seizures, so I am inclined to say it is working well. He has seizure flare ups from time to time, but almost always when we slip up and order a gob of Chinese takeout, or eat a whole cheesecake or something. (Side note, my chronic migraines are for the most part gone. Not complaining. I am sure I have lost some weight too, but I don’t keep track.)
“What what can’t you eat?” is the first question I usually get about it. Grains and refined sugar mostly. So no rice, bread, oatmeal, pasta, corn, cakes, some legumes, white or brown sugar, soda… I prefer to focus on what we can eat though, high-fat foods, nuts, meat, fish, plenty of fruit and vegetables, honey and maple syrup in moderation, chocolate, heavy cream, whole milk, cheeses… Mostly though, people get hung up on the whole grain thing, “I don’t know how you can live without bread/pasta!?” tends to be one of the first things out of people’s mouth. Honestly I have abstained from grain for so long now, I really don’t miss it. It feels like a bland food additive to me rather than anything else. The transition was somewhat harder for Caswallon, who grew up here in the United States where grain and low-fat feels it is central to everything, but he is pretty damn stubborn too, so he got through the whole carb craving phase. He misses things like Donut Parade, but also admits that while he craves it, it is mostly psychological because when he eats it, it just doesn’t taste as good any more, and then it gives him more seizures too.
Anyhow, what this ramble is all leading to is just a simple recipe that makes up in less than 20 minutes. It perfect for our lunch boxes and is kind of like our version of a sandwich. The amounts are really flexible in this recipe, but I usually use about 3 oz of salmon and 6 oz of cream cheese (the kids steal the other 2 oz when I am making it) and it fills about 16 mini bell peppers depending on their size. I like the combination of sweet crunchy bell peppers with the smoky creamy filling.
Salmon Stuffed Mini Bells
Ingredients:
- Cream Cheese, softened
- Wild-Caught Smoked Salmon
- Mini Bell Peppers
Instructions:
- Cut the tops off the bell peppers and carefully cut out the seeds. I have little fingers so I just kind of reach in and scrap them out. Set aside.
- Break up the salmon into little pieces into a medium sized bowl. The kind I buy (at Winco) just kind of flakes apart when I rub it between my fingers, so I do that. Mince it up it yours is more solid than that.
- Dump your cream cheese in and smooch it up with a spoon. Using a smaller spoon (or if you loath dishes as much as I do, lick off the spoon, flip it around and use the narrow flat part on the other end) pack the mixture gently into the empty mini bell peppers. If you pack it too hard sometimes the bell peppers will split, they are pretty sturdy little things though.
- Pack into a container for the lunch the next day, or eat some and save the rest of the lunch, or eat them all and buy a salad in the school cafeteria the next day.
