IBS--Free at Last!

Q. 3 and 4 of #fodmapchat Fiber, Recipes

Question 3: Any tips for getting enough fiber on a low FODMAP diet?

Question 4. Any reliable sources for low FODMAPs recipes?

 

Love garlic, hate FODMAPs?

It's easy to get the flavor of garlic into your favorite dishes without eating a load of FODMAPs.  Prepare this easy recipe for garlic oil, then use it as a cooking or seasoning oil in any FODMAPs-friendly recipe that would benefit from a shot of that incomparable garlic flavor:

Garlic Oil

1/2 cup olive oil
3 large cloves of garlic, wash, peeled and slightly crushed

Pour olive oil into a small, heavy saucepan. Add the slightly crushed garlic. Heat oil until small bubbles rise vigorously from the garlic. Remove from heat. Garlic will continue to cool. Allow the garlic and oil to cool for a few minutes, then pour them into a freshly washed glass jar with a lid. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week. Remove the garlic before using the oil. Olive oil will sometimes get a little cloudy or solidify when it is refrigerated, but it will quickly melt back to its familiar form when you remove a spoonful. Use this as a cooking or flavoring oil to modify any recipe in your collection that calls for garlic.

Note: To make sure your garlic oil is safe to eat, do not store it on the counter at room temperature, and do not eat it it if it has been in the fridge for a month! Garlic oil can go bad like any other fresh food.

Why not just used garlic powder, dried or dehydrated garlic? Although a small pinch of these certainly would not have as much fructans as would eating a few cloves of fresh or roasted garlic, they still have some. Garlic-infused oil is the better option.

Perfect Corn Tortillas

Looking for a delicious way to make a special chicken salad sandwich or a wrap that is FODMAPS-friendly? Check out this nicely illustrated recipe for corn tortillas, forwarded by a reader. Thanks, Suzanne, wherever you are!

Peanut Butter Fudge Recipe

This peanut butter fudge was easy, delicious, and FODMAPS-friendly. I would post a picture of it, but there is none left to photograph. It was that good. We brought most of it to a Thanksgiving Day party and enjoyed the rest ourselves. It's nice to bring a dessert to a party that you are sure you will be able to eat and enjoy.

Peanut Butter Fudge

1 cup butter
1 pound natural peanut butter, unsalted (I used Trader Joe's--very smooth texture)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pound powdered sugar

1. Line an 8 x 8" baking pan with waxed paper.

2. Microwave butter and peanut butter together in large microwave safe mixing bowl until melted. Stir and check every two minutes until melted and smooth.

3. Add vanilla and powdered sugar to peanut butter mixture and stir to combine. Mixture should resemble a thick cookie dough. Add more powdered sugar if necessary to achieve the desired consistency.

4. Spoon the fudge into the baking pan and spread out to the edges with a knife.

5. Cover and chill. Cut into 1" square pieces and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Servings: 64

Vital Wheat Gluten

Gluten is one of the proteins found in wheat, rye, and barley. In some cuisines (especially Asian, macrobiotic or vegetarian) it is processed and used as a protein source. It is also used in bread baking, to improve the texture, elasticity and rise of the bread.

There are several brands of vital wheat gluten on the market, and I've been asked whether gluten is an allowed ingredient on the FODMAPS elimination diet. Great question! I had a look at the Nutrition Facts for three major brands of vital wheat gluten on Zeer, one of my favorite web sites.

I see that two of the brands, Bob's Red Mill and Arrowhead Mills, have zero grams of fiber per serving, and zero grams of sugar per serving. Therefore, they don't contain any FODMAPS, and are likely to be well tolerated on the FODMAPS elimination diet. Obviously, these products would never be appropriate for anyone with celiac disease, gluten intolerance, or a wheat allergy.

Starting with a gluten-free (non-wheat flour) recipe and adding some vital wheat gluten to help improve the texture and rise of the products could be really interesting! Please comment here if you would like to share the results of your experiments with other readers.

Enter to win the ibsfree.net FODMAPS-friendly recipe contest!

Every few days I review the site statistics for this blog, and I've learned that many visitors are especially interested in the recipes posted here. I'd like to build the recipe collection with your help! Do you have a FODMAPS-friendly recipe you'd be willing to share?

Here is the process:

• Review your recipe to make sure it is FODMAPS-friendly. This will be easier if you have read IBS--Free at Last! Those who haven't read the book yet can also submit recipes, but if the recipe contains FODMAPS, your entry won't qualify for the $25 best recipe prize. No purchase is necessary to enter this contest!
• Download the contest guidelines from the Resources sidebar of this blog. Please take the time to review these guidelines and the sample entry form.
• Download the entry form, use your word processor to type in your entry information and recipe, and send it to me at patsycatsos@gmail.com as an email attachment.
• If you prefer, download the pdf version of the entry form, fill it in by hand, scan it, and send it back to me as an email attachment.
• That's it! Suitable entries may be posted in the ibsfree.net recipe collection or in my upcoming cookbook.
• There is a $25 Whole Foods gift certificate for the best recipe submitted by February 28, 2010.
• When the cookbook is published, I will draw 10 names from those who submitted recipes, and will send those 10 people free cookbooks, postage paid (sorry, continental U.S. only--if you are elsewhere, I will contact you to make arrangements for shipping).
• If you have questions about the contest, please ask via the "comments" link, below.

I can't wait to hear from you!

Make Your Own Lactose-Free Yogurt

Yes, it is possible to make your own lactose-free yogurt. There are a couple of ways to accomplish this:

1) Make yogurt with any recipe and equipment; make sure to age the yogurt for 24 hours before chilling it to stop the fermentation process. The bacteria in the yogurt culture will have time to eat up all the lactose in the milk, rendering it lactose-free.

2) Make yogurt with lactose free milk; age the yogurt only as long as convenient, until set.

I purchased an inexpensive, 1-quart yogurt maker on Amazon.com (less than $20.00). Bought the yogurt starter in the dairy case at Whole Foods. Followed the directions on the yogurt starter package--easy. The milk I used was lactose-free. The results were absolutely delicious and FODMAPS-friendly.

P.S. If Green Valley Lactose-Free Yogurt is available in your area, you might not have to make your own after all.

"Healthy" is in the Eye of the Beholder and Other Disclaimers

"If those are healthy recipes, sign me up!"  Readers are psyched to have old favorites such as macaroni and cheese blessed by a dietitian!

Perhaps this would be a good time to offer some disclaimers: 

• We all need party foods or comfort foods sometimes, even if we're on a special diet. Clearly, it's an important concern! So,I have offered some low-FODMAPS party and comfort food recipes for your consideration, not that I would recommend them for everyday fare.
• When it comes to nutrition, "healthy" is sometimes in the eye of the beholder. By this, I mean that we all have unique diet and nutrition priorities, depending on our medical, family, genetic, diet and exercise histories. What appears to be healthy for one person may not be appropriate for the next, and vice versa. The recipes presented on this blog are designed for those whose highest dietary priority is reducing IBS symptoms due to intolerance of FODMAPS carbohydrates such as lactose, fructose, fructans, galactans and polyols. In the portion sizes suggested, these recipes will fill that bill.
• If, in addition to IBS, you have other medical diagnoses, take prescription medications or have other health issues such as over- or under-weight, you should consult a registered dietitian to assist in designing an appropriate diet. Do not diagnose yourself with IBS. If you have gastrointestinal symptoms suggestive of IBS, consult your physician to rule out other serious medical conditions and to receive a proper diagnosis. This web site does not provide medical advice, and is not a subsitute for personal medical care provided by a qualified health care professional.

Updated 9/20/2011

Buy IBS--Free at Last!