I want to set it straight today with the truth about greens and gut healing.
Wicked Winter Squash with IBS and IBD
I have a ton of great information for you today on wicked winter squash with IBS and IBD.
But guys, let’s quick be very clear….I don’t actually think that winter squash is wicked. I love it.
I haven’t been bloated in such a long time (squeeeee), but when I added winter squash back into my diet, my stomach began to get grumpy.
I already knew that sweet potatoes hated me. They are not in the winter squash family, but they have similar effects on me.
So I investigated winter squash, the wicked winter squash with IBS and IBD.
I have information for y’all.
What is Winter Squash?
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First, let’s make sure you know what winter squash is.
I have made it simple.
Starchy Vegetables
Ding. Ding. This is likely to be the main cause.
Winter squashes are starchy vegetables. Starchy vegetables are, oftentimes, high-quality carbohydrates. This makes them awesome for most people.
As women with IBS or IBD and/or unknown grumpy guts in general, we are not most people.
A long time ago I told you about bananas, remember? I told you we typically need to eat them super ripened, as unripe fruit has too much starch.
If we’re eating bananas in a way that reduces or eliminates the starch, then it only makes sense that we need to be cognizant of this with all foods.
Both winter squashes and sweet potatoes fall under this starchy vegetable category.
Here are several starch-filled foods: plantain, yam, potato, sweet potatoes (all sorts), acorn squash, butternut squash, parsnips, beets, carrots, beans (baked, garbanzo, limo, black, kidney, navy, pinto), green peas and lentils.
Wicked Winter Squash with IBS and IBD
Gutsy women have a hard time breaking starch down. Our guts have to work extremely hard to process them into simpler forms. And thus, they stay in the colon longer.
The longer they stay in the colon, the more chance they have at feeding any bad bacteria.
Think about that for a second. Remember what I said about fiber? Yes, fiber is amazing. Yes, we eventually want to heal our guts to a place where we can eat a lot of fiber again, but for now and until we clear away the icky bacteria, fiber only helps to feed that icky bacteria.
And once again, our “awesome starches,” which include winter squashes are helping to feed this icky bacteria.
The Stinky Follows
And the last step in all of this discomfort and grumbling from our beloved winter squashes is typically a stinky-ness which follows. (Ahem, a classic SIBO symptom.)
Why?
The starch has stayed in the digestive tract for too long. It had time to ferment and thus produced a “rotten egg” smell. (Fermentation in the gut is fascinating to me, and I’m planning to do a blog post at some point on that as well.)
The Wicked Winter Squash
I have to tell you, I’m super heartbroken over all of this. I know for sure that I cannot eat bowl after bowl of the goods all season long. But here’s the good news – for me, and for you – once the gut heals, digesting winter squash should absolutely not present these problems and symptoms.
Luckily for me, I know I’m healing majorly. Tuesday night I had about 1 cup of freshly baked pumpkin (I had to resist the urge for several more). No problems with 1 cup. We’re healing!
I’ve made a phenomenal commitment to myself during these 101 days, and I’m finally starting to reap the beautiful rewards.
Xox,
SKH
Strawberry and Thyme Slow Cooked Spaghetti Squash
By the time summer fades to fall, I am always ready for the change in the air, mood and (mostly) eats. Fall and winter contain the foods I love most…heavier, heartier and (for me) much more satisfying. While this recipe is not heavy or hearty, it is a gradual fall to that place. It is my Strawberry and Thyme Slow Cooked Spaghetti Squash.
When summer fades to fall, I begin to realize that with the cozier months ahead, my slow cookers will be used daily.
There is nothing wrong with this.
I’m all for baking a plump spaghetti squash, mostly because I love the way you are able to create the spaghetti-like strands.
The enjoyment ends there.
The pain point begins here.
Look familiar?
I’m not about to strong-man my way to the lovely taste of spaghetti squash each time I want to eat it.
Here’s the secret: slow cook it.
And here’s how.
Step one: puncture holes in the squash.
Step two: place your squash(es) in a slow cooker, and add just a little bit of water to cover the bottom.
Step three: cook on low for about 4-5 hours (depending on how big/how many squash(es) you have).
Step four: remove the squash from your slow cooker. Ah…..the knife goes in with ease.
Step five: (easily) scrape out the seeds and any unwanted insides. Enjoy the rest!
I made this a couple weeks back, so I took it and transformed it to a Strawberry and Thyme-flavored Spaghetti Squash.
Strawberry and Thyme Slow Cooked Spaghetti Squash
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Prepare your spaghetti squash per the above (or any other method desired), then add recipe below.
Strawberry and Thyme Slow Cooked Spaghetti Squash
Recipe type: Entree
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 2
Ingredients
- 4 whole strawberries, diced
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 2 tsp. lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- ½ tsp. fresh thyme
- sea salt, to taste
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients together in a small blender
- Transfer the spaghetti squash and blended "dressing" to a mixer (I used my KitchenAid)
- Mix together until blended, add sea salt to taste
- Serve as is or add in cut up strawberries and/or more fresh thyme
Side note: I liked this even better the day after. It was good warm, but I enjoyed it much more as a “cold” dish. (And that’s why it’s “summer” fades to fall.)
Side note take two: Even during fall and winter, many of my recipes will have lemon added. Why? Because the digestive system loves it some lemon.
Xox,
SKH
Greek Yogurt Alternative
Do you love how thick and creamy Greek Yogurt is, but don’t want/can’t do dairy? Never fear…..your Greek Yogurt alternative is here!
I’m well into my actual gut healing phase, but there are still 65 days left.
This, of course, means that I am not even halfway there, and the truth is that I’m fairly confident I will need much more than 101 days.
By July 30th, I was down 7 pounds of pure bloat. I’ve maintained this. The progress is huge for me.
I still have my tough days, but I’m about 90% confident that those days are not about food, but about other things. Time will tell, and I will tell you.
Last week I added in more vegetables, but not traditional ones (i.e. salads, roughage, etc).
I de-skinned, de-seeded and cut into small pieces zucchini and squash. I then slow cooked them with beef. Here’s how. Not only did it taste awesome, but my gut accepted it.
This week, I’m attempting to do the same, but with butternut squash. It may work, it may not, but the goal is to add things….slowly but surely.
I can’t tell you how month 2 is going to play out. I can’t tell you exactly what I’ll do because the truth is that once I add something in, I rarely add in another thing for 48+ hours (to watch for reactions).
What I can tell you are two things:
- I’m staying on a 100 billion probiotic
- dessert is imminent
I’ve been a dessert girl my whole life. This past weekend I was craving Greek yogurt. Clearly, there is no dairy anywhere in the near future especially the nasty Greek yogurt on the market (unless of course, I am able to get/introduce raw dairy).
I became nostalgic, remembering the days when I would take Greek yogurt, add in a dabble of honey and top it with blueberries.
Surely there was a way to replicate.
And there was….the base of it just looked a little different, full-fat coconut milk.
I had a can that had been in the fridge, so I knew it would make a thick base.
I whipped it with pure, raw honey, and then simply layered it with super-ripe banana and blueberries (I didn’t know if I would react to whole blueberries, so I didn’t use very many of them).
Greek Yogurt Alternative
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Here is how you can make this in less than 5 minutes.
Seriously, those cute, little jars really enhance the experience.
And what I am learning these days?
It’s all about the experience; happiness, emotions, faith, hope, and love.
Pause for the little things. If we don’t, the big things hit us like bricks – full force.
But when we do stop for those experiences? Yes…..true healing magically begins to evolve.
Xox,
SKH
Is Fiber Helping or Hurting Me
If you live with IBS and/or IBD, a common thought is, “Is fiber helping or hurting me?”
A Gutsy-Approved Dinner: 6 Simple Things to Make
I love the kitchen. I’m fairly certain I’ve made that abundantly clear by now. But most days during the week, I don’t have time to rack my brain around new and interesting recipes.
That’s the thing about the kitchen and about healing the gut in general – it doesn’t need to be a big production.
I share several recipes and quick ideas like this with my clients when they are in the phase of true “gutsy,” meaning the most strict phase to begin healing the gut. Today, I’m sharing several with you.
In a couple of weeks you’ll be able to get all of these and several more in my new e-book: The Gutsy Girl’s Bible: an approach to healing the gut. (<– click to sign up so you don’t miss the email when it launches).
A Gutsy-Approved Dinner: 6 Simple Things to Make
Plain ‘Ole Butternut Squash Cubes
Ingredients
- butternut squash cubes
- coconut oil
- rosemary
- cinnamon
- sea salt
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cover a pan with tinfoil, and lightly brush it with coconut oil. Place the butternut squash on the pan. Top with a little more coconut oil, about 1-2 tbsp. fresh rosemary, dashes of cinnamon and sea salt to taste. Bake for about 40 minutes.
Serve as a side dish or for dessert.
Jumbo Side Salad
Ingredients
- spring mix
- spinach
- bamboo shoots
- water chestnuts
- cilantro
- parsley
- lemon
- sea salt
- olive oil
It’s so simple to toss all ingredients in a bowl and eat up. I wouldn’t eat this as a stand alone meal, but instead as an addition to another side and meat or fish.
Flavored Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 4 chicken thighs, trimmed
- olive oil
- sage
- honey
- sea salt
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Trim the fat off of 4 chicken thighs. Cover your baking pan and chicken with a little olive oil. Top each piece of chicken with one sprig of sage and drizzle a little honey over each, topped with a few sprinkles of sea salt. Bake for about 28 minutes.
Salad and Broth
Ingredients
- spring mix
- spinach
- turkey meatloaf muffins
- lemon
- olive oil
- sea salt
- broth
Some nights all I want is something light and soothing. I mix together a salad with all ingredients, placing one of my pre-made turkey meatloaf muffins (chopped, without the flaxseed, oats, cayenne and onion) on top. I serve it with a cup of homemade chicken broth. I sprinkle lemon on both the salad and in the broth.
Roasted and Soft Fruit ‘n Veggies
Ingredients
- cucumber, de-skinned and de-seeded
- zucchini, de-skinned
- apple, de-skinned and cored
- butternut squash, diced
- olive oil
- sea salt
One night, I had a lot of random things in the fridge. I cut up some cucumber, zucchini, one apple and added some Organic diced butternut squash (that I picked up from Costco). I threw them all in a bread loaf pan with some olive oil and sea salt and covered with tinfoil.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bake the side for 30 minutes. Take it out, stir. Place it back in the oven. Bake for another 30 minutes.
{The side dish won’t be a typical “roasted” dish likely, but instead very soft. It was a great blend!}
Creamy Coconut-Banana Milk Shake
Ingredients
- bananas (frozen)
- coconut milk
- fresh mint leaves
- ice cubes
I have a Yonanas, which is amazing, so I used that. If you don’t have one, a blender will be fine. Freeze a couple brown bananas. Once frozen, take them out, place in a blender with about ½-1 c. coconut milk and about ½-1tbsp. fresh mint leaves. Add crushed ice cubes. Blend. This made enough for Ryan and I. So creamy, thick and delicious!
Eat up!
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Xox,
SKH