Gluten-free Pizza-Quesadilla-Calzone-Thingy

I've decided to start experimenting with a gluten-free lifestyle. Cause I need more stuff to obsess over, right?


I already don't eat much wheat, but I've read up on it recently (okay, the free sample of Wheat Belly that I downloaded on my Kindle) and while I am not completely convinced that wheat is inherently evil, I am curious enough to tinker around see whether eliminating it helps me get rid of my little pregnancy souvenir. I'm talking here about the poochy tummy, not the baby. I'm keeping the baby, so hands off! 


There are really only three instances of wheat in my life: my morning toast,  my Wednesday night homemade pizza, and my Friday night Papa John's pizza. Pizza is kind of a big deal to me. I know it's not good to put food on a pedestal but I would totally marry pizza if I could. But I digress.


The morning toast was an easy enough substitute. One loaf of Udi's Whole Grain bread instead of whole wheat did the trick and it is dang good! Udi's also makes a pizza crust but my grocery store didn't carry it so I decided to try making a pizza calzone with a gluten-free wrap instead. It was really really good and I will definitely keep this substitution!  Check out how I did it:


I used Food for Life's Brown Rice Tortilla. I defrosted it in the microwave and put it on my pizza pan. It stiffens up fast so you have to move quickly to fill it up and fold it over without breaking it.

I put a little tomato sauce, some spinach (of course), black olives, onion, banana peppers, and green pepper on half of it, and sprinkled one ounce of mozzarella cheese on top. A little italian seasoning and garlic, and then I folded it over. It wanted to pop back open so I used the side of the other pizza crust I was also baking for my husband and son (who for some reason do not want to take part in my food experiments) to keep it closed.


Popped it in the oven at 450 for 10 minutes. The wrap is not pliable at all, so the end result was more of a quesadilla than a calzone since it was kind of crunchy and flaky. No matter to me! It was really good and I totally wanted more when it was all gone.  Good thing I also made a big salad!

I wanted more! You can make it bigger by
using two tortillas on top of each other with
filling between, or just use one and
not fold it over.

Now, I know the purpose of a gluten-free diet is not to just replace glutenous products with other grains. But, since I don't have any medical reason to go gluten-free and am just recreational in my pursuits, I feel pretty happy with my changes.  


And yes, that means I am keeping the Papa John's! That probably makes me a hypocrite but you can go ahead and judge me. I've made my peace with it.


Get out there and get healthy today!

Preach On, Joy McCarthy Holistic Nutritionist

Just so we're clear, this is
not a picture of Joy.

I like to talk. It is a known fact! But today I am remembering the lesson that my son's Tae Kwon Do instructor shared last night: "the more you talk, the less you learn."  So I am going to stop talking and let someone else do the honors.  I know, it's weird for me too. :)

In this case, the lovely lady I am going to direct you to is a true inspiration of holistic health and a complete wealth of knowledge related to clean eating.  I listen to her a lot because she says a lot of stuff that makes a lot of sense, and she knows more than I do.  I think hanging around people who know more than you do is a good idea...but since Joy lives in Canada, I just stalk her on the Internet instead. Luckily she makes that pretty easy via her website and Twitter feed.

What I want to share with you today is her blog, which I received yesterday in my email. It is a great explanation of one of my favorite topics: how food works. What it does. And, of course, how we can work with it to do awesome things for our health.

I read this and thought you needed to read it to.  So, since I promised I wasn't going to talk today, I give you...

Joy McCarthy, Holistic Nutritionist and Wellness Muse (I added that last part).

Take it away, Joy!

What's not in my suitcase

So yesterday I packed up my suitcase for 2011. I'm ready to go!  I've got all of my positive people, influences, data, and energy that I'll need next year. But there are some things that didn't make the cut.  Here's what I am leaving behind in 2010:

1. Competitiveness. I am competitive, and not always in a good way.  I want (and sometimes need) to feel like I am the best at everything, and if I suspect that someone is taking my title from me, I get stressed out and anxious.  There are times when being competitive has served me well and helped me achieve goals I wasn't sure I would reach, but I've felt this year like being so focused on being the absolute best has been a detriment to me. I've learned that sharing the spotlight is fun, and I've been warmed by the glow of others. It was weird at first but over time I've gotten more comfortable. I want to leave the nasty side of my competitive spirit in 2010.

2. Jealousy. When you compete, you're constantly sizing up the competition. And when they're better than you, well, jealousy is not far behind.  But I loathe feeling jealous and I want to stop. The intense feelings of happiness that I've experienced this year by taking a back seat has convinced me that there is no more room for jealousy in my suitcase. It's out.

3. Negative self-talk. Body image haunts so many women, and I'm one of them. It's hard sometimes to look in the mirror, see my imperfections, and not feel driven to change them.  But I'm learning that if I want my body to be a partner with me in wellness, I need to be nicer to it. I would never say to a friend what I have said to myself; why would my body want to work with me if I treat it like garbage?  So I am going to leave negative self-talk in 2010.

4. Doubt. I did things in 2010 that I wasn't sure I could do...and they were easy. I did my first triathlon, and I completed my first half-marathon.  Looking back, it seems silly to have doubted that I could achieve those things. I don't see a need for doubt in 2011.

I grew up in 2010. It was an amazing year of growth and the emotional transformation has been immense.  Saying goodbye to these things that used to be part of each day isn't just a symbolic exercise for me...it's a tear-jerking realization that as I snap closed my 2011 suitcase, I truly have everything I need and nothing - NOTHING - can stop me.

Goodbye 2010.  You were awesome.

But I have to go.

The Fanny Pack

This woman's face hidden
 to protect her dignity.

Are you wearing your fanny pack?  If you ate something you didn't need today, then I am willing to bet you are! 

I was reminded of my fanny pack yesterday when talking about - what else? - holiday weight loss with a friend.  I explained a visual tool I use when I find myself eating something my body has no use for: putting that food into a fanny pack that is strapped across my waist. 

For example, fudge. When my stomach growls and I give it fudge, it's less than grateful. I mean, what is a hungry body going to do with fudge?  So it politely thanks me for the fudge, tucks it into the fanny pack, and then 10 minutes later tries again:

"I'm hungry. The fudge was great but I need something I can work with. Perhaps some whole grains and a little protein?" 

And let's say I give it a Christmas cookie.  My stomach may take that cookie, put it into the fanny pack, zip it up, and say, "thanks, but not really what I needed.  I need something I can use for fuel. Let's try again."  And the cycle continues. You keep feeding, it keeps storing, and you know what happens.  The belly that shakes like a bowl full of jelly happens. And in January you look into the mirror and say, "but I only had a few bites!"

Look - when you eat something that is nutritionally bankrupt, your body has no need for it. So it tucks it into your virtual fanny pack and asks for something else.  If you keep giving it stuff it can't use, that fanny pack is going to get more and more full.

Have you ever tried to sit down wearing a fully-loaded fanny pack? I have, both literally and figuratively. It ain't cute either way. I've got too much that I want to do in a day to carry around that extra stuff. 

Take off the fanny pack! Stop putting things into it!  When you get to a table laden with holiday goodies, imagine yourself unzipping your fanny pack, putting all of the stuff inside, and carrying it around with you all day.

It's a pretty darn accurate analogy if I do say so myself. :) So get on with it!

Good day!