I am about to make another batch of this delicious mustard. I was surprised to find that I haven’t posted this recipe yet as it is one of my favorites. The cream cheese helps to preserve the pungency of the mustard, making a delicious condiment which is also a probiotic if made with home-made cream cheese as shown in this quick video.

Amounts are variable and according to personal taste. Warning! I like my mustard so pungent it clears out my sinuses with every taste, so you may want to start with less ground mustard and add more tasting it to decide how you like it as you go.

• 1T – 2T ground mustard (I like to use Colemans)
• 1/2 c (or more) home-made cream cheese
• 1 small handful dates (soaked in hot water and mashed)
• 1/2 t turmeric
• 1t ground coriander seeds
• 1/2 t ground cloves
• 1t ground fenugreek seeds
• 1t apple cider vinegar
• salt

Method: Put the mustard powder in little water and mix it around, let it sit about 5 minutes. Boil some water and pour over dates, cover and let sit about 5 minutes, then mash them up to a puree.

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We just made a batch of these and the wonderful aroma fills our apartment. These are so delicious, you barely realise you are on the Gut and Psychology Syndrome Diet. Based on the Zucchini Muffin recipe in Breaking the Vicious Cycle by Elaine Gottschall.

• 2 c grated zucchini
• 2 c ground almonds
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 c ghee or melted butter
• 1/3 c honey (raw)
• 2 t cinnamon
• 1/2 t baking soda
• couple of pinches of salt
• A couple handfuls of frozen or fresh blueberries

Method: Mix almond flour, zucchini, fat and honey. Add the eggs, salt, cinnamon and baking soda. Mix very well. Add blueberries (or other fruit), but don’t add too many or the muffins will not hold together.

Bake in muffin tins filled 2/3 full for about 20 minutes in a 350 F (180 C) degree oven.

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Most of my life I have been excessively healthy. No cavities, never sick, and with rapid healing powers so that I have no scars despite the multitude of oven burns, chopped fingertips and other disasters that being a chef generally involve (I have chopped off the tip of my left pointer finger several times but you wouldn’t know by looking at it!). I took that amazing health for granted, assumed that it was just who I was and didn’t stop to think for a second that it might not last. Working in the fast-paced and highly demanding culinary industry stresses your body physically, the long hours and high pressure alone are quite enough to wear you down over time, but along with that for years I maintained a diet of coffee and cigarettes, and generally didn’t really put anything else into my body. After a couple years of this I discovered that I was highly neurotic, with blood sugar swings that left me an emotional basket case.

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I picked up a bag of shelled hazelnuts and soon found they are very easy to shell using a morter and pestle. After soaking the nut meat overnight I roasted them in a very low oven. The following recipe is what resulted next:

• 1 1/2 c hazelnuts (ground)
• 1/2 c almonds (ground)
• 1 T anise (ground)
• 3 T butter, softened (or coconut, lard, duck fat)
• 6 eggs (separated)
• 1″ slice date paste or 2 handfuls of seeded dates
• 1/2 c boiling water (approximate)

Method: Boil water and soak the dates in boiling water to soften. Mix the nuts, anise and butter. Add egg yolks to the nut mixture. Mash the dates to a pulp and add to mixture. Mix well. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks (add a pinch of salt). Fold the egg whites into the nut mixture in 2 to 3 stages. Do not over mix. The egg whites will bring air into the mixture to lighten the cake.

Place mixture into a round cake tin that has been buttered and floured. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

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As we all know the supplement industry is run by greed and money almost to the same degree as the pharmaceutical industry (if that’s possible). I personally believe that we can get everything we need from our food, but at times we may not be able to afford to buy all organic or from farmers markets, we may not have the strength of will to break all our addictions to coffee, sugar, processed foods, chocolate, alcohol or whatever it may be. We may be working overtime trying to make ends meet and pay the bills and not have time to learn how to make bone stock, yogurt, kombucha, sauerkraut and everything else. So I do appreciate that at times it is necessary to use supplements. But be warned if you do so there is a whole lot of products out there that won’t do what they say, and are packaged brightly to tempt you to throw your money at them. I spent time working for a multi-level marketing company (EQUINOX) that sold herb and supplements for a very high price–I ended up totally bankrupt from that venture–this may be part of why I have nearly as much resistance to the supplement industry as I do to the pharmaceutical industry. I much prefer, as do most of us, to use herbal teas, cod liver oil, berries, sauerkraut and yogurt than popping a unknown pill.

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After reading Anna’s positive experiences with the GAPs diet I ordered the book and have just finished reading it, I have tried a lot of diets over the years especially after living in a moldy apartment in Wellington, NZ which has resulted in problems with my digestive tract ever since. November last year was a month of non-stop rain here in Vancouver, BC and with the temperature change, was the perfect breeding ground for mushrooms, mold and yeasts. As a result our health problems reared their ugly heads again and showed us that we still have an overgrowth of harmful yeast in our systems. In some ways this is good because we at least know that we need to deal with it.

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My copy of Gut and Psychology Syndrome by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride arrived last week and over the weekend I had leftover spaghetti squash. On page 149 I found a recipe for egg-free bread/cake/muffins which called for mashed squash. Spaghetti squash is a little watery so it comes out quite dense, but very healthy and tasty.

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Looking back over the last two years, I cannot believe how our lives have changed. I would wake up and struggle through the day, barely keeping pace with my two children. The fatigue was overwhelming; not just a normal fatigue, but a listless, no-energy-at-all fatigue with anger and emotional spikes in between. My son Elliot was often irrational and possessed with a frenetic energy. His behavior patterned after ADHD, which took so much energy to manage.

Fast forward to today. I wake up with more energy, even when I haven’t had the best nights sleep. I am able to get all the housework done, cook all our meals from scratch, focus on the children without getting frustrated, and just plain enjoy life. Not that I have super-human mothering abilities all of a sudden, just that now I know what normal functioning is.

This tremendous change has been largely due to the GAPS diet. Before, we ate a (mostly) nourishing traditional diet. I made fermented bread from fresh ground flour, and we drank raw milk. We consumed our fair share of raw vegetables (though not many fermented ones), and introduced coconut oil as a cooking agent. I did what I thought was important, but slowly began to realize that I was not well.

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This is a multi-purpose soaked-nut dough recipe, with variations for making delicious:

• muffins
• pancakes
• crackers

Basic Nut Dough:

• 2 cups soaked almonds or other nut (soak for 7 or more hours in water with a tsp or two of salt)
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup fat (like butter, coconut oil, lard, tallow, -these last better for savory breads in my experience)
• 1 tsp baking soda (optional)
• pinch unrefined salt (I use celtic sea salt)

For a savory option add 2 tsp. finely minced fresh or dried rosemary.

Method Blend very well in food processor. Spread in a well greased pan and bake 20-25 min at 350 degrees F  until slightly browned. This dough does not keep long in the fridge, maybe a day or two, but it can be used to make many things.

For pancakes, add 2-3 more eggs and fry in lots of good butter or coconut oil.

For muffins add any or all of the following:

• 1/2 cup roasted squash/pumpkin or other mushy fruit or veggie (for moisture)
• pureed dried fruit or honey for sweetness
• whole dried fruit
• cinnamon
• almond flavor or vanilla
• raw grated ginger
• allspice, nutmeg or cloves
• a little more fat than the bread…
• other crispy nuts or seeds

For crackers use the basic dough and spread on a well greased pan. Bake at 300 for 45 min, or until browned and crispy.

This recipe is good for the GAPS or SCD diet, or anyone who wants to stay away from gluten and likes a healthy and tasty snack!  Also, a food processor is the best kitchen tool ever for making nut recipes, I wouldn’t last a day without it.

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