GAPS Stage 5 Summary

Ugh, I've struggled this week!  It seems that I have had little time or energy to try and get ahead during the weeknights.  I have been moderately successful with keeping up and getting ahead up to this point.  During Stage 5, we are expected to introduce applesauce, raw veggies, and some fruit juices.  I did get applesauce made, but didn't have time until the end of the week to make a salad and more juice.  I also need to make some more broth, because my Ball jars keep shattering in the freezer (a separate post to come on that topic). I introduced crispy bacon during this stage, and I made a BLT salad this weekend for dinner.  I still cannot tolerate eggs--when am I going to start seeing healing??  I've read other blogs by people who've said that their food intolerances were gone by the fourth or sixth week, and that's what I was hoping for!  I'll just keep going until I see those results in myself, but I'm growing impatient.

Stage 5 Summary:
One more stage to go before the full diet!  That will be nice.  It'll also be nice to maybe have time to write about things besides GAPS for a change.  This diet takes up all of my time, and I've missed being able to do other things.  I'm hoping that gets better after the intro.  I've had some annoying side effects so far, but nothing too bad.  I'm pretty sure that I've experienced bouts of ketosis (not eating enough carbohydrates) and have really struggled with fatigue.  I find that I'm not a big fan of plain squash, which has plenty of carbohydrates--I grew up eating it mashed with butter and brown sugar, and I find that it REALLY needs those components to make it tasty for me.  I've combated it by introducing apples and almonds early, and it seemed to work fairly well to bring me out of those tired spells.  I've also had some insomnia, headaches, and strong comfort food cravings.  But thankfully, those are the worst side effects that I've experienced, and I haven't had any more setbacks as far as reactions to food.

Note:  I really think I should get an award of some sort for going for an entire month (and counting) without chocolate of any sort.

We are enjoying still more variety in our meals.  In searching for recipes to add to our meal repertoire, I came across a recipe for a vegetarian tomato and basil casserole.  It sounded intriguing, so I tweaked it to our tastes, added some meat, and voila!  We really liked this!  This would be a good, healthy, and relatively low-cal meal for anyone, not just GAPS folks.  It satisfies a craving for pasta, and surprisingly, the spaghetti squash does not taste like squash--it tastes like slightly crunchy spaghetti!  Try it; I think you'll like it!

Recipe for GAPS-friendly Spaghetti Squash Casserole (GF, optional DF)

Ingredients:

1 medium spaghetti squash

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes

4 cloves of garlic, grated

2-3 TBSP cold-pressed olive oil

2 TBSP butter or ghee (optional if dairy-free)

15-20 leaves fresh basil, roughly chopped

1 lb. hamburger, cooked

Salt & pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese (optional if dairy-free)

Directions:

Cook spaghetti squash by cutting it in half lengthwise and placing cut sides down in a 9 x 13 baking dish filled with about an inch of water.  Roast at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes.  Remove from the oven and let cool (if possible, do this early in the day and let it rest until meal time).  It needs to be cool enough to hold.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Pour olive oil into the bottom of a 9 x 9 baking dish or 3-quart casserole dish.  Place tomatoes and garlic in the baking dish, toss to coat in oil and distribute garlic.  Roast for 10 minutes, or until tomatoes begin to burst. 

Meanwhile, if your hamburger is not already cooked, brown it (but do not burn or create dark saute marks!) your hamburger in a skillet.  Chop your basil and scrape out the spaghetti by running a fork from side to side, not top to bottom, of the squash.  You’ll get longer strands doing it side to side. 

Take the tomatoes and garlic out of the oven, and carefully mash them with a fork.  Mix in the hamburger, basil, and spaghetti squash, and carefully toss all to combine.  Place back in the oven to warm through, 5-10 minutes.  Watch carefully to prevent the squash from burning. 

*Serves 4.  GAPS Stage 5/6 or full GAPS.