Cooking for Jordan...

Cooking for Jordan can be a challenge but we are feeling blessed to be able to work with his food sensitivity. People ask me all the time "how do you do it?" How do I?? I guess when you are in it you just do it and it's not as bad as it may seem. I find it overwhelming when I don't have something prepared the night before for his school lunch because in the morning I'm thinking breakfast and I like to think only one meal at a time!

I make things "his way" then the others can add the cheese and sauce or whatever they want to make it taste better... I just got lots of yummy Cabala's seasonings, and seasonings and sauces have been the very thing that makes each of my dishes yummy and all unique in there own way! I'm still trying to find alternatives for these yummy seasonings and sauces.

This was from the beginning to be a family blog and kind of like my journal to, (even though I still journal) but lately I feel like it's starting to be a "Jordan blog"...:) I might need to start another one just for him so as not to take away from the rest of the family...:) I will try to share a bit here and there on how things are going with Jordan and I will throw in some of our favorite gluten free/dairy free/egg free/sugar free recipes!! (Sounds like we have cut out almost everything that we normally ate!!) but I will not be continually doing posts on Jordan. He is a normal kid and wants a normal life so I will do my best to give him that. He does not mind talking about his health and he does like when others pray for his healing because he does believe he will be healed through prayer someday, but I still try not to make to big of an issue out of his diet and health.

We found a flour that we can use!!.. This is the recipe for the flour...
6 cups rice flour, 3 cups tapioca flour, 1 1/2 cups potato starch, 1T salt, 2 T xanthum.

I mixed a batch for a Tupperware that now has a place on my pantry shelf labeled "GF flour".

It made great looking pancakes this morning!! This is the pancake mix recipe...

9 cups of the above flour, 1 cup plus 2 T sugar (we used a little less then 1/2 cup of stevia) 3 T baking powder, 2 1/4 tsp salt. When ready to mix the pancakes, mix 2 cups mix with a large egg and milk until the texture is right for you. We used rice milk this morning but coconut milk can be used to if you need to replace dairy. They were puffy and looked great! I put coconut oil on the pan before grilling. He ate them with an over light duck egg on the top. I'm still trying to find out if he can have "agave" I think his pancakes would have been better if he could have drizzled some of this on top but I didn't trust it until I ask the Doctor. The menu paper we got back with his test results says he can have it yet they told us earlier the only sweetener he will be allowed is stevia...?

I made fresh mint tea last evening. I got some fresh mint leaves and soaked them a bit and added a touch of stevia, so he has added this to his lemon water as something other then water to take his pills and powders with in the morning...:)

Last evening I made a dish of... I will tell you the exact ingredients although I do not know the exact amount I used... Tiny baby potatoes, (small as a large marble) small amount of corn pasta, peas, small salad shrimp, a turkey burger, I added fresh chopped basil and some rice milk for moisture, salt.

I cooked the pasta and the potatoes until soft yet firm, and the turkey burger was grilled and just chopped up into pieces. Added the peas and basil and then put it in a casserole dish and baked it until hot and then let the flavors blend overnight. This morning I put that in his lunch and also Jenika's and Justin's even though they got some cheddar cheese sprinkled on there dishes. Jenika and Justin of course got their daily fruit, dessert of a cookie today in the lunches to but Jordan just had the dish and that was it. I told him after closing his lunch this morning that something just don't feel complete and he will be done eating long before the others at lunch time today, His response..."It's okay I like to go out to play earlier anyway!"

His attitude is great and I think he does much better then many kids would! He so badly wants to be well so I think this helps to. He could so easily complain of feel sorry for himself but he still even thinks of others during this time...

 This is so the heart of Jordan...
 The other afternoon he didn't have much to do,  I had talked to him about the Amish Lady with the duck eggs (few posts back) and her children having food allergies a few days before, he saw some gluten free cookies in the pantry and him knowing it will be awhile before he will be eating cookies again asked me if he could make those cookies for the Amish Lady and her children?? I said sure, so he mixed and baked and packaged them all on his own and set them on the counter by the door for me to drop off on my way to Ladies Bible study yesterday!! His heart for others challenges me over and over again!

I did drop off the cookies and guess what?? The baby was just screaming and screaming again!! The other children just seemed used to it!! Poor baby! I so hope they can figure out what's going on soon!! I was soon out the door with the promise of stopping by again for more eggs later this week. If you are joining me in prayer for her, thank you. I will let you know when I find out what her sensitivities are.

Gluten free can be expensive to! I find I will hardly cook GF for everybody!  I got a few cookbooks in the mail yesterday and they look really good!  I found though I will hardly be able to use many of the recipes until Jordan is done with his cleanse. Not being allowed fruit or any sugar and even almonds is something that is common in GF foods to.  I find I can tweak things a bit to meet his needs but it just makes it taste more blah. Will he adapt to this blah food? How can I make it taste better?? I'm still not sure what's for his supper tonight but I'm often glad for the deer chunks I canned because venison is something he can have, with it being canned already we can soon heat it up for a dip with corn chips or even greens and rice go well with them to.

Here again is his list of foods that he can never eat again... Gluten, honey, Lima beans, mustard, sweet potatoes, peanut, and wheat.

His food list he can not have while cleansing... yet we hope to reintroduce these slowly after three months of cleansing and see how his body does with them...We are hopeful!!
Almond, Beef, Carrot, Dairy, Cocoa, Eggs, Garlic, Pepper, Yeast, Yogurt, Fruit, (other then lemons and limes) Sugar in any form (only stevia)

I do find this is more challenging then anything I have ever had to do where food is concerned. I loved to cook and bake all my life and I had a very friendly kitchen. Today I have to tweak things a bit out of the ordinary and I can't just set about dumping things together the way I used to. I still do just dump things together but I put only ingredients on the counter first that I'm sure Jordan can have, but then I still stand back looking at the meal I just made thinking..."what could I add yet to make this thing better??!! It just need something!" Yet many times I just close the lid anyway and hope he likes it,  he has hardly ever complained about anything I set before him yet!! So easy and I love you for this Jordan!! God help me if this ever happened to your sister!!! I would be discouraged in no time flat!!...:)

If you are a GF cook and have some tips for this newbie I'd love to hear them. I will share with you the tips I learn as I go so they can maybe be a help to you. I do not know why it took me so long to think "food allergies" for Jordan so if you have a child or know of somebody else's child that has an issue with health of even overly hyper active, think and check into food sensitivities!! It has done wonders for Jordan already and we are so thankful to be able to work with this even though it's a challenge!! I'm not sure what this is all about all of the sudden with all this food sensitivity!!?? I blame processed foods, GMO's and more toxins that we deal with everyday here in America!

Javon and I were at Dave's sister Ruth today for sister's day. It was great to catch up with Leah, Martha, Roxie, Ruth and Mom again today!! We missed you Rose, Marilyn and Maryanna!! Yesterday after the morning Ladies Bible Study it was sister's day here with my mom and sisters! It was great to catch up with them and the beautiful kiddo's again to!

It's good to do things on the days Javon does not have school. He gets so bored at times! We looked at a wild life book over and over again this morning and he just seems to be constantly on my tail! He really misses Jenika and it seems with them spending so much time together enjoying each other over vacation the past weeks he has to readjust again with not having her to follow and play with! He just follows me so much more and sometimes it seems this is him...!! #sofunny!

I love how Javon is reading to baby Ava here...:) She looks like she is taking it all in to!...:)

Yay today is the day that I see my "Best Friend" again!!! Dave is flying in soon and me and the kids are so excited to have him home with us again!! It has been almost a month that we were all here at home together! He is very ready to be home again to!... I sent him this picture in a text this morning at six o'clock... Saying "Yay today is the day"!...:)

It has been raining all day here today, a run was on my agenda but again didn't happen... Oh well it's winter time so relaxing and enjoying this season is something I'm still trying to work on!...

I'm off to get everybody baths early so we can hang out with the man of the house again tonight!!...:)
He is away often and you would think I would get used to this but I still just feel like a kid again when he returns home...:)

Enjoy the rainy evening...