My gluten-free paozinho.
Jun
22
There is a term in Brazil that we use for someone we care about and that’s paozinho. It literally means, “little bread”. In fact sometimes I call Mr. BFF that because I love him, want to pinch him and just eat him up. The term, “little bread” holds with it a feeling of comfort, sweetness in the soul and love. Ironically enough, Mr. BFF aside, bread and I have a love-hate relationship because only about six years ago I had discovered I was gluten-intolerant. My knees would lock, my skin was a disaster and the depression was killer. When I think back to my childhood and my own emotional battles, I begin to realize that food was a huge factor. As an adult, my relationship was a nightmare because I could barely keep it together and I still couldn’t understand why. After discovering my gluten kryptonite, I had to wonder, how could I live without the comfort that thick slices of bread could provide? Could there really be life without gluten?
Yes.
Now if you’ve been following my Red Couch Confessions Newsletter (and in the running to win the $36 value retro glass straw family pack from Strawesome), then you would have tapped into my four tips on overcoming depression – and one of them is making a commitment to be gluten-free for 14 days. Why 14? It takes about 14 days of avoiding a food allergen to leave your system completely.
As an added reference, gluten grains are the following: wheat, spelt, rye, barley, oats, kamut
Gluten-free grains include: millet, buckwheat (which is actually a member of the rhubarb family, not wheat!), quinoa, rice, amaranth
And if you’re anything like I was six years ago, the thought of not eating fluffy breads seems like the impossible. On the other hand, there is so much you gain: weight loss, clearer skin, better digestion and well, feeling happier. Let’s face it, you wouldn’t sniff glue, so why eat it? Okay…so maybe that’s not the best analogy, but you get my drift.
So I thought I would start out by giving you my top gluten-free breakfast ideas to get you started.
GLUTEN-FREE BREAKFAST IDEAS
Egg Wrap Stuffed With Sundried Avocado Love
Sexy Cacao Berry Protein Pancakes
Red Quinoa & Job’s Tears Berry Coco Love
Now while I’ve been able to overcome my gluten-intolerance, I still only eat it in moderation because I know I’m predisposed to falling right back into the dysfunctional food relationship I was in. Because for many of us, life actually starts after gluten and that’s when we begin to realize that the little paozinho that we find so much comfort in is suddenly gluten-free.
