ten foods.

People who love to eat are always the best people. – Julia Child

Yesterday, I saw a blog post where the writer had listed her ten very favorite – fancy type – foods – and it was a yummy looking list, I must say. It got me thinking, however, about a list of my own.

See, I love cooking – and trying new recipes and restaurants too. However, what I’ve found is that, between my health conditions, including food allergies and celiac disease, my regular medications – plus methotrexate, and now a daily, long-term antibiotic that is a bear on the GI tract, my diet more closely resembles that of a picky five year old than the foodie I used to be.

Not only are there many foods I simply can’t have, my CRPS makes my mouth really sensitive to spices in a way it never was before and many things taste different now with my meds as well. There is also an issue with nausea at times with the methotrexate and the antibiotic therapy.

All that said, after seeing her “regular person’s list,” I decided – after laughing at myself – to make my own list of my top ten foods – Miranda’s Personal Spoonie Edition – of the basic foods I pretty well live on.

My Ten Core Spoonie Foods (though I promise I really am a holistic nutritionist – bahaha)

SmartFood (though Aldi’s generic version is actually even better than the brand name). I eat this just about every day. It never bothers my stomach and is the perfect snack. It’s also Henry Herring approved. 😉

Mahatma Red Beans and Rice. This recipe is still the same since I was in high school – and it is still a favorite. Gluten free and easy on a spoonie stomach. It doesn’t hurt my feelings that it is $1.36 a bag at Walmart either. 🙂

Watermelon. – Henry and I both have an almost daily watermelon fix.

Pickles and Olives. – These are definitely a daily thing. The most perfect foods I say.

Chicken & Rice Soup. – Kindergarten Chicken and Rice soup is eaten in our house several times a week. Yum.

Chicken Salad. – My very favorite is Boar’s Head Cransational Chicken Salad – and I am super stoked because it tends to be really difficult to find and Sara and I just found the actual recipe for it on Pinterest tonight. Yay! (With a stomach that is as difficult as mine at times, we stick with what works.)

Cucumber Salad. – A plain cucumber with a light dressing salad that I eat pretty much daily.

Chicken Sandwich. – I tend to make a plain sandwich with veganaise and Oscar Meyer chicken lunch meat on Canyon Bakehouse gluten free bread. Simple and yummy is usually the winner. 🙂

Roasted Potatoes. – Our daughter makes the BEST roasted potatoes on the planet. They are fantastic – and never upsetting to a crazy spoonie GI system.

String Cheese. – Rounding out my list (of largely kindergarten approved foods) is string cheese. Protein, calcium, and a portable snack.

Those are definitely my staples.

Of course, I have some other meals that I am able to prepare and certain ones that I can order at restaurants – those are just the foods that I can always count on to work for me, my safe foods.

When I was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2012, I knew that my diet was going to immediately change substantially with the shift to all things gluten free. However, I could have never imagined that I would see so many other GI issues develop along the way to where we are now with all the med issues, allergies, and intolerances.

The purpose of this post really is simply to say that even diet is an area that is dramatically affected for most people living with chronic illness – and I have it pretty easy relative to some of the things I’ve seen with friends in the spoonie community – even if I do expect my “ten foods list” to come with a kid’s menu and crayons next time. 😉