SO! This week I am going to get two new recipes up on the site. It is going to happen and then I am going to let the world know. Oh how they will weep with joy.

Until then.. x

We now have a very happy Wilfy though! He is talking much more, sleeping has improved immeasurably ( I no longer hear him breathing down the corridor) and having the operation was a much better option for us than more drugs and then possibly the operation further down the line.

Don’t be afraid to seek further opinions if you are concerned about your child’s breathing at night and if they continue to get tonsilitis. When I was a child tonsils were taken out without a second thought and my grandfather had them whipped out on the kitchen table! more drugs isn’t always the answer, perhaps sometimes an operation is..

RECIPES TO FOLLOW.. Fishcakes, Almond and Poppy seed cake, raw mango balls.

Most weeks I stare into the fridge and sigh. I am not one for neat and tidy fridge organisation. I have always wondered who these people are? How do they have the time and inclination to pack the cheeses in Tupperware on one side whilst the vegetables are neatly ordered in medium size freezer bags in drawers. There are no crumbs or revolting bits lying around and no jars of mustard or jams festering at the back.  One neighbour came over one Sunday, their fridge standing in all its crowning clean glory. As he kindly helped us prepare lunch I winced as he opened our fridge door, he fell silent and then tried to push his shiny piece of Tupperware into a lone space with a pained look on his face.

I am ashamed to admit not only is my fridge messy most of the time I also tend to throw plenty of food away. I know I’m not alone in this crime but that’s no moral relief.  However, there is some relief in my simple yet tasty as hell rice dish. You can add anything you like and it’s not rocket science but when tired and run ragged by kids the imagination can desert us.

What you will need:-

Brown or white basmati rice  (2 cups)

Any vegetable you prefer. I tend to use carrots and courgette grated, french beans and peas.

Hemp or Rapeseed Oil

Homemade pesto

Chicken, bacon, salmon (I just use what I have in fridge)

1/2 cup of chicken stock

What to do:-

Boil the rice in a separate pan. I cup of rice to 2 cups of water. I add the rice first, once i have sieved it clean of starch. Then I add to bottom of dish and cover with water adding an extra thumbnail above the line of the rice. For brown rice you will need two thumbnails of water above the line (is this sounding complicated?!!) Once the water has evaporated put a lid on the pan, turn stove off and leave to steam for 10 minutes. if slightly firm don’t worry because the stock will finish cooking the rice.

Once rice is done then chop your meat of fish into little bite size pieces. Heat up a tablespoon of pool, add meat or fish. Then when cooked add rice and then the vegetables. Add the chicken stock and a tablespoon of the pesto and stir through. Stir through until the rice has taken the stock and the dish isn’t wet. Then serve.

Perfect for all the family!!!

Wilfy also has glue ear so Dr. Borgstein confirmed this with a hearing test and has suggested, along with Dr Cox that I see an ear, nose and throat surgeon. Glue ear will be connected to the inflammation of the tonsils, adenoids and very fluid chest.

I asked Dr Cox why it was worth putting Wilfy on a triad of drugs when if he had his tonsils and adenoids removed it would most certainly change his respiratory issues. Am I alone in thinking that endless courses of steroids and antibiotics and asthma drugs are a little frightening. Put it this way, when I read the leaflet for Flixonase it said it shouldnt be taken under 16 years of age!!! what? Wilfy is 19 months for god’s sake. I was told by Dr Cox that it is actually safer than the current children’s prescribed nasal sprays on the market. Who do you trust? your instinct I suppose. As much as I am terrified of Wilfy being operated on, I am equally terrified of continual drug use in such a young child. I know there are many mum’s out there who have no choice and who have to administer drugs to their very ill children. At this point I imagine you surrender yourself into the doctors knowledgable hands and pray for results. Well, that’s what I have decided to do today. So here we go, onto a course of antibiotics, then Flixonase again and then possibly asthma drugs (even though he doesn’t have asthma). Dr. Cox’s parting words to me, ” Just to let you know that on the asthma drugs your child may have a complete change in personality, he may become very unhappy, cry a lot and have lots of tantrums. If that happens I would stop taking the drug”…. You decide!

He says at a cellular level we are more bacteria than human and there are ten times more bacteria in your gut as there are cells in your whole body. Surely then, we really need to treat them with respect. New research suggests that we should treat the microbes living inside us as another organ. Not only do they help break down nutrients in our diet, they manufacture vitamins, protect against infection and even interact with our immune system and liver to regulate everything from inflammation to our metabolic system.

How does this translate to our babies though?

While a young baby is in the womb, his or her gut is sterile and the seed inoculation of their microbiota is picked up during the birthing process as they come into contact with organisms living in and around their mother’s vagina. This is nurtured further when the mother breast feeds.

Babies delivered by C- section miss out on this initial inoculation and end up with a very different mix of species. This difference can be compounded by formula-feeding instead of breastfeeding. As a result, the immune systems of the two groups of children mature differently because of altered signalling from the microbiota – one reason thought to explain why babies delivered by C-section are 20% more likely to develop asthma.

Well, that’s a lot to digest! I have had to have C Sections with both Arthur and Wilf. The first time was an emergency C-section. I had spent 9 months eating healthily, having reflexology, resting between work and even doing hypnobirthing.  Not for me was negative thinking, Oh no! mine wasn’t going to be a nasty hospital experience, my birth was going to be in the water and over in 12 hours. I still believed that when I had my first contraction. It came as a surprise when 48 hours later I was lying in theatre sucking gas and air with a body the size of a baby elephant, a soaring temperature and pre-eclampsia having an emergency C Section. Thankfully neither of us died. The recovery was just as hideous, stuck in a disgusting overcrowded post natal ward with dirty loos and overworked exhausted midwives.  I desperately wanted to breast feed, had images of me and my baby in post delivery bliss with him sucking away. We were both traumatised, there was no support and one midwife told me it was my nipples fault!

Needless to say after weeks of trying to get Arthur to feed, I gave up. Looking around I saw friends all happily feeding and I felt like a failure. A failure to deliver and a failure to feed. So, I did everything I could to give him the best nutritional support in the form of pre and probiotic. Evidence suggests that it doesn’t necessarily boost health and well being so the jury is out but it helped me feel as if I was doing the best I could for Arthur. I plied him with avocado (God’s food for babies) and fruit and veg and I took away his dairy intake. I also gave him ‘Nature’s plus’ liquid vitamins and then the tablets from 2 onwards. Nature’s plus are high grade vitamins and well worth looking into.

At 4, Arthur is fit and strong as doesn’t get more colds than other children who have been breast-fed. Who knows whether his IQ would have been higher or if he would never have developed a dairy allergy if he had been exclusively breastfed but we are only human and not every woman can experience the elation of happy breastfeeding and it’s benefits.

Wilfy was also born C Section as he was breach. At the time I took full responsibility for it as I believed the stress of moving house and the toxins from living in the dusty building site contributed to his health. Now, I believe that my gut wasn’t healthy during his pregnancy. I didn’t do any of the things that I did whilst pregnant with Arthur and was basically eating on the go. As you know from this blog Wilfy was born with all sorts of allergies and reflux. He has ear, nose and throat issues and may have to have his tonsils out, always has a cold, has sleep apnoea and a bad chest.  I fed him for 11 weeks and desperately wanted to feed him more but he couldn’t tolerate my lactose. You ask yourself why? why me? then you have to ask yourself if you suffer from thrush or does your partner? how healthy are both of you and what is your digestion like? A leaky gut could contribute to the health of your babies gut and therefore immunity.

I totally believe in the power of breastfeeding but if you like me had difficulty then don’t beat yourself up. Do what you can to support the gut and your child’s immunity. Look into nutritional support once weaning and don’t be afraid to try weaning with fruit and vegetables and meat broths. All of these have good gut healing properties. Look at the GAPS book by Natasha McBride for some useful advice and tips.

They are available at amazon or http://www.detoxyourworld.com

You will need:

600ml cold water

100g whole hemp seeds/almonds

1 tsp raw agave nectar

water for soaking

What to do:

Soak the seeds or almonds for at least six hours. Rinse the seeds and discard the water.

Add all the ingredients to a strong high-speed blender. Blend until no more seeds or nuts are being pulverised. Strain through your nut bag and serve.

TIP: Will keep in the fridge for 3 days.

I  recently took Wilfy to meet Dr Helen Cox. A leading consultant in pediatric Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

The reason for my visit was to get a second opinion on his chest and nose symptoms. Wilfy became ill with a cold at 7 weeks and at 15 weeks he was hospitalised with severe bronchilitis and strep b pneumonia. I did take him to A and E five times in 4 days before they admitted him.  Of course the hospital should have admitted him earlier but they used their usual method of leaving the decision on the mother’s shoulders. How utterly ridiculous! How the hell am I supposed to know if my child needs oxygen and has a secondary infection..It was only when he started becoming very limp, was finding it very hard to breath and was dehydrated did they finally admit him and THEN they agreed that he would be in for longer and was more in danger because he hadn’t been admitted earlier.

I DIGRESS!!! So, since 7 weeks he has never had a clear nose or chest. I have been told this will clear up possibly but it seemed to be getting worse. I took a visit to see Dr Cox and she took one look in his mouth and ears and suspected that he had glue ear and that he may need his tonsils out.  She also wanted to put him on a steroid nasal drop..this was met with trepidation.

We also blood tested him for more foods (a bloody awful day seeing your baby have a needle in its vein!) they confirmed that he has delayed allergies.

Once I got home with a traumatized Wilfy I sat down and managed to collect my tired thoughts. Hang on! surely we should stop the Oatly first. If he can’t tolerate Gluten in any other form then he won’t tolerate it in Oatly. A few doctors had dismissed my questions on this when asked so I had put it to the back of my mind but come on…

After a chat with Dr Cox, she agreed and confirmed that two patients straight after Wilfy had been taken off Oatly and put on nut or hemp milk to great effect.

So this my friends is what we did 4 weeks ago and there is a difference. No more dry skin and a less runny nose. His poo’s are less runny and he seems to have less cramp.

Thanks Dr Cox.  Hemp and Almond milk is easy and cheap to make at home ( see my recipe) or you can buy it from major supermarkets.

 HEMP MILK

What is GOOD HEMP?

• A non-dairy alternative to milk
• Made from a blend of pure hemp seed
• Natural source of Omega 3 & 6
• Just one 250ml serving of GOOD Hemp provides 50% of our recommended daily intake of Omega 3
• Low in saturated fat
• Easy to digest
• Free from Dairy & Lactose
• Free from Soya
• Free from Cholesterol
• Free from known Allergens
• Suitable for Vegetarians
• Suitable for Vegans
• 0.00% THC – it is completely safe to drink
• Made from one of the most sustainable crop on earth. Hemp is an excellent CO2 sequester
• Produced in the UK with hemp grown by UK farmers
• Available in Waitrose, Tesco, Ocado and good independent stores in the Long-Life Milk section 

Wilfy loves them and they are the perfect snack for him throughout the day, especially for breakfast so I can escape the rice puffs.

My friend Annelie Whitfield who is an inspiring raw foodist and beautiful lady got me into these about 4 years ago. I owe this recipe to her.  They are really very good for you so go ahead and make them and see how many are left for the kids..

What you will need:

A good muffin tray with 12 holes

250g – rice flour

3 eggs

5 ripe bananas

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp bi carbonate of soda

1 tsp of cinnamon

60 g hemp seeds

40 g desiccated coconut (optional)

50 g coconut butter

3 generous tablespoons of agave nectar or fruit sugar

What to do:

Heat the oven to 175/180C depending on strength of oven

Line your muffin tray with oil or pure sunflower spread

In a food processor add all the ingredients and mix until you have a good cake mixture.  Make sure no lumps of banana left and no clumps of flour.

Add a big tablespoon into the 12 holes, if anything left distribute evenly.

Place in the middle of oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top and springy to touch.

Leave to cool and then place in cases or can be stored on their own.

TIP: I leave mine in the fridge for up to a week and heat up in oven when I need to serve.

However, it was really hard to feed Wilfy. Obviously I managed but twas not easy and it was made even harder now that Wilfy understands what he is missing out on.  No ice cream, fish, pasty, cream tea..Ok, I know those aren’t the healthy options but it was a holiday. The Porthminster cafe helped as best as they could by cooking the gluten free pasta for me and adding their sauce but practically every restaurant we tried didn’t have even one dairy free dish!! COME ON!, surely with allergies on the rise hotels and restaurants nationwide would start accomodating allergy needs? We fed Wilfy endless chips and some salad as that’s all that was on offer. I hate supporting supermarket chains but at least the local Tesco had a few ‘free from’ options. Am I alone in this boiling frustration? What can be done to make restaurants add a dairy and gluten free option to their menus so eating out as a family can be an enjoyable experience rather than a stressful one? Do us allergy mummies constantly have to be thinking twenty steps ahead as we prepare another meal before we head out for the day?

Ooh, who doesn’t like a brownie? It was Arthur’s 4th birthday party on Saturday and although I was going to attempt a triple chocolate dairy free cake I didn’t have time to experiment with the icing side of things. I know soya yoghurt is used but Wilfy can’t have soya. SO! I decided to make the wicked triple cake with lashings of dairy and gluten AND make these babies on the side. They are so rich and deep that even Wilfy only managed a few mouthfuls. The older kids got a triple chocolate hit and then danced it off to ‘Magic Mikeys’ Disco. My, what fun we had!! maybe the prosecco helped.

These take 10 minutes to prepare and about 25-30 minutes to cook on 170 C.

Makes about 20 small squares.

You will need:-

250 g dark chocolate

250 g pure sunflower spread

200 g Fruit sugar or coconut palm sugar

3 eggs

160 g ground almonds

2 teaspoons vanilla extract or orange oil

What to do:-

Preheat the oven to 170C.

Melt the chocolate and the pure spread over a low heat. When that is melted, take the pan off the heat, let the mixture cool and add the vanilla or orange oil and the sugar. Give it a good mix. Once cooled then add the eggs (beaten) and the almonds and mix together (either with a good wooden spoon or on a low setting in a free-standing mixer). Pour the mixture into a rectangular 30 cm baking tin.

Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes. The top will crack a little but the inside will be soft and moist.