GAPS Recipes

Full GAPS Legal Oven Pancakes

Raleigh has been dying for a pancake for years on the GAPS diet. I would try on and off to come up with an egg free batter but was never successful. In this recipe I utilize the gelatin egg. You could likely use the chia seed egg as well but I have not tried that option. I will leave instructions for both below.

If eggs are tolerated I would highly suggest using them, but likely if they are you don’t need this recipe!

This recipe makes about 4-6 pancakes, depending on size. This recipe is egg free, dairy free, nut free, gluten and grain free. It is full GAPS legal.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup coconut flour

1 t baking soda

Juice from 1/2 of a lemon

2 gelatin eggs (2 T gelatin & 6 T water – recipe below)

1/4 cup coconut milk

1 T raw honey

1/2 t vanilla

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium sized bowl combine the flour and baking soda. In a small bowl add the milk, honey and vanilla. When the gelatin eggs are nice and frothy incorporate them into the bowl with the milk, honey and vanilla. Add the lemon juice into the bowl with the flour and baking soda. Quickly, with a spatula, add the wet ingredients into the bowl with the flour. Stir quickly to combine. *The gelatin begins to thicken and get “rubbery” very fast, so move quickly.* With either a spoon or the spatula, scoop out about an 1/8th cup of the batter and place it on the cookie sheet. Repeat until you have 4-6 pancakes. *I don’t really measure, just “eye” the amount*

*If the batter has become “rubbery” do your best to shape and/or press down the pancake. I have found the quicker I work the better they turn out. Even if they feel sticky/rubbery when you are shaping they will flatten down as they bake. It has taken me a few tries to find a good rhythm with this recipe.

Bake for 13-15 minutes. Let sit to cool and firm up for 20-30 minutes before removing from parchment. Enjoy with some drizzled raw honey or even a nut or sunflower butter.

Gelatin egg recipe:

1 T gelatin

3 T of water

(Equivalent to 1 egg)

Mix the gelatin and water in a small bowl and allow it to set. It will get pretty firm in a matter of minutes. Heat a small saucepan over medium heat and add the firm gelatin. Using a whisk, gently break apart the gelatin as it begins to melt. Whip with the whisk for about a minute until it gets frothy. Add the frothy, liquid gelatin egg into the recipe when the egg is called for.

My two favorite brands of gelatin are Great Lakes or Perfect Supplements.

Chia seed egg recipe:

1 T chia seeds

3 T of water

(Equivalent to 1 egg)

In a bowl add chia seeds and water. Mix well to combine. Leave on the counter to “bloom” for 30 minutes, or a bit longer is fine. This amount of time has varied for me.

GAPS Chili

Chili has long been one of my favorite fall and winter comfort foods. I would always be disappointed at chili cook offs, restaurants or “get-togethers.” I guess I’ve always been sort of a chili snob. So years ago I made my own recipe. It was the bomb-diggity (where my 90’s kids at?) but it was not GAPS legal. So I set out to make an equally great Full GAPS legal chili. I hope you enjoy it. We sure do.

Ingredients

1-2 lbs ground beef, turkey, or other ground meat of your choosing

2 cups soaked (and/or sprouted), cooked navy beans (optional) ***If opting out of the beans I increase meat to 2 lbs.

2 cups diced tomatoes or 1 16-18 oz jar of diced tomatoes (opt for glass not canned tomatoes when possible)

1 onion, diced

4 garlic, pressed

1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp coriander

1/8 tsp cayenne (optional)

1/2 cup (approx) meat stock, bone broth or water

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a large pot on medium heat cook the meat, onion and garlic. Generously salt and pepper the meat. Break apart the meat as it cooks, stirring often. Add in the tomatoes, beans, stock and spices. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and cover. Allow to simmer for 20-30 minutes. Taste and adjust spices if needed, as well as adding more stock depending on preferred consistency. Serve with cheddar cheese, sour cream, avocado, cilantro and chives.

***If there are no histamine issues this is best served the next day after flavors have been allowed to meld.

Serves 4-6

Full GAPS Pork Rib Stew

Ingredients

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 small/medium butternut squash, chopped (remove outside and seeds)

1/2 a large red onion, diced

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1/2 tsp dried thyme

4-6 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 -1 cup meat stock (or more if needed)

1 1/2-2lbs pork ribs either individually separated or rack cut in half

bay leaf

2 T lard or ghee

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp fresh black pepper

Directions

In a slow cooker: place all chopped veg, stock and spices on the bottom. Place the ribs on top. Slow cook for 6-8 hours on low or until the meat is falling off the bone. Remove the meat and shred it. Set it aside. Remove bay leaf. With a handheld blender roughly blend half of everything to make a thicker stew. Be sure not to puree everything, leave some of the veggies. Add pork back in. Serve with sour cream.

DIY 3-Ingredient lotion for eczema

3 Ingredients: Beeswax, coconut oil, beef tallow

I have been making Raleigh’s lotion for a few years now. I tried everything imaginable under the sun and eventually found that the best option for him, and best option for us financially, was to make these lotion bars. They are surprisingly easy to make albeit a bit time consuming, but worth it to know each ingredient. The skin is our largest organ and absorbs everything we put on it. Ideally, we want anything we put on our skin to be 100% edible.

What you need:

Coconut oil

Beef Tallow or Shea butter

Beeswax pellets

Silicone molds

Begin with equal parts of each: 1 cup.

In a double boiler melt down the coconut oil and beef tallow. Once liquid add in 1 cup beeswax pellets. Stir occasionally to incorporate until everything is liquid.

Pour quickly into silicone molds and allow to harden for a few hours before removing.

Emoji lotion bars

These are easy for little hands to hold and melt against the skin. These lotion bars have served us well.

Tips/Tricks:

Depending on the time of year you may need to adjust the amount of beeswax. When it is summer the lotion bars melt much quicker against the skin and I find I need to add more than a cup of the beeswax (somewhere around 1 1/4cup). During the winter I need less (around 3/4 cup) so that they will melt against Raleigh’s skin. There has been some trial and error here to find what suits us best.

Pour quickly into the moulds as the mixture begins to solidify quickly.

Makes 18-20 bars. This will vary depending on the type of moulds used.

A Simple Chicken Meat Stock

Ingredients:

1 package of pastured chicken wings (10-12 wings.) *For a less meat option

Combination of thighs and quarters (5-7 pieces) or a small, whole chicken *For a more meat option

Filtered water

1-2 carrots, chopped

1 small onion, chopped

Small handfull of peppercorns 

1-3 tsp sea salt

*Double this for a larger stock pot.

Directions:

Place the chicken in your pot. Add water to cover by about an inch. Your water-to-meat ratio is important to achieve lots of the jiggly gelation that heals and seals the gut lining. I like to call this the sexy jiggle. The ratio you are looking to begin with is a 1:1 ratio. For every 1lb of meaty bones use 1 cup of water. Certain cuts will allow you to increase the water amount.

Turn the heat on high, bring to a boil and skim the scum. Turn the heat down to a simmer, add in peppercorns and salt. Cover and leave for 1 ½ – 3 hours. If adding vegetables, add in the last 30-45 minutes of the cook. 

***If using a slow cooker cook for 6-8 hours on low. 

When finished cooking strain out the liquid, this is your stock, and set it aside to cool a bit. Store the stock in wide-mouth glass jars. Refrigerate up to 7-10 days or consume immediately.

As the stock cools fat will rise to the top. You can add it into your soup, drink it with the stock from a mug or scrape it off and save it for later use. I love to sauté veggies in the fat.

Shred the chicken once it has cooled some and save the bones in the freezer for bone broth later.

Full- GAPS Vegetable Seasoning

This seasoning is from a great friend of mine from Brazil. I use it often when sautéing veggies as a side to some portion of meat on the GAPS diet. It can really help give a nice punch of flavor to really any medley of veggies you want to throw into the pan. This is also a great way to use up any veggies that might be going bad.

2T organic turmeric

2T organic onion powder

2T organic garlic powder

2T organic parsley

1T freshly ground pepper

Blend/mix all spices and store in a small jar in the pantry. Sautee veggies in animal fat of choice, or coconut oil, and season with this mix to your liking. Serve as a side dish or even a snack.

GAPS Pumpkin Pudding

Fall is upon us! However, this is a Raleigh favorite anytime of the year. This pudding is very simple and can be tailored to your child’s liking. As always, using homemade pumpkin that you have baked and purred yourself is optimal. If you are newly on GAPS I would highly recommend that route over store-bought pumpkin in a can. I started out pureeing the pumpkin myself and will now keep canned, organic pumpkin (look for a brand that ONLY lists pumpkin) to make it easier to make for him. When substantial healing has happened it can be okay to used canned pumpkin.

Here is my basic recipe:

This recipe is Full GAPS legal, GF, DF, NF

Serves 1-3

Ingredients:

1 can of organic pumpkin or approx. 1 2/3 cup cooked/pureed pumpkin

1-2T organic coconut oil

1T raw honey, or to taste

1 tsp organic cinnamon

1/4 tsp organic ginger

Optional toppings: coconut chips, raisins, other dried fruits, extra honey drizzle, sprouted nuts and seeds.

Directions:

Place the pumpkin and coconut oil in a pan on medium heat. Stir to combine the oil with the pumpkin. Add in the cinnamon and ginger and continue to incorporate. Once incorporated, add in the raw honey and turn off the heat. ***The wonderful enzymes in raw honey can be damaged by heat. Once all is incorporated taste and adjust flavors if needed.

Scoop some out into a small dish and add toppings.

Beef-Stuffed Acorn Squash

This recipe is: Full GAPS legal, GF, DF.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

2-3 small to medium acorn squash, halved

1-2lbs of ground beef, pork, turkey, or other meat of choice

1 small onion, chopped

3 stalks of organic celery, chopped

2t of sea salt, or to taste

1/2-1t dried sage

freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions:

Invert the squash in a baking dish. Add about an inch or so of water. Cover with foil. Be careful to keep the foil from touching the squash. I try and tent the squash. Bake at 400 for 40 minutes or until easily pierced by a knife. Set aside and allow to cool a bit. Scrape out the seeds.

Meanwhile, cook the beef, onion and celery over medium heat. Add the seasonings as you go. Once veggies are fully cooked through and meat is seasoned to taste, scrape out the squash and add it to the pan of meat. Warm through.

Save the acorn squash shell and use as a bowl. My kids get a thrill out of that.

***You can add shredded cheese to the top

***You can also add in any organ meat to the ground beef. Organs mix in well and go unnoticed in this meal. I would suggest either chopping liver, heart, kidney, small or pulverize in a processor before adding to the meat.