The first stage of my Elimination Challenge is over! Two weeks of pure, whole eating are behind me, and now we move on to the re-introduction phase. There is a particular order and a few rules to follow when re-introducing foods, and the heavy hitters are first up: Wheat, Dairy, Eggs.

You basically try to eat something from your designated re-introduction food group at every meal for two days, and monitor to see how your body reacts. You have to keep tabs on how you feel, and take note of any headaches/fatigue/dizzyness/gas/stomach pain/bloating. Or to put it in Dr. Aoife’s very technical terms: “You’ll know if you’re reacting as you will generally feel as though you’ve been hit by a truck”. If you don’t experience any reactions, you move on to the next food.
 
Well, after three days of incorporating multigrain bread, oatmeal, whole wheat pasta, and flour tortillas into what I was eating, all is well.  This makes me very happy, although with the visits to Voila, I wasn’t really lacking for bread products, as you know from my previous post.
 
With dairy on the horizon, I thought it would be nice to have some granola to stir into my yogurt, so I made this tonight after work. I got this recipe from the Toronto Star a few years ago, and it’s really good. For elimination purposes, I had to use agave nectar instead of the honey and maple syrup, and leave out the dried fruit – but I didn’t miss it.  As with all granola recipes, you can adapt it any which way you like, adding different nuts, dried fruit, or leaving out the coconut if it’s not your thing. I forgot this time, but adding some cinnamon would be yummy as well.
  
Fruit, Nut & Seed Granola
  
Source: Toronto Star
 
Ingredients:
 
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla
2 3/4 cups rolled oats (quick cooking or old-fashioned, doesn’t matter)
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup pepitas (raw pumpkin seeds)
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
2 tbsp ground flaxseed
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup raisins
3/4 cup unsweetened, dried, shredded coconut
 
Directions:
  1. In a large bowl, stir together syrup, honey, oil and vanilla.
  2. Add oats, sunflower seeds, pepitas, almonds, sesame seeds and flaxseed.
  3. Stir to mix well and spread evenly on one big or two medium baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes at 275.
  4. Stir together dried fruit and coconut and sprinkle evenly over granola. Bake 15-20 more minutes.
  5. Cool on baking sheets and transfer to an airtight container (or large resealable plastic bag). Granola will keep for a month (or in the freezer for even longer).