How to start… where to start… when to start… all of it incredibly overwhelming.

One step at a time, choosing not to be overcome by the enormity of it, gets you to a  place of freedom in the kitchen that ultimately brings health.

Receiving the news that your world of food is about to experience a radical shift can be intimidating, to say the least. Upon hearing of my daughter’s need to eliminate numerous food items, I stumbled often as I learned a new way of thinking about meal preparation.

I began reading and eventually understanding what is on food labels. I quickly learned that simple products like canned corn or black beans, very often include other ingredients my daughter could not have. My trips to the grocery store became label reading outings, looking for products to use.

The initial meals I prepared were simple. They consisted of meat, vegetables, rice, and very quickly became boring. Working to embrace the changes I gradually found my way in the kitchen once again, but not before I had numerous experiments that neither friend or foe could eat, and were relegated to the garbage under the banner of “nothing ventured, nothing gained.” Regaining my footing over the course of a month I began to experience a measure of success, as my creations could finally be eaten by my daughter, and occasionally by other family members as well.

Over time, I came to understand that if the label includes a vague “natural flavor”, or “spices”, it was something I could not trust to include in her diet. I slowly but surely began to acquire an arsenal of basic ingredients to use in my cooking, and ultimately I began to create tasty food the whole family could enjoy.