Two more fruit bars and a rant

Was delighted to find a couple of new (well, new to me) brands of fruit-based bars at my local independent health food store. Larabar Cherry Pie (very tasty) made entirely of cherries, dates and almonds and Go Natural Fruit Medley, which comprises dried peach, apricot, apple, pear, mango and pineapple with some rice flour and non-scary preservatives.

American and Australian manufacturers lead in this area. Off the top of my head I can only recall one manufacturer, Village Bakery, that produces candida-friendly (although, it should be pointed out that these - and those referred to above - aren't specifically marketed as suitable for the diet) in the UK. And the resultant food miles really bothers me. Come on all you snack and cake bar producers - get your acts together!!!

An easy-peasy Japanese-style meal

The Green Tea Prawns with Cucumber Salsa recipe available from Times Online (last recipe on the page, scroll to the bottom) is really delicious. The prawns with green tea have a wonderful, delicate flavour which makes a change from soy/miso based sauces. And the radish and cucumber salad that accompanies the prawns is also very good. I didn't use Sushi vinegar as advised - for a start, I couldn't find it to buy it, but also because it contains sugar. I substituted brown rice vinegar instead. What are you looking at me like that for? It's brown rice - it's gotta be healthy ;). Okay, so the salad isn't 100% candida-diet friendly, but would make - along with a serving of brown rice - a great, but simple, meal to feed non-'thrushy' friends, without breaking your own diet too drastically. Gets an A+ from me!

Super noodles!

In my local health store the other day, I was delighted to come across a packet of Sanchi Organic Ramen (wholewheat) with Seawood minus all the usual crap you find in other brands of instant noodles. And jolly nice they were too. I chopped up a couple of spring onions to add to the broth, just to give a 'home made' veneer to my lunch (makes me feel less guilty for using convenience foods!). Not something to eat everyday, but makes a good store-cupboard emergency standby - and helps to indulge my need to eat like a 'proper' student from time to time. ;)

Courgette and Chickpea Pancake

Courtesy of Maki at Just Hungry, I've just made her Courgette and Chickpea Pancake for dinner. The recipe worked out pretty well. I grated the courgettes, cos I don't have a food processor and added a bit of water to the chickpea (gram) flour and courgette mix to make a batter. Halfway through eating (with tzatziki and a green salad), I decided that what it really needed was a squeeze of lemon. With lemon it was good, but still missing something. I reckon it was onion. So next time (and there will be a next time!) I'll grate a shallot or half an onion into the mixture too.

I love freebies!

Lunapads are lovely. Because I mentioned them on The Cardboard Diet they sent me some freebies all the way from Canada! A pad, two types of liner and an organic cotton hanky. And the pad fabric is so beautiful - really 'me'.

I've got to get me some more!! I can feel a collection coming on... ;)

Update and latest supplement regime

Okay, so two months ago I was on top of the world (yeasty-beastie wise). I was experiencing my first few candida-free weeks for flipping ages! Sadly, that didn't last. But, while the thrush is most definitely back, it's manageable. Plenty of water seems to prevent the soreness I've always experienced and the (occasional) itching is bearable. So, I feel like I'm still moving forward in my candida recovery, though it's back to baby steps, rather than great leaps forward. However, I'm still off the anti-fungals, which makes me quite hopeful for the future. Having said that, my nutritional therapist has reintroduced a little Oxypro back into my regime just recently, but that is - apparently - to combat the nasty patch of dermatitis that has appeared on my back (I guess - for all I know - that could be fungal too - eugh):

Oxypro 6 - 8 drops (breakfast)
1 x Nutricell Caratenoid Complex (breakfast and evening meal)
1 x Mega GLA (breakfast and evening meal)
1 x Biomagnesium (breakfast)
1 x Lactobacillus (breakfast and evening meal)
1 x Iron (evening meal)

Juice drinks

I don't know about you, but sometimes I get a little sick of drinking endless water (sparkling, with ice and a slice on 'special' occasions). I yearn for Coca-Cola. One sip, and I know I would relapse into addiction. What can I say? Once a Coke fiend, always a Coke fiend. So, the other day, I was delighted to spot a juice drink in my local newsagents that contains no sugar, no sweeteners and no other addictive nasties: Feel Good Drinks Co. Apple and Blueberry. Crucially it is diluted with water, which makes it okay for those following the Candida diet (maintenance diet). It was a tad expensive (99p), but saved me - on a particularly difficult day when my willpower was weak - from slipping back into Coca-Cola hell.