As I lightly touched upon in my introduction to this section, I used to follow the MyPyramid guidelines to maintain a balanced diet.  And according to those guidelines, an average adult should strive for two to three servings of dairy daily.  I initially struggled with this food group, as I wasn't really a milk drinker and I rarely ate cold cereal.  But then I started exploring different types of yogurts to help reach my dairy quota, and soon enough a daily yogurt became routine. 

I would eat  a yogurt along with breakfast, or as my breakfast with different mix-ins, or similarly for lunch.  Or I would have a mid-afternoon yogurt snack.  It simply became a staple of my diet.

So ... when dairy-free became my way, I was left with a big hole in my diet.  I couldn't figure out what to replace my yogurt void with.  I tried more fruit, carbs, I was even eating candy to fill the void.  Clearly, none of those fulfilled the protein and nutrients found in yogurt, and I really felt like my diet was lacking.

I did branch out and try one or two different brands of soy yogurt, but really they were just disgusting.  Then months later ... maybe even a year after dropping the dairy ... I was in Wild By Nature and noticed a line of yogurts put forward by Silk.   

This piqued my interest because I enjoyed Silk milk products; I actually like the way they taste.  So I picked up a few flavors to try knowing it was worth a shot.

Long story short, Silk Live! Soy Yogurt has absolutely rounded out my diet.  A food group has been fulfilled.  There isn't a flavor I don't enjoy, and there's 9 to chose from!  For those of you that are familiar, I would compare these to the taste of Dannon's Light & Fit yogurts.  In my opinion, the majority of the flavors don't even taste like soy. 

I've always enjoyed the portability and versatility of yogurt,

and though Silk Live! has about 50% less protein than the Greek yogurts I was eating (similar to most other dairy non-Greek yogurts), it's still a no-fuss, relatively low calorie source of protein

Really, if you're hesitant to try soy-based yogurts ... I don't blame you ... but please try this one.  I recommend Black Cherry, Blueberry, Raspberry, and Strawberry to start with.  The Banana-Strawberry and Vanilla seem to have more of a soy taste to them .. but still good!

FYI  I've seen these yogurts not just at specialty grocery stores; my local King Kullen carries them for example.  Keep your eyes peeled!

If you have been searching for the perfect DF WF GF unfrozen  whole grain bread loaf, your search is complete.

One of my biggest pet peeves when it comes to WF GF bread products is that the majority of them are found in the freezer section ... And while it's nice to enjoy some toasted bread every once in a while, it's not practical  for work-week lunches and personally it's not my preference.  I'd much rather sink my teeth into a nice, soft piece of bread than a crispy toasted one!

Udi's whole grain loaf looks like real bread,

and most importantly, tastes and smells like real bread.  Also, even more of an added bonus, this bread does not have a ridiculously high calorie count like many of the WF GF bread products I've come across.  Click here for nutrition information and ingredients.

I've enjoyed this bread for many different sandwiches:

And it's even tasty enough to eat open-faced sans sandwich with nut butters, butter or DF butter substitutes, etc.

At this point the only con I could possibly think up is that sometimes this bread can be a little crumbly ... But it by no means affects eating sandwiches, etc. 


Finding this bread has completely normalized my lunching experience.  I buy a loaf every weekend from my local Whole Foods (I've yet to find another store that carries this product), and it stays fresh the entire week.

Seriously, for all of you that follow a DF WF GF diet, or any combination of the sorts, do yourselves a favor and try this bread.  Before you know it it'll become a staple in your pantry too!

If someone had told me a couple of years ago I'd eventually be following a dairy-free, wheat-free, gluten-free diet, I probably would have told them they'd mistaken me for somebody else ...

While I've always had a passion for nutrition and diet in relation to personal well being, I always viewed my dietary guidelines through the lens of the standard American food pyramid.  I was a huge believer of "everything in moderation."  As far as I was concerned (or so I thought!), I had no reason to ever consider omitting whole food groups from my diet.
 
Then a couple of years ago I was having difficulty combatting certain ailments with conventional modern medicine.  I thought I was eating balanced, getting enough sleep, and exercising moderately,  so it was driving me crazy that I couldn't get myself feeling better. 

Finally one day I stumbled upon a blog (I don't remember which one) that spoke towards one of my ailments.  The blogger claimed that eliminating dairy from her diet in turn elimated her pains and symptoms.  I naively thought it sounded ridiculous that dairy could have so much bearing on one thing, but I figured after months of suffering it was worth a try.  Needless to say ... four days after eliminating dairy from my diet, things  I didn't even know where bothering me felt better!  I transformed into a completely different, healthier person. 

After twenty five years of living a certain way, it was a complete and utter challenge to entirely revamp my eating lifestyle.  I read books, blogs, internet articles, educating myself how to continue to properly nourish and fuel my body without dairy.  Did you realize that dairy is in practically everything??  I had to train myself how to re-cook the simplest meals, and do without American staples like maccorini and cheese, in addition to eliminating foods from my Italian heritage like pizza and baked ziti and chicken parmigiana.  It was a little overwhelming in the beginning to say the least ... fortunately Ryan was nothing but amazing and supportive through it all (Mind you, eating lifestyles certainly affect the people you live with!).

Then as time passed and I was better learning the roots of my ailments, my dietary research progressed.  I found numerous resources stating that the elimination of wheat and gluten from the diet only furthered relief and symptom decrease.  At the time I almost hoped that wouldn't ring true for me, (How could I ever become dairy-free, wheat-free, and gluten-free??) but I knew it was something I had to try out ... how couldn't I after my positive experience with dairy elimination?

Well ... it worked.  I've been DF WF GF for only a short period of time now, but my body feels so much more at peace with itself.  The enhancements to my health and overall well being that I've experienced because of these dietary changes make the extra meal planning and specialty shopping all worth it.  And no, I don't miss any of the foods that are no longer in my diet!  They made me feel sick!  Really, in this day and age you can buy dairy-free, wheat-free, gluten-free anything ... just look at my food blog ... I can eat any type of food I want!  And in actuality, I'm finding it easier to cater to a DF WF GF  diet versus a DF diet because many food products marketed as DF are also WF GF, and I don't think I was paying much attention to those in the past.

Adapting to a DF WF GF lifestyle is a huge change, but I'm learning it's not as hard as it seems.  I look forward to sharing my favorite food products with you, and maybe my not so favorite, that allow me to find variety and balance in a DF WF GF world ... And maybe you have some you can share with me?  =)

It's all in the name of health ... and what better cause is there really?