Lemon bars, no seeds, nuts, grain

Lemon bars, no seeds, nuts or grains

In all my years battling candida, my health care practitioners never explained the difference between low carb and low starch. I was simply told to avoid carbohydrates in the initial phase of the anti-candida diet and then reintroduce some as I moved through the stages of the diet and as symptoms improved. For me, this has never worked. Every time, I up my carb intake to include such foods as seeds, quinoa, legumes, etc., the results have been devastating. The symptoms return with gusto.

Now, I am beginning to get a clue as to why this keeps occurring. Low carb means eating "good carbs" or low glycemic carbohydrates, such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables, legumes, while avoiding simple carbs. With the exception of vegetables, most of these "good carbs" create havoc with my digestive tract.

The amount of starch and types of sugars in these "good carbs" seems to be the problem. I need to eat not only low carbohydrate but also low starch which is a low-starch diet.  All carbohydrates are starches, but not all starches are carbohydrates. Many people cannot digest some starches but in people with intestinal disorders, the digestion of starches is further compromised.

So, that explains it! Every time I've eaten sunbutter, seeds, legumes, whole grains, I am eating starchy carbohydrates that I cannot digest. All this undigested food creates more fun for bad bacteria. The end result is I get an overgrowth.

I have been following the low starch diet for 10 days with positive effects as well as lots of die-off symptoms.  If you want to know more about low starch versus low carbohydrate, go to  http://thepositivepear.com/?s=low+starch+diet

Here's a low starch version of one of my favorites---lemon bars.

You'll need for the crust:

3 T. coconut flour
3 T. unsweetened coconut flakes
2-3 T. melted coconut oil

You'll need for the filling:

2 T. each coconut oil and coconut butter
juice of 1 lemon
vanilla stevia, to taste
1/2 tsp. alcohol-free vanilla extract

Misha rests while waiting for the lemon bars.

Here's what you do:

Press the filling ingredients into a 5 X 7 loaf pan (silicone works best). Put the loaf pan into the freezer to harden up the crust. In the meantime, soften the coconut oil and coconut butter in a small bowl. Squeeze in the lemon juice and stir until mixture is thickened. Stir in the stevia and vanilla.

Remove the pan with crust from the freezer. Spread the filling on top of the crust. Voila, you have lemon bars! So easy and simple to make. You may need to place them in the freezer for a few minutes before cutting into bars.

Recipe contributed to: http://www.rickiheller.com/2013/11/wellness-weekend-november-14-18-2013/#more-21218

 http://www.phoenixhelix.com/2013/11/13/paleo-aip-recipe-roundtable-3/

 http://allergyfreecookery.blogspot.com/2013/11/its-linky-party_15.html