That’s what I’m talking ’bout!

Typical conversation:

Me: I don’t eat wheat.

“Normal” Person: What? I could never do that! I love bread.

If I had a penny every time I heard that, I’d have a shit load of pennies… and I would use every one of them to pay off all of my wheat eating friends so that they would eliminate it from their diets too. Wheat is evil – no seriously, no melodrama here, it really is evil. I learned this as a result of my desire to be competitively strong. I eliminated gluten from my diet for performance reasons, but the more I experience and the more research I read, the more I realize the devastating effects this grain has on the human body. Lethargy, fatigue, stomach pains, intestinal issues, bloating, aching joints, and feeling “slow”. These are the mild side effects I’ve experienced, and likewise freedom from gluten has alleviated all of them. The real deal comes with the more serious symptoms I suffered from when gluten was a regular part of my diet and find myself free of now: exercise induced asthma, hyperglycemia, acne, and irreversible weight gain. Though, despite how many articles I read about the science behind all of this, no matter how much I’ve witnessed first hand, living in the society we do has me questioning it every now and then still, in little ways like, “it can’t really be that serious can it?” Wheat is everywhere. Literally every aisle in the super market contains gluten laden products (well unless you shop somewhere cool like Wegmans, in which case you will find one gluten free aisle in the masses). Anyways, tonight I picked up a book I borrowed from my cousin and it was like I was reading a page out of my life – it is full of all the information I find myself re-iterating, and it is written well too – which is a bonus. Even the chapter titles give away the author’s quirky writing technique: “Not Your Grandma’s Muffins: The Creation of Modern Wheat”, “Hey, Man, Wanna Buy Some Exorphins? The Addictive Properties of Wheat”, and “Your Wheat Belly is Showing: The Wheat/Obesity Connection” are just a few of the chapters included in this great book: Wheat Belly by William Davis, M.D. I highly recommend it, even though I haven’t actually read the whole thing yet… but when I do I will give my true opinion of the whole thing. It would be super awesome if someone else found a copy and read it too so we could talk about it…

Anyways my abhorrence of the evil master grain led me to opening my computer and typing a post to inform you, and give you options. If you’re thinking, no wheat? What the hell is for dinner then? I have an answer for you. A delicious, sweet and simple recipe for you to enjoy.

Dessert Style Squash

Makes approximately 4 servings *I only eat half of my half and save the rest when it is paired with a hearty dinner, otherwise if it’s the main dish, this is only a two serving portion.

Ingredients

1 acorn squash

1/4 cup agave

3 tsp cinnamon

1 apple (medium size – go for a flavorful crisp apple, avoid anything too soft like Red Delicious, or pie apples like Crispins, my favorite is honey-crisp)

1/4 cup crushed pecans

Sprinkle of sea salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. If you’re a beast, or you live with a beast, grab a big ‘ole knife and chop your acorn squash in half. These halves have to sit in a pan without wobbling too much, so I cut with the stem in the middle, not with the stem on one half and the bottom on the other. If there are no beasts around, you can cook the squash whole for 45 minutes to soften it and then cut it in half and skip to step 4 – this takes more time.
3. Place the two halves in a casserole dish with the insides facing down. Fill the pan with about a 1 1/4inch of water. Cook for 30 minutes.
4. While the squash is in phase one of cooking, make the filling using the additional ingredients.
5. Remove squash halves from the oven and drain the water. Flip them over and fill them with the stuffing.
6. Cook the stuffed squash for 30-45 minutes, until the squash is tender and soft.
7. Enjoy eating your delicious sweet treat! And if you have restraint along with enough other dishes in your meal to save some, I highly recommend it. This tastes A-MA-ZING cold the next day :).