Hi, I’m Lauren! Welcome to Crazy For Yuca!!
I’m pretty excited about discovering yuca (also called cassava) and how it has expanded my cooking repertoire! I’m creating this blog to share my enthusiasm and spread the word about this incredibly versatile tuber that most Americans know little about. I look forward to creating recipes and exploring yuca with an online community of people who are interested in discovering new ways to enjoy food that is delicious and fun, as well as healthy.
The Recipe Swap Club: A major impetus for the creation of this blog came from a group that I run called The Recipe Swap Club. We are an in-person community dedicated to supporting each others’ healthy eating journeys. We swap gluten and dairy-free recipes, sample each others’ dishes, and work through the challenges involved in trying to eat healthy in a world that bombards us with competing messages. Since discovering yuca, I bring a yuca creation to every meeting for members to try. They are each kind enough to taste test, rate my dishes on a 5 point scale, and provide open-ended feedback anonymously on an index card. After receiving so much positive feedback, I realized I stumbled upon something really special. This fueled my desire to get the word out to more people through this blog.
What I do when I’m not writing this blog: My interests include yoga, exploring mind/body practices, learning all I can about eating healthy and optimizing wellness, and spending time with my 2 amazing daughters and husband (without whose computer expertise and countless hours of help I could never have tackled setting up this blog on my own.) I work as a Clinical Psychologist in private practice in Merrick, New York. My specialties include stress management and a focus on integrative health. My goal is to empower others to be mindful of their needs and choices, and encourage them to create wellness of mind and body for themselves.
Health struggles that led me on this path: I’ve had a number of health struggles of my own that have challenged me. While difficult to handle, they have also created the opportunity for evolution, causing me to focus, learn, and grow in new directions. At the age of 52, I can now look back at the last 20 years since my first difficulty and feel thankful for the gifts they have brought into my life – (Don’t get me wrong – it has been a real struggle to get to this point, but it all seems worth the pain as I look back and see the big picture.) Without each of these issues causing me to stop, research, and take responsibility for my own wellness, I would not have regained my health. I would also not be sitting here right now creating this blog.
My first difficulty was in 1995 when I had trouble conceiving my second child. I was then diagnosed with endometriosis to which I lost an ovary. At the age of 33 I was instructed to go on “the pill” until menopause to avoid further issues. There was no discussion of why I was out of balance, natural treatment options, or what problems may result from being on the pill for so long. Over the next few years I had my gall bladder removed and suffered from low energy, muscle aches, chronic itchiness, and terrible brain fog. In response to my complaints, doctors repeatedly told me that my blood work was fine. In 2008, I was diagnosed with Hashimotos Thyroiditis, an autoimmune disease that attacks the thyroid gland. I was given a prescription for Synthroid (synthetic thyroid hormone) and sent on my way. My body continued to attack my thyroid, and additional issues emerged including pre-diabetes, vitamin deficiencies, new hormone imbalances, sleep problems, systemic inflammation, and constant belly bloat. I felt like an old woman in my 40s! Still, my doctors had nothing more to offer.
It wasn’t until I consulted a Functional Medicine doctor that I began to understand my diagnoses and was given individualized guidance to actually begin the process of healing. Along the way I learned all about the critical role that food and gut health play in supporting the immune system and in the maintenance of mental as well as physical well-being.
The diet and lifestyle philosophy that works for me: Testing revealed that I am sensitive to gluten, dairy, soy, and chicken eggs! Upon elimination of these foods, I felt an immediate improvement in my overall sense of wellness. Through the years I have continued to tweak my diet, as I have become more attuned to what does and does not feel good in my body. As a result of this awareness, I eliminated added sugar from my diet and keep grain to a minimum. For me, sugar and processed grains (even if they are gluten-free) sap my energy and my mental clarity.
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I know what you are thinking – “No gluten, dairy, soy, eggs, sugar, or much grain!! What can you possibly eat???” You are crazy!!”….. I hear it all the time!
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I learned that when I took the time to find what felt good in my body, and discovered recipes that excited me, I get great enjoyment from natural, nourishing food! My diet now consists mainly of organic grass-fed meats, duck eggs (fresh from the local farm,) homemade bone broth, lots of organic vegetables, some organic fruit, nuts and seeds, healthy oils, and yuca!! Choosing to make these shifts in my diet was a definite challenge in the beginning, but it forced me to actually learn how to cook with fresh ingredients. Putting only “real food” (as opposed to processed food) into my body is one thing I can do to nurture myself that makes a huge impact on my health and vitality – and that’s so empowering! Surprisingly, I have actually added a lot more foods into my diet than I have taken out. And now that I have yuca, I will never miss gluten again!!! I have grown to truly love the way I eat!
Along the way I have come to value an integrative approach to health. I strive to cultivate wellness through lifestyle behaviors including eating a clean diet, taking nutritional supplements, managing stress, keeping my spine aligned with chiropractic adjustments, getting proper sleep, exercise, avoiding chemical and endocrine disrupting products, and always being attuned to my body and inner voice as a guide.
As a result of my dietary and other lifestyle changes, I continue to see improvement in my blood work and a restoration of my youthful energy. I LOVE eating “real,” whole food that is full of life-supporting nutrients! Eating “dead,” processed food full of chemicals and preservatives will not nourish or make anyone feel alive.
Don’t worry, I am not going to suggest that you eliminate anything from your diet! Your health and needs are your own individual process. What I will do in this blog is provide numerous, delicious, healthful recipes that all include yuca in some form. While all of my cooking is gluten, dairy, soy and chicken egg free (I substitute duck eggs), with only minimal amounts of natural sugar used if needed, you are free to add cheese, additional sweetener, or anything that makes you happy to customize recipes to your preferences. But who knows – maybe you won’t even miss those ingredients!
Yuca makes eating fun! I want to say that yuca is the best thing that has happened to my gluten-free diet, but I think it’s actually the most exciting addition to my eating since birth! Yuca’s versatility, and the overwhelming sense of joy and satisfaction I feel while eating it, is truly unparalleled!
Get ready to introduce yuca into your kitchen, or find new ways to enjoy it. We will have a lot of fun trying out new recipes together! And feel free to comment or make suggestions. I value your input. We’re all in this together.
Welcome to the “Yuca-teria!”
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Disclaimer– In Crazy for Yuca I write about my own personal health and diet journey. My experience and recipes are not to be considered expert advice or suggestive that anyone follow any particular diet protocol. Each person’s body and medical issues are individual and need to be evaluated by a medical professional. If you have any concerns due to your specific diagnoses, please consult your doctor before eating yuca.
