Italian Soup*

So even my mom liked this soup!  I borrowed the seasoning idea from EatingWell...which by the way includes potassium in their nutrition guidance! The recipe can be found here: http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/chicken_spinach_pesto_soup.html


The key idea I took?  Flavoring soup with Pesto!  It is probably best to make your own pesto, as EatingWell's recipe does (basil, olive oil, Parmesan cheese, and pine nuts (optional)), to reduce sodium.  I spent a good 20 minutes reading the ingredient labels of pesto jars in the grocery store to find only two options that were not made with soy products (notice how the ingredient list does not include soy). 

Ingredients:

1 small head of cabbage
2 15oz (Eden Organic) Cannellini Beans
1 small onion
1 large red pepper
6 cups low sodium vegetable broth (or chicken)
2 cups water
1 cup frozen green peas
10oz frozen chopped spinach (optional)
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup Basil Pesto
1 tbsp dried oregano
2 cloves garlic (grated)
1/2 tbsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp sea salt (optional - to taste)

Servings: A lot, easily 10 -12

1. Chop onion and red pepper.
2. In large pot or dutch oven add olive oil, onion, and red pepper.  Cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes.
3. Reduce to med-low heat and add vegetable broth, Pesto, oregano, pepper, and garlic (grate into pot).
4. Chop or shred cabbage. Add to pot.
5. Add spinach and cannellini beans.
6. Cook until cabbage is done.
7. Add water as needed or to desired soup consistency.
8. Add sea salt to taste.  If you use low salt/no salt ingredients you will need a bit of sea salt.
9. 10 minutes before serving add frozen green peas.  If you add them earlier they may dominate the soup.

*You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian.

Easy Chicken Pumpkin Soup....yummy.*

I seem to add collard greens to everything, even when it is not necessarily appropriate.  This recipe perhaps being one of them - a can of cannellini beans would prob fit better than collards, so I added a can!  However, soups are perfect for collard greens.  Why, because the greens sit and absorb the flavors of the soup.  The best soup to add collard greens is probably chili.  Give it a try - collards are my nutritional savior. 

Makes 10 generous cups

Ingredients:

3-4 boneless skinless chicken thighs (or about two chicken breasts)
4 cups of low sodium chicken broth
1 15oz can pumpkin
1 15oz can cannellini beans
1 large onion chopped
2 celery stalks chopped
4 cups chopped collard greens
1 clove of garlic
1/2 tsp ground pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp salted butter**
Seasoning for chicken: 1 tsp of dried thyme, 1 tsp of rosemary, sea salt and ground pepper to taste - optional

1. In a large pan (5quart saute pan) cook chicken in 1 tbsp of olive oil over medium heat.  Season if desired with Seasoning for Chicken listed above.

2. Remove chicken and set to side.

3. Reduce heat to low. Add additional 1 tbsp of olive oil and 1 tbsp of salted butter.  Add onion, celery, and ground pepper to pan.  Grate garlic into pan.  Cook and stir until onion is transparent.

4. Lightly coat collard greens with additional 2 tbsp of olive oil and add to pan.  Cook for an additional 10 minutes.

5. Melt 2 tbsp of butter and mix into pumpkin. Add to pan, cook and stir for an additional 10 minutes.

6. Add beans. Stir. 

7. Add chicken broth.  Stir.

8. Cut or shred chicken and add to pan. Stir.

9. Cover and let simmer for about an hour.















*You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian.

**Turns out I found a butter from pasture cows that is salted, but only has about 40mg of sodium per tbsp.  Other butters appear to have 95-over 100 mg of sodium per tbsp.  So you may prefer to use unsalted and add your own sea salt.

Squash-ghetti sauce?*

What else is a girl to make with left over tomatoes, onion, a frozen box of squash and virtually no spices in the kitchen.  Not to mention my only dinner option was frozen pasta and no sauce in sight.  This could actually be a soup - although, you'd probably want a larger portion.  Either way, I was slightly shocked that this was actually delicious.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp salted butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 plum tomatoes
1 cup frozen puree squash
1 whole clove garlic
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper

Servings 6

1. Over LOW heat melt butter and olive oil in a medium sauce pan.

2. Add chopped onion.

3. Cut garlic clove in half and add to pan.

4. Chop tomatoes and add to pan.

5. Microwave or boil squash to soften.  Once soft add to pan.

6. Add garlic salt and ground pepper.

7. Stir occasionally and let simmer for about 20 minutes.

8. Remove garlic clove.

*You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian.

Stomach Acid?

Well it is a good thing I like a challenge...because my new obstacle - heartburn/acid reflux/irritated stomach lining - whatever it is, it hurts. 

I've had a bit of a problem with stomach acid over the last year (and the scar tissue to prove it! Yes, I am turning into an outpatient pro.  Although, a little worried that the majority of my body is going to be scar tissue if my immune system doesn't decide to take a breather!)  However, was it possible to get worse? Is there perhaps a drug in this world that could not only increase my appetite, cause 5 pounds of water to decide my body is the ideal living space, and cause indigestion every time I eat? Yes, it is called prednisone.  That being said, from reading the reviews of other patients side effects, I think I might be getting by pretty well! 

Step 1 - Literature Review.  Step 1 = fail.  Too much non-sense out there. 
Step 2 - ?  I will let you know!

Mini Meatloaves*

One day I am going to actually use my real camera instead of my oh so convenient "old" iphone and I enjoy meat loaf.

Ingredients:

1/2 - 3/4 ground beef - (more or less depending on your protein intake and who else you are feeding.  Also, I'd go with 85/15 grass fed cows!)
1/2 zucchini
1 egg
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp chopped onion
1 garlic clove grated or minced
1/2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground pepper
1/2 plum tomato
2 ounces fresh whole milk mozzarella (optional)

Servings 4

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Slice four very thin slices of zucchini from the inside, approx two inches in length (see photo).  Set to side.

3. Grate rest of zucchini into ground beef.

4. Beat egg and add to beef.

5. Add basil, oregano, onion, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, sea salt, and ground pepper to beef.

6. Mix beef mixture well (I'd use your hands).

7. Separate beef mixture into four equal sizes and form mini loaves.  Place in baking dish (you may or may not want to spray with non-stick cooking spray).

8. Slice four thin slices of the plum tomato.

9. Layer zucchini and tomato slices on top of each loaf.

10**. Cook in oven for 25-30 min.  Remove from oven.

11. Cut mozzarella into four pieces, place on top of each loaf.

12. Return to oven to cook for 10 more minutes.

*You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian.

**Obviously - cook for 35min-40min if you do not follow steps 11 and 12.

Spaghetti Squash

Everybody's talking about it...spaghetti squash!  I may have been overly excited to try spaghetti squash.  I really enjoy winter squash.  However, winter squash is just a tad high on the potassium and vitamin A....grumble.  Spaghetti squash has the least amount of potassium...so I gave it a whirl.  It was good, but not as sweet as other winter squash.  However, once I accepted this truth, it was indeed a very lovely side dish.  A lot of people substitute wheat spaghetti for squash spaghetti and I must admit eating this squash with a sauce will probably give it an extra kick.  I decided to pretend it was a substitute for potatoes - unsalted butter, garlic, sea salt and black pepper.

Ingredients:
1 spaghetti squash
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic
olive oil to drizzle
1/4 - 1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Servings - approx 6, 1 cup servings (although I guess it depends on the size of your squash)

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Chop off top and slice in half (good luck!)

3. Remove seeds with spoon.

4. Place on baking sheet (you probably want a sheet with bit of a side, just in case the squash decides to roll and spill butter.  Butter spill can equal fire.)

5. Place one tbsp of butter and one crushed garlic clove into each half.

6. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and ground pepper.

7. Depending on your oven and tolerance to not open the oven to assure there are no fire hazards - bake for approx. 35 - 45 min.

8. Cool, removed crushed garlic cloves.

9. Take fork to remove squash from shell.

Expensive Poor Man's Lasagna****

If I ever get really bored and decide to collate my recipes into a cookbook that my mother, sister, godmother, and maybe a couple friends will buy...I think it will be called: A Girl, A Skillet, and A Slow Cooker.

Poor Man's Lasagna is misc. tomato sauce, one, maybe two types of cheese, ground meat product, and noodles. So how does one make that expensive, delete misc tomato sauce and add homemade red pepper sauce.



Ingredients:

5 large red peppers
1/2 small yellow or white onion
2 small Roma Tomatoes (optional)
25 basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
6 oz. shredded mozzarella*
1/2 pound hot Italian ground pork*
1/4 tsp sea salt**
1/2 tsp ground pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
12-15 lasagna noodles

Serves 8

1***. Cook Italian Pork in skillet. Cook all the way through. It is pork, you do not want to leave it to the slow cook gods when you are trying not to over cook noodles.

2***. Remove pork from skillet and leave a small amount of pork fat in skillet (you may want to place the pork in the refrigerator during steps 3&4.)

3. Cut up red pepper (it can be big chunks theses are headed to a food processor).



4. In a skillet, mix/cook red pepper, olive oil, salt, pepper, 1/4 of small onion, 10 basil leaves and 2 cloves of garlic over medium low heat. Stir periodically for about 30-40 min. The peppers will not be all the way cooked - that is OK.

5. Let peppers cool a bit. Transfer to a food processor and process until about the consistency of sauce (no chunks). It will be more watery than sauce b/c there is no paste. That is good, we need the water to cook the noodles.

6. Slice the Roma tomatoes very thin and chop remaining 1/4 onion.

7. Layer. I had four layers if you count the top, which I did not include meat. It will vary for you depending on the size of your slow cooker and your lasagna noodle breaking skills (mine were not that great). That being said divide the pork into three portions. Divide sauce into four portions, plus a little bit on the side for the bottom. Divide cheese into four portions, I would recommend saving half of the cheese for the last layer to be added in the last 15 minutes or so.

7.1 Place the little bit of sauce on bottom of slow cooker.

7.2 Place noodles on top (break noodles to fit).

7.3 Cover in one portion of sauce. Sprinkle one portion of pork. Tear five leaves of basil and sprinkle (I only did this on two layers). Add a bit of the onion. Add a few slices of tomatoes (tomato slices I used sparingly and placed in different spots on each layer). Cover with one portion of cheese. Repeat.

7.4 Top layer - cover in sauce. Strategically place remaining basil leaves and tomatoes to be pretty. Only use half the cheese. Add the last of the cheese when there is only 15min remaining.

8. Cook on low for 3-4 hours. (The top layer of noodles may not look done, they are edible. To check if done place knife through lasagna, should cut nicely).



*I don't think I need to mention this - but read the ingredient label - there is no need to have phosphorus or potato starch additives in your cheese and pork. There are enough natural occurring phosphorus and adding calcium phosphate to cheese is an oxymoron. Also, I may be lucky enough to have pork for sale that does not have added salt, if you are not, you may want to make your own hot Italian seasoned ground pork.

**You don't really need to add the sea salt if you do not wish. All the salt is for is to help bring out the water in the peppers. As far as taste goes, there is enough salt in the mozzarella for the actual lasagna.

***You can do Step 1 after Step 4 and throw away all the pork fat in step 2 if you prefer - I like pork fat, I realize not everyone may enjoy pork fat...you only live once, I'd recommend using pork fat.

****You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian.

Cooking Channel

I watch the Cooking Channel. A lot. Unlike the Food Network, the cooking channel spends a significant amount of time on cooking, not contests. And I'm glad I do, because this morning I was introduced to this - grilled grapes - genius! (Although I haven't tried it yet - eek).

http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/spiced-chicken-and-grape-skewers-recipe/index.html



When I was first told that I had to follow a low potassium diet, and be aware of all the other restrictions, I spent hours looking at kidney specific recipes (aka davita.com). While Davita is the most useful site out there for CKD and Dialysis patients, it is not the place to go for good food. It is the place to go for your favorites altered (aka makes them taste bad) or to learn about the differences between phosphorus additives vs. naturally occurring phosphorus (most helpful!). I say, branch out and learn to love new foods, b/c you will enjoy your food a thousand times more. Unless you really love bad salsa and cream cheese, in which case even if you don't have kidney problems you will love the davita website.

Otherwise, I say look for kidney friendly recipes that were created not because they were thinking of kidney patients, but were created because people thought they tasted good!

Just think of all the grilled skewer possibilities...pineapple, shrimp, red pepper...I know my parents can't wait for me to experiment on their grill!!

Beans! Delicious.

What high phosphorus food can I not live without? Beans! However if I can exhibit self control, it is possible to still enjoy beans.

For instance today I made "re-fried" black beans. Don't they look wonderful.


(This was before I put them in the food processor.)

The bad news: I could have easily eaten that in one sitting, instead that is going to be five servings. Sadness.

Delicious Beans:
1/2 medium onion
5-10 basil leaves
1 shallot of garlic
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
1 tsp of ground cumin
1 tbsp of chili powder
2 tbsp of olive oil (plus extra for texture)
1 can (15oz) (Eden Organic) Black Beans

1. Heat olive oil in skillet.
2. Chop onion and saute in olive oil.
3. Grate garlic into skillet.
4. Add basil leaves to skillet. Saute together for about 5 min.
5. Add beans, salt, pepper, ground cumin, and chili powder to skillet. Cook for about 5 - 10 minutes.
6. At this point you could either just eat the whole beans. Or you can mash with a potato masher. Or you can let cool and process in a food processor.
7. If using a food processor, you may wish to add olive oil for a smoother consistency. I for instance add about half a tbsp.

My two favorite foods are...

Collard Greens.



Why? B/c this leafy green has calcium and unlike those other leafy greens it has far less potassium. Rumour has it collard greens are bitter, but I actually think they taste better than other dark greens. Remember, just say no to kale and spinach.

Frozen Grapes.



My favorite thing about frozen grapes is that whenever somebody mentions them, they always act like it is their brilliant new idea. But who can blame them, frozen grapes are magical. Every time you bite into a little natural frozen slushy of grape goodness you can't help but think, "These are delicious why don't I do this more often? I need to tell other people about the amazing evolutionary phenomenon that occurs when grapes are placed in the freezer."

What an ingredient label should look like...

Ingredients: Pork, Water, Salt, Crushed Red pepper, Sugar, Whole Fennel Seed, paprika, Black pepper, Chili powder, Ground red cayenne pepper
...this is happy :)

What an ingredient label should not look like...
Ingredients: Beef, Water, Textured soy protein concentrate (soy protein concentrate, caramel color), eggs, contains less than 2% of the following: Romano Cheese, Dehydrated onion, natural flavors, corn syrup solids, bread crumbs, soy protein concetrate, textured soy flour, salt, sodium phosphate
...this is sad :(

Stuffed Bell Peppers**

They are Pretty.

I used a slow cooker for the peppers. I would use an oven instead, but mine does not work very well.

Serves 8

Ingredients:

4 Bell Peppers
1/2 pound hot Italian ground pork sausage
1 cup cannellini beans
1/2 cup chopped raw collard greens (about 1 very large leaf)
1 small purple onion
8 ounces of fresh mozzarella
1 jalapeno (optional)
5 basil leaves
1/2 tsp of crushed garlic
1/4 tsp of ground pepper

*If you are using an oven - pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

1. Break up the hot Italian ground pork sausage into smaller pieces and place into a mixing bowl. I would recommend using your hands.

2. Chop onion and jalapeno (for less spice remove the seeds from the jalapeno).

3. Add onion, jalapeno, and collard greens to pork and mix.

4. Mash about half of the cannellini beans. Add the full cup of beans to pork mixture.

5. Tear basil leaves with hands and add to mixture.

6. Add garlic and ground pepper. Mix together.



7. Cut bell peppers in half from bottom to top. Remove seeds and inedible parts from the inside.

8. Rinse halves.

9. Cut fresh mozzarella into 16 equal pieces. Place once piece into the bottom of each half of bell pepper.

10. Spoon pork mixture into each half. Take extra care that the raw pork does not become one lump but stays into smaller pieces so each half has its fair share.

11. Cook in slow cooker for 4 hours on high or in a 350 degree oven for an hour. If using an oven, use a deep dish there will be a lot of water.

12. Halfway through cooking, place another piece of mozzarella on top.

13. Let cool and serve. I would recommend serving over a bowl of rice because there is a lot of liquid.

*Depending on the size of bell peppers - you may have extra filling or not enough filling. The peppers I used were about medium.

**You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian

My Grandma is brilliant...

My Grandma taught me to grate onion into salads instead of chop. But how does one grate onions for 80+ years and not go blind or wear out their tear ducts from onion spritz? Well, I asked her. Turns out one is supposed to keep the onion in the freezer for grating. Genius!

How to make delicious scrambled eggs that you will never get tired of eating!****

My mother makes the best scrambled eggs. I learned how to make her eggs growing up. I recently had breakfast made by friends and quickly realized that many people out there do not know how to make tasty eggs and eggs are one of the best things you can eat...it says so on the TV - ha ha!

For one serving...b/c eggs don't work as leftovers :)

Ingredients:

1 whole egg
1 egg white
1 slice of uncured bacon*
a bit of chopped orange bell pepper**
a bit of chopped onion
a dash of ground pepper

1. Cut the bacon into slender horizontal strips (do it when it is cold, one slice of bacon warms up quickly in your hands).

2. Cook bacon in skillet.

3. While bacon is cooking whisk egg and egg white together - you know like you are going to scramble an egg. Season with pepper. Set to the side.

4. Remove bacon to a paper towel.

5. Remove all but a thin (thin!) layer of bacon fat from skillet.

6. Add bell pepper and onion to skillet. Saute for a few minutes.

7. Add egg mixture to skillet. Add bacon. Let stand for all of 15 seconds. Then constantly run through with spatula to scramble.***

*I use uncured b/c I read the label! You can find bacon that is not processed with phosphorus!

**I'd go with orange, but you can use any color and/or other veggie you have leftover. I like orange bell pepper because the sweeter pepper goes nicely with salt from the bacon.

***I suggest using low to med low heat. Slow cooked eggs are better.

****You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian.

BPA free cans = Awesome!

When shopping for your beans for my fantastic Almost there Chicken Chili, I would highly recommend looking for Eden Organic. Not only do they include potassium and phosphorus on the nutrition label but their cans are also BPA free! Can't wait to learn more? Check out their website: http://www.edenfoods.com/

Almost there Chicken Chili***

Turns out I like to grate garlic too!
This is a slow cook, crock pot recipe.

Ingredients:

4 chicken thighs
1 cup low sodium, low fat chicken broth*
1 med red bell pepper
1/2 a large onion
1 and 1/2 cup cannellini beans no salt added (about 1 15oz can)
1tsp of ground cumin
1 tbsp of chili powder**
1/2 tbsp Mrs. Dash (spicy)
1 tsp of grated garlic
1 tbsp of ground pepper
1/2 tsp sea salt (optional)
1-2 tbsp olive oil

Makes 4 servings. Recommended to serve with rice.

1. Heat olive oil in skillet. Season chicken thighs with Mrs. Dash and 1/2 tbsp ground pepper. Brown chicken in skillet.

2. Chop onion and bell pepper place in bottom of crock pot.

3. Measure 1 cup beans and mash (it will thicken the chili). Add to crock pot.

4. Add remaining 1/2 cup of beans to pot.

5. Add/mix grated garlic, cumin, rest of ground pepper, sea salt and chili powder to the vegetables in the pot.

6. Pour the chicken broth over top of vegetables in crock pot.

7. Place browned chicken thighs on top in crock pot.

8. Cook on high for two hours.

9. Remove chicken thighs and shred. Add back to pot. Cook on high and add extra seasonings as desired for additional hour. The additional hour is to assure the beans, red pepper, and onion are cooked well. If they are done to your liking then just keep warm.

*Read the ingredient label...I recommend organic, there is a lot of misc ingredients in a lot of the broths out there.

**Add more or less seasonings as you like, if you like it spicy add more or red pepper flakes, or even a chopped jalapeno.

***You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian.

Organic vs. not Organic

I have been an advocate of organic fruits, veggies, and meat for quite sometime now. And honestly, it is just be because I have very sensitive taste buds...organic foods taste better to me. They taste good - veggies and fruits are sweeter and fresher and I find meats cook better. Not organic veggies and fruits taste bitter and watery to me. The difference may indeed be that organic foods are simply fresher because the majority of foods have to come from local sources.

However, convincing others has always been a bit of an uphill battle...and I really don't have that motivation to really care what other people choose to eat. Last night however, I had the fantastic opportunity to show my parents that organic really is much more delicious! In a blind taste test...organic cucumbers were the favorite by far vs. not organic cucumbers.

I found this article by Mayo Clinic to be the most helpful. It is food source neutral and has some good information to help sort out the thousands of rumors and confusion about organic vs not organic food:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/organic-food/NU00255

Chicken Salad****

So, I don't ever cook from a recipe...or if there is a recipe, I find it very difficult to follow. Either way, I made chicken salad and did my best to measure everything.

Ingredients:

1-2 chicken breasts
1 med shallot
1/2 an orange or yellow bell pepper*
1/2 cucumber (enough to cut into bite size pieces for at least a 1/4 of a cup)
1/4 cup blueberries (go through and hand pick - you don't want mushy food)
1/4 cup of halved seedless grapes (I'd go with red)*
1 tblsp of olive oil
2 tblsp of light mayo**
1/2 tblsp of dijon mustard
Seasonings:
pepper (preferably a grinder)
dried italian seaonings(any kind oregano, basil, etc.)
Mrs. Dash (spicy)

makes 4 servings

1. Take shallot, grate until you have about 1/2 teaspoon of grated shallot (you may want to consider closing your eyes or wearing goggles). Mix 1/2 teaspoon of grated shallot with 1/2 tablespoon of Dijon mustard and two tablespoons of light mayo. Put in refrigerator until later.

2. Heat olive oil in skillet. Season chicken with the seasonings. Cook chicken in skillet.

3. Chop rest of shallot. Chop Bell pepper. When chicken is halfway cooked add chopped shallot and bell pepper to skillet. Saute to assure the veggies are cooked on all sides. I would recommend cooking until the shallot caramelizes.

4. Chop cucumber...I usually cut into quarters lengthwise and then cut slices, so they look like little triangles. If you are planning on having left overs, scoop out the seeds first. Set to side.

5. Cut Grapes in half. Set to side.

6. When chicken is done, let cool to room temperature.

7. When cool shred chicken. You can do this with two forks, but I would recommend using your hands.

8. Take mayo mixure from fridge and mix with shredded chicken.

9. Add cooked bell pepper and shallot. Mix.

10. About 30 min before serving add, grapes, blueberries, and cucumbers***. Mix. Let stand in the refrigerator.

*There are a lot of ingredients. If you choose to keep it simple I suggest skipping the bell pepper and grapes.

**You could substitute mayo with olive oil.

***If you think you will have left overs it is best to mix the amount you believe you will need. Grapes and cucumbers have a lot of water in them...if left overnight, you will have watery chicken salad, it is a little gross.

****You are responsible for understanding the nutritional and mineral content of the food you consume. Not me, which is why it is not posted. I do not claim that any of the recipes in this blog necessarily meet the renal diet restrictions. I am NOT a certified dietitian.

Newly Diagnosed with IGA Nephropathy

The Challenge: to Eat Well!...while on the restrictive renal diet...more or less.

Situation: I was recently diagnosed with IGA Nephropathy. I am currently stage 3 CKD and I have indeed been to see a nutritionist. I was a bit horrified by the renal diet...white bread, pie ? I have kidney disease, what makes everyone think I want to choke on trans fat and refined sugar?

Goal: To see if it is possible to create a meal plan that I can live with...literally, I'm not old, I'm young. This whole CKD has already statistically shortened my life. I'd prefer to not shorten my life more by eating white bread.

Purpose: This is my journal to post recipes, ideas, and hopefully an accomplished goal for me, not you - and if you read this and do anything against what your doctors and other medical professionals advise, it is your fault.