2 OXFORD PLACE | REVIEW

This week my Mum and I ventured into Leeds to go and see the wonderful Wicked. The show has been touring around the country and I have loved it for absolutely ages; I can't count the amount of times my sister, Hannah and I have belted 'Defying Gravity'. In fact, when I was younger I aspired to be on stage but alas stage fright has got the better of me.

We had heard of this new gluten free place opening in Leeds and decided that 2 Oxford Place (located at it's namesake, just by the town hall) was going to be our place of choice. The interior of this place is just exquisite - it's like being taken back in time into a charming, wallpapered house. The staff were so friendly and asked us about being gluten free (I am, my mum isn't coeliac), why we were in Leeds and made sure we were fully accommodated. And that we most definitely were. I enjoyed (an understatement) a grilled cheese sandwich on white and it was just divine. Not only was the bread like glutened bread in taste and texture (it was so nice to eat bread that tasted like, well, bread!) it was so comforting to eat in a restaurant knowing  that there was no chance of cross contamination.Then, because we had to be on our way to the theatre, we took a lovely carrot cake muffin to much on on the train home. This was also scrumptious!

The food, atmosphere and staff were just lovely. Though it's quite pricey, this is explained by the food being more 'restaurant' than 'cafe'. I definitely will be paying them a visit soon; a perfect lunch for a perfect day.

THEIR WEBSITE: http://2oxfordplace.com/
THEIR TWITTER: https://twitter.com/2oxfordplace

Freak out and BREATHE

When you're first diagnosed as a coeliac you are going to feel things. I completely was not expecting it (I didn't even know they'd tested for coeliac disease when I had my blood test) so when I was the doctors three months later and she told me off hand it kind of threw me. I love food; I mean, I really love it. I really like cooking for other people and searching for recipes online and eating. Suddenly I was so restricted and it was difficult. Especially because I am, well was, vegetarian.

Three months on and I still freak out. I came home from an 8 hour shift at work and there was no food in. My dad and my sister could just bung something in from the freezer but I had to think; I didn't want packet rice, I didn't want homemade egg fried rice (a staple at uni, I had it tooooooo much). Pasta and cheese was too bland, my recently-glutened stomach couldn't handle pesto. I cried. I cried because my blood sugar was low and I feel emotionally meh at the moment and I was exhausted. I get so frustrated because I want my body to let me do what I want for once. And what's more, I want to come home from work and bung some chips and chicken from the freezer into the oven. I hate battling with my body but I seem to do it all the time.

Regardless, my point is that is difficult. My medical support has been minimal so far because I've been away at university but these next couple of weeks should rectify that. (Phew) I know it's not the end of the world but it's times like yesterday when I buy £1 crisps that I think are gf from a vending machine because everywhere in the train station is closed and I eat them and it turns out they're not: frustration.

I honestly know that I am so lucky to have access to all the foods that I do. But I'm trying to show that it's really okay to freak out sometimes and cry. But the you pick yourself up, you talk to someone or google recipes, or read and then you breathe. That's when you feel a little in control again and can decide what to have for dinner on a stupidly hot weeknight.

A bit of this and that | RECIPES

Today has been a mismatch of things; my mum headed off to Lanzarote and the night before it slipped my mind to do any overnight oats (boo!)

However today I decided to cook a little and enjoy the full vegetable tray in the fridge! Along with a cup of hot yummy coffee (which I shouldn't really have but shush) I treated myself to a gluten free pizza, the base courtesy of Juvela, topped with red pesto, cheese, sweetcorn and pepper! It was super tasty and filling and actually tasted like proper pizza so all thumbs up here.

I really recommend checking out Juvela's stuff. They send you a sample pack if you've been diagnosed as coeliac which is really helpful to determine what you like and what you don't. The pizza bases are really simple to cook and keep fresh as well.

Another thing I made this evening was a salad. Now, I'm not a huge fan of salads because my appetite is quite big and I get hungry super easily. So for this salad I just chucked a load of things in it; herb garden salad leaves, cucumber, red pepper, sweetcorn, gf cous cous, avocado and cherry tomatoes. The cous cous was from ASDA - my mums friend with whom she was going on holiday brought me a bag full of gluten free goodies! Very much appreciated.

Thanks for tuning in. See you next week after I've been away!

T-oat-ally Enamoured

My most recent post was about the overnight oats I was trying out. I've been searching high and low on the internet for ideas and so far, other than the blueberry and banana one of which I posted a recipe, and I'm impressed. Food wise, when I like a basic recipe or idea I tend to begin to constantly explore what I can do with it; this is especially handy when it comes to gluten free meals since you can be somewhat limited.

So far I've found a really great blogger Kath Eats Real Food. She has such a great writing style and her food ideas are really tasty. Along with KERF and some other random sites that I tend to peruse for recipe ideas I have found two further great combinations.

The first: chocolate, Nutella and banana overnight oats. This was pretty simple: same quantities of milk, yoghurt and oats. Simply add a dollop of nutella in the mixture and to the bottom of the jar, add chocolate milkshake powder to your milk and add one whole mashed banana, et voila! This one was more of a treat to myself because I was feeling a little meh and, why not?

Tonight's choice was a little healthier: rasperry jam and blueberries overnight oats. Again, same quantities of milk, yoghurt and oats. Just add a dollop of raspberry (or fruit of your choice) jam and mix it all with a scattering of mashed blueberries. A little less sweet but still tasty and definitely a great way to start the day.

Tomorrow I'm working a full day at a temporary job I have. It's the first time I'm getting up this early in a long while so I better finally get to sleep and get geared up ready for tomorrow.

RECIPE | Blueberry and Banana Overnight Oats

One of the things I've struggled with since my diagnosis is finding a breakfast that is quick, easy and filling. Since I didn't have my own toaster at university I couldn't do toast quickly so I was forever looking for ideas that would fill me up. When you have a lecture and then a seminar and know that you have to go an hour or two in the morning then these overnight oats are perfect. This is the first recipe I've tried and I loved it. I'm going to be trying different variations with the same fruit (since I can't afford tonnes of fruit at university) and flavours over the next week or so.

Blueberry and Banana Overnight Oats

You will need:
60-70ml gluten free oats
60-70ml greek yoghurt (or dairy free alternative)
60-70ml milk (or dairy free alternative)
1/2 banana
60-70ml/a good handful blueberries
Pinch of sugar
A clean jar with a lid
Flaked almonds/nuts of your choice, blueberries and golden syrup to garnish

1) Mash the banana and blueberries in a bowl until they are combined.
2) Add the oats, milk and yoghurt and mix.
3) Add sugar and mix until the mixture is combines and smooth.
4) Pour into jar and cover. Leave in fridge until the morning.
5) Garnish with blueberries, golden syrup and nuts. (Or whatever you prefer to garnish with; honey, walnuts, banana etc)

An Introduction

To those of you who are reading this due to knowing me, it's good to see you. If you've stumbled across this looking for advice or whatever, I give you many hugs and I hope I can be of some help or comfort.

My aim for this blog is to provide help and support not only for other students and young people going through what I currently am, but to provide a space for me to talk freely about medical and food stuff without burdening anyone.

So, first of all, my medical story. (Yay, cheery!) Around two years ago I was diagnosed with congenital syringomyelia; meaning that I have a small cyst in my spinal chord - I was born with it and it isn't growing but causes chronic pain. After seeing various doctors and physios, I have had one lumbar puncture and am currently on 1200mg/day of Gabapentin (Neurotin) with the aim to increase my dose. This condition has caused me a lot of, I guess, emotional stress because it stops me doing things I want and can be very painful and frustrating.
On the 6th May this year I was diagnosed with coeliac disease (after blood tests and an endoscopy). This entails having to go onto a gluten free diet (not the easiest thing for a vegetarian to do, let alone a student) and I am also on nutrient supplements due to the fact that I am anemic, vit D and vit B12 deficient. It's generally made me very tired.
Interestingly there is some talk in the medical world that these two conditions may be linked. There is currently no cure for both.

Away with the doom and gloom, how about me? I'm a (nearly) 19 year old English student. I love to read and write; I have another blog, two youtube channels (vlog and booktube) and a tumblr. I have just finished my first year of university and it has been incredible; my aim is to go into publishing and to work in editorial. I'm massively looking forward to going back to uni in September and part of the reason I want to do this blog is so I can record recipes, and see what works and what's cheap. I'm also going to be recording general health stuff - I'm planning on swimming this summer (two or three times weekly) in order to get fitter and hopefully reduce my pain.

Finally, the name: my dear friend Joel thought that it was 'celery' disease and thought that I was, rather than a 'coeliac', was a 'celery'. Thus I am now Celery.