My family and I have been doing Natasha Turner’s Hormone Diet for the past few weeks. The diet mainly consists of eliminating all sources of starch (grains and root vegetables, mostly), sugar, caffeine, alcohol and processed foods, and eating a whole foods diet. While we thought it would be hard – there are a lot of rules to follow – it’s not too bad. We’ve helped each other get through it as a family, taking turns cooking and preparing meals. And as a family, we’ve become healthier: I feel lighter, more energetic and have  experienced less cravings for sweets or “unhealthy foods”. I also find that my blood sugar is more stable throughout the day.

As a family, we’ve lost some weight and many of our digestive ailments have improved. Most of all, however, we’ve learned how to make due without a heavy reliance on grains and carbohydrates, which once made up a bulk of our meals. Since we’re all at risk for diabetes, it’s good to reduce our intake of carbs. Having a diet that’s heavy in carbs/grains can contribute, not just to diabetes, but the occurrence of other problems, such as anxiety and depression, as well.

The best part of the diet, has been looking for creative ways to replace grains in the diet with more vegetables. Our vegetable consumption has gone up as we’ve begun to emphasize veggies, rather than carbs, in our meal-planning. Spaghetti becomes replaced with the more nutrient-rich and less calorie-dense spaghetti squash or you can try making a pizza with cauliflower crust. I recently tried a curry chicken recipe that calls for cauliflower instead of rice. It’s delicious and packed full of veggies; cauliflower contains indole-3-carbinol, a potent anti-cancer.

Chicken Curry with Cauliflower “Rice”

Ingredients:

-Rice-

1 head of cauliflower

2 tbs of curry seasoning (turmeric, Indian spices)

1 tbs olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

-Chicken curry-

2 chicken breasts (vegetarians can use tofu, lentils or chickpeas)

2 cans of coconut milk

2 tbs coconut oil

Spices: curry spices, garam masala, cumin, coriander, cardamom, paprika, fresh ginger, salt and black pepper

1 lime, juiced

Vegetables: 2 cloves of garlic, onions, red peppers, leafy greens, etc.

Directions:

Leave chicken breast marinating throughout the day in olive oil and some spices.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut cauliflower into medium-sized florets and microwave on medium for 5 minutes or until soft.

In a wok, cook the coconut oil and spices, then add the garlic, onions, coconut milk, vegetables and the rest of the spices and seasonings. Cook on medium until the vegetables are soft.

In a baking tray combine chicken breast and sauce. Cook in the oven for 35 minutes.

Add the cauliflower florets to a food processor to create the “rice”. In the same wok (don’t wash it) saute the cauliflower rice with some curry spices, salt, pepper and a dash of olive oil.

When the chicken is done, serve on top of “rice” and chow down on your delicious, veggie-packed curry.

Enjoy! Serves 4 (with some left over for lunch)!