Hold the Gluten, Pass the Cheese

I love cheese. LOVE IT. I could probably live off of a nice cheese and crackers plate. And wine. A little fig or dried cranberries would be welcome additions.

A few months ago I went through testing due to something they found when my appendix was removed last year. The doctor was convinced I had celiac disease. I spent the next 24 hours on google and realized that he was probably right... And then the blood test came back... Negative.

I was shocked. Shocked and relieved. They told me my results were close enough to consider further testing, but they recommended that I cut gluten from my diet, because I was clearly intolerant. From that conversation I went gluten-free for two months. TWO MONTHS of diligent gluten-free living. It wasn't nearly as hard as it sounds and - if anything - it just made me more aware of all of those things I absentmindedly shove in my mouth in a day. When you reach for a cookie and can't eat it, you actually realize you reached for it in the first place.

Other than some bleu cheeses, thankfully cheese has remained on my menu. It's made me realize that of all food allergies, dairy would for sure by the worst for me. Cutting gluten wasn't the worst thing in the world, but it did actually up my cheese consumption.

Am I completely gluten-free today? No. I had to gluten myself after a couple months of being off the stuff to see if there was a reaction. There really wasn't at first, so I haven't been as diligent about it... But little by little I've noticed ways that I just don't feel as good as I did when it was out of my system. So, I'm going back, but don't feel like I'll be too deprived. Luckily I found a few perfectly good gluten-free crackers to go with all of my cheese.

This post was inspired by The Whole Fromage by Kathe Lison, who traveled to France in search of its artisanal cheeses. Join From Left to Write on August 22 as we discuss The Whole Fromage.  As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.