About

I didn’t used to love cooking. Actually, cooking was kind of a nightmare because eating was a nightmare, too. I grew up with IBS, and many meals meant almost immediate digestive symptoms and discomfort. When I discovered the low-FODMAP diet in college, I looked at the limited meal options available to me in the dining hall and realized that if I wanted to feel better, I was going to have to learn how to cook for myself.

So I started cooking in my dorm room on an illegal hot plate. Some meals were great. Some were absolutely not. But that’s how you learn.

Over the years, I’ve gone from reluctantly cooking for dietary reasons to genuinely loving my time in the kitchen. That has meant learning how to adapt recipes and build meals around changing food sensitivities. Later, a Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) diagnosis explained many of the reactions I’d experienced for years—and also eliminated a lot of foods I had previously considered safe.

These days, I don’t follow one strict diet. I’m not strictly low-FODMAP, low-histamine, or gluten-free. Instead, I think of my approach as FODMAP- and histamine-conscious, low-gluten, and vegetarian. I avoid the foods I know I can’t tolerate while trying to keep meals nutritious, flavorful, satisfying, and enjoyable. I also try not to make my diet more restrictive than it needs to be, because constantly thinking about food restrictions can take a toll on your mental health.

I especially love freezer-friendly meals. Freezing food can help slow the development of histamine in leftovers, which makes batch cooking a useful strategy for people who are sensitive to histamine. I also cook with my life outside the kitchen in mind: I’m an athlete, so I prioritize higher-protein meals and try to incorporate plenty of fruits and vegetables.

This is a collection of the recipes, cooking experiments, and food adaptations I’ve developed along the way. Every ingredient can and should be substituted to meet your needs. This is food for people navigating IBS, food sensitivities, MCAS, or simply trying to make eating with a limited number of safe foods a little more joyful.