Goodbye, Cheese
I’m not someone who backs down from a challenge. Truth is, sometimes I even go after it, smack it in the face and go “whatcha gonna do??” So when my husband came home from the doctor a few months ago and told me he had to avoid the most common food allergens for the next five to six months . . . well, I’ll be honest, first I thought about cheese.
I’m Southern, okay? There is no main dish that cannot be improved by the addition of cheese. I knew that would be the hardest thing for him to give up. And for me to cook without. I mean, when you remove dairy, eggs, gluten, shellfish, soy, and nuts, you’ve basically just got . . . meat.
But fine. Okay. I’m smart and resourceful. I’m an awesome wife who does my best to make life easier for both of us. (I’m also unbelievably humble, can you tell?) Once I stopped thinking about cheese, I began brainstorming foods, doing research to augment my list. Thank goodness for the internet. There’s basically no subject I can’t research for hours. I never get bored or tired of the monotony.
So I dug deep and compiled lists of meals. Main dishes weren’t so hard—steak and potatoes with green beans, chicken soup with white beans and veggies. But snacks? Breakfasts? We wandered the aisles of our fanciest local grocery store, checking ingredients to see what options we had.
“Hey this is gluten-free, no soy, no nuts, no milk . . . oh. Eggs. Dang it.” Repeat every possible variation of that and you’ll have a good idea of our experience.
And then I discovered the Enjoy Life brand. (Cue the heavenly, hallelujah music.) Surprisingly, their stuff also tastes good. I could eat their lentil chips alllll day. And they have an all-purpose flour blend that has basically saved me from spiraling into frustration and despair.
So now I keep my husband supplied with a steady supply of muffins or banana bread for breakfast. (Told you I’m an awesome wife.) And after reading the allergen guides for nearly every restaurant in a twenty-mile radius, I found a few places we can eat at. I have a list of favorite websites where I can find recipes. We’re making it work. Because that’s what you do when life throws a curveball: you swerve. And I can swerve with the best of them.
The truth is, having to avoid specific ingredients is pretty minor when you consider the struggles of so many other people. But I have tons of respect for people dealing with severe allergies. It’s not a simple thing to be on guard with every bite, constantly assessing potential meals for something that could make you sick. And multiply that stress by a million if you’re a parent of someone with allergies.
The great thing is, there are so many resources available, ones that have made my life so much easier. In case it’s helpful to anyone else, I’m sharing my favorite allergy-friendly resources:
Sarah Bakes Gluten Free This may be one of the best recipe sites out there. The muffins! The breads! And I make them using the Enjoy Life all-purpose flour blend that I think is pretty similar to the blend she uses.
Cinnamon Roll Muffins by Vegetarian Mamma A simple and tasty recipe!
The Neat Egg Substitute It’s a bit pricy, but worth it. I used this for the first time a few days ago and while it’s a weird consistency at first, it definitely improved the structure of the muffins I made.
Enjoy Life Like I said, this stuff is awesome. Snack bars, flour mixes, lentil chips. You can probably find some of their products at your local grocery store. But if not, Amazon’s got you covered. I can personally vouch for the quality of their snickerdoodles. And those garlic parmesan lentil chips . . . it’s hard to believe they’re dairy-free.
If you’re no stranger to food allergies, feel free to share your favorite resources too!