So Allergy Nemeses, We Meet Again!

It was a great year and a half being able to have any food I wanted.  Alas, the tides have turned.  I was in a bike accident a few months ago -- don't take a sharp turn at 30 MPH going downhill on a bike -- and had my arm in a sling for a few weeks.  In addition, when my head hit the ground -- a helmet takes in a tremendous amount of impact, seriously, wear it! -- I messed up my vision so that if I intentionally focus both eyes I see double.  I'm still working on that.  Anyways, over time I found wheat and sugar were making my symptoms increasingly worse and eventually resulted in migraines.  And then, I realized that dairy was creating headaches and other allergic reactions.  And with all of my sensitivities worsening and developing allergies I had to cut the high tolerance groups.  So I am completely off: wheat, sugar, eggs, nuts, dairy, yeast, and alcohol.  An average person would say what food is left?  I say, a whole lot!  I enjoy a good culinary challenge but I know the frustrations ahead and I am trying not to dread them.

The biggest challenge is reacquainting myself with a dairy free life.  Dairy was originally the first offending food I could add back in my diet 2 years ago.  And I love cheese and whole milk and ice cream (though, my usual kinds are already dairy free).  I'm going to really miss those, you just can't remake the flavor and texture of hard-core dairy food! And then there is the question of soy intake.  I generally don't use it, not because of an intolerance, but because the high controversy and I don't really favor the taste in most products.  However, most dairy alternatives are saturated in soy.

Being on full restriction is a lot different this time.  For one, I know how to manage it and can skip the dear-in-head-lights phase.  And, this time I have multiple friends who know the allergy life and some of them are roommates!  It's so different to have a community and be able to compare notes in person and not be the only one.  Plus alternative and allergy friendly cafes are in greater abundance in Seattle.

It's been two days since I've been completely off dairy and I feel great.  I'm still sorting out and exploring what dairy-free alternatives to go back to but it will come together.  This week I experimented with roasted chickpeas (recipe here: http://www.wholeliving.com/130298/roasted-spiced-chickpeas).  The person who invented these is a genius.  I also played around with making apple chips.  The recipe I was originally looking at wanted me to bake the apples in the oven for 6 hours -- monopolizing the oven for several hours with six other roommates is not an option -- or to use a dehydrator -- which I do not have the money for.  So I compared some similar recipes and devised my own and added some spices (recipe below).  Not exactly foods that require conversion, but they were amazing.  I left no survivors.

Flying Apron is the best cafe ever -- http://flyingapron.com/

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Apple Chips Recipe
    1.    Core and slice apples (I just used Gala) with a mandolin slicer -- you want the pieces to be super thin.
    2.    In bowl whisk desired amount of cinnamon and maple sugar together.
    3.    Lightly coat each apple slice by dipping it in the bowl.
    4.    Lay apple slices on cookie sheet.  They don't need to be super spaced out, but make sure they do not overlap.
    5.    Lightly drizzle honey over slices.  Be careful not to douse them or they will be soggy.
    6.    Put in oven on 250˚F for at least an hour and a half or until crisp.