camping

Nelle went camping for the first time this weekend. She wasn't worried about getting the right food to eat. I was.

We had:
-For dinner on Friday we ate chili with corn bread. Warning - do not attempt to make corn bread with rice milk! We also had corn chips, daiya cheese, and jalapenos on top.
-For breakfast we ate grilled "cheese" made in campfire pie pans.
-Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were an easy lunch. We ate pasta salad as a side.
-For dinner on Saturday we had the newly discovered veggie burgers from Whole Foods that I can't remember the name of and I don't have any more at home (I'm thinking Sunflower... or something like that). We had leftover pasta salad and chili as sides.
-Dessert was yummy. I would even suggest it if you're not a vegetarian and can eat real smores. I made a new concoction -- grilled fluffer nutter smores sandwiches in campfire pie pans. We ate them again for breakfast on Sunday before packing up camp.

dinner guests

I invited the women from my book club to meet at my house this month. Then I remembered that meant I had to feed them. We're typically cheese and cracker kind of gals so since that staple was out of the question I had to think of something else.

Tapas.

Yes, I would make a Spanish tortilla. Eggs, potatoes, onion. All safe. To go with the tortilla I made an aioli (fresh garlic with mayo). Sangria is safe too. I mixed less than half a bottle of 2 Buck Chuck with a bit of sugar, some lemonade, and some orange juice. We also snacked on olives, bread, and hummus.

I forgot the bag of salad that I'd bought. I had gotten a dairy/soy free bag of croutons too. And a really yummy bottle of salad dressing - Annie's Organic Green Garlic, if you're looking for something new to try.
If you're looking for something new to read, I recommend The Help.

oh my gosh I just made stir-fry

Last night on our way home from the mall, we stopped by our local Indian market to pick up some frozen goodies and chutneys to go with the samosas. What a yummy late night snack.

Lately I've been eating so many dairy substitutes that I've been eating fewer vegetables than normal, so I was really having a craving for something crunchy. Trader Joe's has a bag of pre-sliced stir-fry veggies - carrots, snow peas, celery, cabbage. I bought the bag this morning thinking I could sautee it with some kind of herbs, maybe fresh basil.

So this evening when I was making dinner I thought to myself, "Hey that tamarind chutney looks a lot like that stir fry sauce that [my husband] uses to make Asian food.... I bet that chili chutney would add a good spice too." And so my dinner was born.

Okay, so it doesn't taste like soy sauce. But, it doesn't really taste "Indian" either. Tomorrow night my husband is so making me fried rice!

potatoes

I've always said that if I could eat only 1 food that it would be potatoes. Tomorrow I try.

I'm not convinced that dairy and soy are the [only] foods that Nelle is allergic to. Despite her medicine and my diet change she still has a significant amount of spit up, crying, and bowel issues.

We have a GI appointment on Friday, so I'm interested to see before then what might be causing these issues. Is it even food at all?

I've heard of people doing elimination diets and just eating rice for a day, but I decided that potatoes were a better option for me. I'm also allowing myself: salt, olive oil, and canola oil. Plus water of course.

Here's the plan:

BREAKFAST -- mashed potato pancakes
I made mashed potatoes this evening using Golden Yukon potatoes, cooking water, s&p, and a bit of olive oil.

SNACK -- baked Kettle chips
Actually made with sunflower or safflower oil, so I guess that too.

LUNCH -- a mix of the leftover mashed potatoes and the whole extra boiled ones I made

DINNER -- baked Russet potato, plain

SNACK -- french fries, possibly dipped in olive oil, like bread

wintery day treat

It's June, but it's rainy, windy, and cold here and feeling like a sleepy day. Nelle's been down for some pretty good naps today so while I've had plenty of opportunity to get stuff done, I've been feeling like enjoying the laziness instead.

A perfect day for hot cocoa.

One thing about rice milk, though, is that it doesn't provide the thickness that whole milk does for hot cocoa. And the non-dairy Ah!laska mix, while better than nothing, is more like a cheap mix-with-water hot chocolate packet than the more quality chocolates that I'm used to.

When I made the chocolate chip cookies the other day I looked up the Tollhouse recipe online to modify. A few of the suggestions said to add a packet of instant vanilla pudding to make them soft. I hadn't really thought about using pudding mix for anything but making pudding before. But from previous research I knew the stuff to be vegan and I happened to have some cook&serve variety on hand.

I heated up the rice milk and added 3 heaping spoon fulls of the cocoa powder and then added another spoon full of pudding mix. Now for the topping. As a vegetarian I avoid gelatin, one of the base ingredients of marshmallows, but thankfully marshmallow fluff does not contain gelatin.

Yum! It was thick and creamy and delicious, just like hot chocolate is supposed to be. Take that milk/soy free diet doubting self!

Eating Out

--I've been twice to Mediterranean restaurants and asked for the veggie plate without cheeses or yogurts. The one I went to on Monday even had the items listed as "vegan". I'm hoping they were.

--I've also been twice to Indian restaurants. One of the places was vegan and at the other I asked for suggestions on dishes without paneer, yogurt, or ghee. I was told I couldn't have the naan, but I could eat the roti.

--I've been to Mexican restaurants and ordered bean, rice, salsa only burritos a few times. If I liked avocado I'd probably get that too. Be careful though, Taco Bell is not dairy or soy free. Nor is it really Mexican food...

--I've ordered pizza. My husband called in advance to the restaurant we went to for my mother-in-law's birthday. He asked for the ingredients in the crust and sauce. We double checked at the restaurant.

--I went to multiple parties this Memorial Day weekend. I ate: grilled portobello mushrooms, chips & salsa, a black bean/corn/salsa dip, Sunshine veggie burgers on a farmer roll, deviled eggs, fresh fruits & veggies, coleslaw.

I let my friends know in advance and I bring back up snacks. At a bridal shower I went to I brought cookies for me so I wouldn't miss out when everyone else was eating cake.

I also let restaurant servers know my situation. I've even had the clerks at the Target food court get boxes for me to check out the ingredients list (Ugh, soy!). So far I've gotten positive feedback. Maybe it's because I'm nice about it. Maybe it's because I have a cute baby with me.

I'm getting weak!

I made chocolate chip cookies this evening. No soy, no dairy. They were good, really good. I had pizza for dinner. No soy, no dairy. It was good, really good. I added pineapple for flavor and dipped it in BBQ sauce. But I miss soy. I miss dairy. I'm looking through the Martha Stewart's Cupcakes cookbook to look at the vegan one (It's really good, my mother in law made them for me.), but I keep thinking about all the pastries I can't have! I keep thinking about the cheese that I can't have.

I keep thinking... my little girl is still in pain. Still spitting up. Still pooping watery poops. Is this even it? Is she allergic to something else? Do we need to try a different medication? I'm bummed because our next GI appointment got postponed until next week.

I changed my mind

It's not dairy I miss. It's soy.

A couple nights ago I made a masala burger for myself as a snack before heading over to a friend's house. When I got home the dirty pan was waiting for me. With the lingering smell of Chinese food! To be specific chow mein. Not sure why an "Indian" style veggie burger smells like Chinese food, but my husband noticed it too.

Now I have been craving Asian foods for days and with no success in finding soy-free substitutes.

Although I still want a big hunk of cheese, I have been pretty successful in finding dairy subs. This morning I even had Amy's chocolate cake and Rice Dream cookies n cream ice cream for breakfast. TJ cheeseless pizza with Daiya for dinner last night. A burrito (rice, beans, salsa only) from my favorite taqueria for lunch.

Soy sauce I miss you.

what should I write about?

I have been trying to figure out how to structure this blog so I am coming to you for suggestions.

Should I write a list of what I eat each day?
Should I review the foods I eat?
Should I talk about the soy& dairy free websites I visit?
Should I tell stories about my baby's tummy woes?
Should I tell stories about my family?
Other suggestions?

Happy Mother's Day

My mom is so amazing. She made a dairy free / soy free vegetarian picnic lunch for my whole family. My nephew was born in August so he is only 6 months older than Nelle so this was my sisters first Mother's Day too. And the first as GrandMom for my mom.

It was windy, but otherwise it was nice to finally be outdoors. It was us, my parents, my sister/brother-in-law and their baby. The "sensational 6" has quickly multiplied into the "awesome 8".

My mom made the most amazing grilled veggie sandwiches, wrapped in deli paper and pasta salad in resealable jars. She also made carrot cake and "no-apple" pie (It's made with Ritz crackers) a la mode (Rice Dream) for dessert.

chocolate chip cookies

I just tasted my first soy free dairy free cookie. Yum! I halved the Tollhouse cookie recipe and added a sprinkle of cinnamon.  Other than that, my only changes were using Soy Free Earth Balance and Enjoy Life Mini Chips. I wish they weren't mini. I had egg replacer on hand, but I did not make the cookies vegan.

Happy Cinco de Mayo

Both my husband and I are teachers. I had planned working up until my due date, but Nelle came 12 days early so that didn't happen.  So, instead of going back at 8 weeks like I had planned, I was on maternity leave for 10 weeks, back for a week, and then went on spring break. Now there are only six weeks until school is out for summer. My husband's summer break starts two weeks earlier than mine so we only had five weeks to worry child care.

Thankfully, between family members we were able to figure it out and Nelle won't have to go into day care until she is nearly seven months old. When Nelle was nine weeks old (she's now 13 weeks), we went to check out the day care that she will be in and it was wonderful. The woman who runs the place is vegan so she understands crazy diets, uses a cloth diaper service for all kids who attend even though Nelle currently wears Huggies, charges separately for the school year and summer so I won't have to pay for the three months a year we won't use, and has a garden in her backyard where the kids can play in the dirt.

GranMom was over watching Nelle the past couple of days while I was at work. Last night the three of us attempted to go grocery shopping, but someone did not want to be in the car. Today I knew I had to stop by the store to pick up rice milk and bread on my way home or I would have nothing (ok, not entirely true) to eat tomorrow. Instead of those two items, though, I got three bags worth of goodies. The cashier accurately guessed the items that I had gone for.

Amongst my other items were corn tortillas, an item I don't often buy. But today is Cinco de Mayo and my mom makes yummy tostadas. Yay for fake cheese!

dinner in under 5 minutes & dairy alternative review

Dinner in under 5 minutes. I’m hungry, but baby is hungry too. Guess I’d better get something quick.

Amy’s Mexican Tamale Pie

Decent, sauce tastes like tomatoey cilantro infused pasta sauce. Would be better with a glass of whole milk. Or cheese. But I am nursing so I can’t get to the kitchen to try any of the alternatives.  Fritos would be a nice accompaniment. Bonus: I can eat one (left!) handed so I can hold Nelle at the same time. 

---

I had written this before trying the milk or cheese alternatives. 

The Daiya Cheddar tastes kind of like ballpark nacho sauce in shredded form. If that's what you're going for the WayFare Cheddar Sauce is more like it. It's made from oatmeal. Interesting. I will likely buy the Daiya again, but next time I'm thinking I'll try the Mozzarella to make pizza.  The Galaxy Nutritional Foods Rice Vegan American Flavor Slices didn't melt very well or have much flavor so I will probably just use the Daiya for grilled sandwiches, but I did notice on their website that they have cheese blocks so that might be interesting to try out. 

And to round out the taste test of the dairy substitutes:

So Delicious Coconut Milk Yogurt, Plain – tasted actually like really gelatinous coconut yogurt... hmm... but okay when I put it in my cereal.

Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread Soy Free – My mom, a butter addict, agrees that it’s actually pretty good.

By the way, these sites all have recipes. Let me know if anything you make turns out tasty. 

websites to check out

I have never blogged before this so there is a lot I'm still figuring out. Like, there has got to be a place to link to other websites, right?

AMY'S KITCHEN

I've never really loved Amy's frozen meals, but as a lifelong vegetarian I've gotten them from time to time.  Someone recommended I check out Amy's Kitchen's website. It is too cool. Here is a list of all of their foods that are dairy and soy free. You can search by other allergies, etc. here. With this new restricted diet I may have become an Amy's convert.

PETA'S ACCIDENTALLY VEGAN

Although I am not vegan, for I have often found Peta's Accidentally Vegan list to be quite useful. Keep in mind though that many of the items have soy in some form.

ASIAN PREPARED SAUCES

Soy free Asian sauces can be located here, although I can't eat many of them because of a seafood base.

HIDDEN SOY

This is a fairly comprehensive list of items that contain soy.

Feel free to share your favorite soy/dairy free websites in the comments section.

what's in my pantry?

SNACKS

Nu Go Free Bars

Sweettarts Jelly Beans

Back to Nature Honey Graham Sticks

Nuts – variety

Tortilla Chips

TJ Pita Chips with cinnamon and sugar

TJ Corn Chip Dippers (like Fritos)

Annie’s Fruit Snacks

DRINKS

Sparkling Water

Ah!Laska Organic Cocoa Non-Dairy Chocolate Mix

Beckmann’s Honey Whole Wheat

lots of teas

BAKING/ETC

Enjoy Life Mini Chips

Marshmallow crème

Olive Oil

Canola Oil

Powdered Sugar

Non-Refined Sugar

Brown Sugar 

lots of spices - the only one I cannot use is my favorite - Spike, it contains soy.

BREAKFAST

Bananas

Dates

TJ Very Berry Clusters Cereal

TJ Honey Nut O’s

Cocoa Puffs

Whole Foods Vegan Blueberry Muffin Bread

Oatmeal

LUNCH/DINNER

Road’s End Organics Alfredo

Road’s End Organics Cheddar Style Sauce

Road’s End Organics Shells and Chreese

Seeds of Change Jalfrezi Simmer Sauce

Jyoti Dehli Saag

Pasta

TJ Pizza Sauce (all of the other types had soy oil &/or meat)

Simply Organic Vegetarian Chili seasoning

TJ Hearty Vegetable Broth

TJ Three Grains Blend

TJ Bread Crumbs

Amy’s Lentil Soup

Amy’s Barley Soup

milk alternative taste test

A friend came over yesterday and mentioned she liked Almond Milk. I wasn't so sure, but I had Almond Milk in my refrigerator left over from Easter. My mom brought the rest of the container that she had used to make my portion of our traditional Easter potatoes. Our tradition is actually a recipe from Rivoli's Restuarant that contains heavy cream and creme fraiche. Almond Milk made for a very gray, non-creamy substitute.

So I was interested to find out if I liked the stuff all on it's own.  We also had Hemp Drink, Rice Drink - Original, and Rice Drink - Vanilla in our refrigerator. I had tried them all in tea or cereal, but I had never tried them on their own. 

My husband created a blind taste test for me, marking what was what on the bottom of the cup. It didn't really matter though, I could tell just by looking at the Hemp and Almond Milks and the Original and Vanilla Rice Milks were quickly distinguished in the first sip.

I found the Hemp Drink to be thick, but sweet.

The Almond Milk was as expected. Nutty.

The Vanilla Rice Drink tasted like vanilla flavoring.

The Original Rice Drink was surprising. It actually tasted good. Kind of like milk. Nice!

what's in my refrigerator?

This is a list of literally everything in my refrigerator right now that I can eat:

DRINKS: We hosted Easter and so now have a lot of extra beverages.

Champagne
Hemp drink
Rice drink
Almond milk
Oj
Coca-Cola
Sprite
Root Beer
Beer
White Wine

DAIRY SUBSTITUTES: All purchased at Whole Foods.

WayFare Cheddar Sauce
So Delicious Coconut Milk Yogurt, Plain
Earth Balance Natural Buttery Spread Soy Free
Daiya Chedder Style Shreds
Galaxy Nutritional Foods Rice Vegan American Flavor Slices

FRUITS & VEGGIES: Ideally we'd buy everything at a farmer's market, but really we buy pre-packaged from Trader Joe's.

Strawberries
Apples
Oranges
Mango, pre-sliced
Corn
Romaine Lettuce
Spinach, bagged
TJ Broccoli Slaw, bagged
TJ Beats – pre-cooked
TJ Fire Roasted Yellow & Red Peppers, jar
Capers, jar
Bread and Butter Pickles

CONDIMENTS / SPREADS / DIPS: I have to be especially careful in this area. Gelatin, meat seasonings, dairy, and soy products sneak into some brands, but not others or even get added after years of dedicated buying.

TJ Masala Lentil Dip
TJ Spicy, Smoky Peach Salsa
Skippy Natural Peanut Butter 
TJ Olive Tapenade Spread
TJ Hummus
TJ Salsa Verde
TJ Ketchup
French’s Yellow Mustard
Tapatio hot sauce
Sriracha hot sauce
TJ Tarter Sauce with Dill & Jalapenos
TJ Champagne Vinaigrette
TJ Real Mayonnaise
Laura Scudder’s Peanut Butter
Maple Syrup
Jam Variety (homemade by friends & family)
Applesauce
TJ Cranberry Sauce

LEFTOVERS

Pinto Beans
Pasta
Northern Beans
Eggs
TJ Flour Tortillas
Flax Seeds
Corn Meal

FREEZER

Dr. Praeger’s Spinach Pancakes
TJ Masala Burgers
Amy’s Mexican Tamale Pie
TJ Rice Medley
TJ Coconut Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert / chocolate & strawberry
Whole Foods 365 Tater Puffs

I will post my cupboard list soon.

first shopping trip

Immediately after leaving the GI where we had learned that my two week no soy / no dairy trial would continue indefinitely, my husband and I decided to take a family trip to Whole Foods to find me something to eat. He carried Nelle around, since we had accidentally left the carrier at home, and I pushed around an empty cart.

Although I learned at that appointment that most people with a soy allergy can eat soy lethicin and soy oil I am committed to avoiding these items before I slowly try to reintroduce them in a couple more weeks.

Slowly my cart began filling with things. It must have. I got two paper bags full and spent $84.

Introduction

I am used to reading food labels. Always have been. I'm 32 years old and have been a vegetarian my whole life. Okay, I was an ovo-lacto-pesco vegetarian until I was 21 and gave up the pesco part. Fish just looked gross to me. But I digress. 

Along the way people asked me if I was vegan. No, I'd always say, I love cheese too much.

When I was pregnant an interesting thing happened. No longer were my boobs private things not to be discussed. Strangers would ask me if I planned to breastfeed and get excited for me when I told them I was. I would often add, however, that if my baby was dairy sensitive that I would probably have to switch to formula; I couldn't give up cheese.

Fast forward and Nelle is almost three months old. We spent 10 weeks soaking in baby spit-up before a gastroenterologist suggested I go dairy free. Oh and since my trial of dairy free a few weeks prior hadn't worked and most babies with dairy allergies can't handle soy either, I needed to give that up too.

Despite my initial brush-offs about not being able to give up cheese, the reality of it became that it would be harder for me to give up nursing. When it became a choice of feeding myself cheese or my daughter "boobie foods," it wasn't really a choice at all. Along with reflux medications, it seems to be helping so far, so I'll give it a try.

Okay, so here's where it gets really tricky. I'm not vegan, but I'm a vegetarian who has to give up dairy. That leaves eggs. Soy is a staple to the vegan diet. Heck, soy is a staple in most diets. On a list the GI gave me of foods to avoid it says "Asian foods." Really? I have to give up food from an entire continent! This was not good news.

My husband cooks. Some. I cook. Some. Okay, not really.  Mostly we like to eat out or just prepare quick meals thrown together with things we have on hand. We're just a typical working family. We go grocery shopping once a week and keep a relatively stocked cupboard. Typically our food comes from Trader Joe's or Costco. Sometimes I pick stuff up at Target while there getting other stuff.

So, what do you eat?

It's a good thing I was already familiar with that question. When I was in elementary school classmates would ask me what I ate for Thanksgiving. "If turkey is the only thing on your table," I would, in that oh so 8 year-old way, snottily reply, "then I feel sorry for you."

Here's what's on my table.