I will confess that I am a foodie. I love trying new foods (and beverages), especially when I am traveling. But it doesn’t have to be a gourmet restaurant – I’m more of the food truck, street stall, Mom & Pop restaurant, diner type of foodie. (I’m certainly not opposed to a gourmet dining experience – I’m just too frugal to do it often.)
But, as you can imagine, my recent allergen-elimination diet has had quite an effect on my foodie ways.
Lately I’ve just been eating to live, getting little enjoyment from the same few bland foods.
However, I was determined to have a delicious Thanksgiving meal. It was too depressing to think of forgoing the holiday treats.
On the other hand, I didn’t want to be sicker than a dog afterward either.
So, balancing taste and health concerns, here’s the Thanksgiving menu Spousal Unit & I created:
Cornish Game Hens
- We weren’t having a crowd for dinner, and these are easier to cook than a turkey. No seasonings – just basted with olive oil and butter and cooked in a rotisserie.
- We select game hens that are NOT packaged in a flavor solution, as many meats are. These flavor solutions often contain MSG, a known migraine trigger.
- allergens: butter (milk/dairy)
- We delete the onion (hard to digest if you have gallbladder issues), mushrooms (prohibited if you have a mold allergy), and pecans (because I don’t like them). We also substituted apple cider vinegar for the white wine vinegar (more flavor, lower in histamines).
- Rather than using pork sausage, which often contains MSG, nitrates and/or nitrites (all known migraine triggers), we buy ground pork that is not packaged in a flavor solution, and add spices ourselves. Melissa Joulwan’s book, Well-Fed, has great recipes for DIY spice and seasoning mixes.
- We use uncured bacon (cured foods are prohibited if you have a mold allergy) with no nitrites or nitrates (which can trigger migraines).
- We also buy chicken broth that contains no MSG (a known migraine trigger).
- allergens: eggs; apples; celery
- We delete the pecans/walnuts, because I don’t like them.
- This dish satisfies the sweet potato craving, but is less sweet than traditional sweet potato casseroles.
- allergens: eggs; apples; cinnamon/nutmeg/allspice
Maple Bacon Braised Brussels Sprouts
- Spousal Unit hates Brussels sprouts, but will eat them prepared like this. If you really REALLY hate Brussels sprouts, you could make Coconut-Almond Green Beans instead (if you can tolerate the spices).
- We use uncured bacon (cured foods are prohibited if you have a mold allergy) with no nitrites or nitrates (which can trigger migraines).
- allergens: butter (milk/dairy)
Cranberry-Orange Bread
- We modify the recipe from a Betty Crocker cookbook. Instead of using all-purpose flour (which contains gluten), we substitute 1/2 almond flour and 1/2 coconut flour. This makes the bread slightly more dense (and crumbly), and gives it a slight coconut flavor. We also substitute orange extract for the grated orange peel, because it’s easier.
- allergens: gluten-free; butter (milk/dairy); eggs; orange juice (citrus); almonds (nuts)
[Dessert] Pumpkin Harvest Crunch
- This year we modified the recipe we traditionally use, substituting 1/2 almond flour and 1/2 coconut flour for the yellow cake mix. This reduced the amount of sugar and eliminated chemical additives in this dish.
- Instead of canned Pumpkin Pie Mix, we buy canned pumpkin and add pumpkin pie spices ourselves. This eliminates chemical additives.
- This year, instead of homemade whipped cream (milk/dairy), we made Whipped Cream from Coconut Milk (recipe from James L. Gibb’s book, Is Food Making You Sick? The Strictly Low Histamine Diet). We used coconut sugar to sweeten the whipped cream, and substituted vanilla extract for caramel essence.
- allergens: gluten-free; eggs; almonds (nuts); cinnamon/nutmeg/allspice
[Alcohol]
You may or may not be able to drink alcohol. Alcohol is not recommended on my allergen-elimination diet – particularly fermented beverages such as wine or beer. However, I really wanted one drink with Thanksgiving dinner. So I selected Cranberry Margaritas, since tequila is distilled, not fermented.
- We used agave nectar to sweeten the margaritas.
- Be sure to select a cranberry juice that is either 100% cranberry juice, or just cranberry concentrate and distilled water – no added sugar, no other ingredients.
- I had one margarita. It may have affected my sleep patterns, but it did not cause my allergies to flare.
NOTE: We did not have mashed potatoes or mashed potato substitutes this year, to reduce the dairy load (and because we already had plenty of food). If you really want to satisfy that craving, try Mashed Cauliflower. It might sound weird, but it really does satisfy the mashed potato craving.
NOTE: We are not a gravy family. If you want gravy, try this recipe from nom nom paleo. We haven’t tried it ourselves, but it sounds easy and tasty. Allergens: gluten-free; butter (milk/dairy); heavy cream (milk/dairy). See previous information on onions and chicken broth.
BOTTOM LINE: You *can* have a healthy and tasty holiday meal. Just pay attention to the ingredients and select recipes that your body will tolerate.
DISCLAIMER: I am not a health professional. All content is for educational or informational purposes only. Do not eat food to which you are allergic or which will otherwise negatively affect your health.