Tasty Bytes

Here we are in the midst of Spring…finally (with fingers crossed)! Sprouts are sprouting, little heads of asparagus are shooting skyward, buds are opening their colorful faces to the sun and little birdies are singing their songs as they squeeze out their eggs…ouch!

So what’s so horrible about that? Well, its not really. I just want to wallow for a moment…you see, I recently found out I have a food sensitivity to eggs (and milk and soy) 🙁 Ironic to find out now during the height of egg hunting season.

I love eggs, not just poached and fried and scrambled for breakfast but they are in all manner of the foods I love…pancakes of all sorts, waffles, custards, frittatas, egg noodles, gnocchi, matzo balls, profiteroles, pastry cream, lemon curd, cakes, cookies…the magical egg – it can hold things together and make things puff…oh, boo hoo 🙁

I did find out that egg allergies can sometimes be linked with pollen allergies. According to about.com egg allergies can flare up with the pollens from oak trees (hello oak…land) and some very specific weed pollens. Hmmm, there may be hope.

You see, our bodies are so elegantly designed to ingest all kinds of foods, breathe in so much pollen, suck down so much dirty air, and withstand a goodly amount of stress. A little too much of some combination of these and our body begins to become a bit overwhelmed. The “total load” on our systems become too much and we begin to not tolerate a food or a fragrance or your boss telling you one more time to do xyz… The manifestations of these intolerances vary depending on the individual. You might experience dry patches of skin, a runny or stuffy nose, more frequent colds, asthma, digestive problems, achy joints, a foggy brain, fatigue, a short fuse…

So, I’m gonna lighten the load by being careful to eat lots of fresh organic foods, drink plenty of clean water, avoid the foods I know I’m sensitive to, reduce stress (ha!), get enough sleep, review our stock of cleaning supplies for toxic substances with the help of debra’s list and of course not stress about the absence of some of my favorite foods. One day, maybe soon…I’ll be able to enjoy them all again.

In the meantime I’m enjoying experimenting with different kinds of pancakes based on recipes for the batter of South Indian Idli’s and their various incarnations found on the incredible blog site Mahanandi and Korean mung bean pancakes (look for this recipe on a future post.)

One experiment this weekend will be to make the traditional Easter Bunny Carrot Cake without eggs. This version will also be gluten free (no wheat flour) as well. I’ll post the resulting recipe when I can get into the kitchen (all the windows in the house are being replaced as I type…bbbbbbrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!) In any case, here is the original family favorite carrot cake recipe complete with yummy eggs and wheat flour…

* Exported from MasterCook *

Carrot Cake or Muffins

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 18 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Dessert

Amount Measure Ingredient — Preparation Method
——– ———— ——————————–
1 3/4 Cups Brown sugar
4 each large egg
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
2 Cups Flour
1 Teaspoon Baking soda
1 Teaspoon Salt
2 Teaspoons Cinnamon
1 1/4 Cups Oil
12 ounces crushed pineapple — drained
2 Cups Carrots — shredded
1 Cup Walnuts, optional — chopped

In large bowl, beat eggs and sugar on medium until well mixed. Add vanilla. Sift together dry ingredients. Add flour and oil to egg mixture (alternating – beginning and ending with flour) until well blended. Fold in walnuts, pineapple and carrots by hand. Pour batter into well greased and floured 13 x 9 inch pan. Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes

For muffins – bake 25-30 minutes. Makes 24 muffins.

Variations: sub carrots with grated zuchinni or solid packed pumpkin.

Yield:
“1 cake”
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 315 Calories; 20g Fat (56.9% calories from fat); 5g Protein; 30g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 48mg Cholesterol; 213mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 4 Fat; 1 Other Carbohydrates.

My plan is to sub a mixture of ground flax seed with water or bananas for the eggs and a 50/50 mix of almond meal and brown rice flour for the wheat flour. I may also combine elements of a recipe for a carrot cake a classmate shared with us in class on Monday. Her recipe used coconut oil for the oil and agave syrup for the sugar. We’ll see…

Til then, have a great holiday weekend.