Food Adventures!
I've been avoiding wheat, sugar, and milk (other dairy's ok) since mid-April as a sort of health experiment. I haven't seen much change in my health, but I've discovered a new hobby -- alternative foods! Agave nectar, broccoli pancakes, amaranth, coconut milk, skyr (Icelandic yogurt), kefir -- and those are just the raw ingredients! Then there's coconut milk ice cream sweetened with agave (I recommend Pure Decadence's Passionate Mango), Pamela's gluten-free pancake mix (I'll never go back!), alternative grain cereals sweetened with fruit juices (Nature's Path and Arrowhead make some good ones), Lara bars, kinnick kinnick (yes, that's the brand!) English muffins, Seeds of Change frozen dinners, sweet potato sesame balls dipped in Thai peanut sauce, a plethora of curries, Nut Thin crackers, brown rice pastas, Nature's Path buckwheat waffles, and the list goes on and on! I've found that there are little pockets in grocery stores made just for me, and health food stores are treasure troves of new things to try! I actually get excited to go grocery shopping or when I realize I'm near Vitamin Cottage or Whole Foods. I'm considering branching out to new grocery stores just to see what strange new goodies they're hiding!
Of course, not everything has been good. I haven't succeeded in making Dutchboy pancakes without wheat flour. Wheat-free fig newtons are passable, but not the same. Rice milk ice cream is a horrible disappointment. I miss grits. I miss cream in my espresso (coffee shops just don't carry coconut cream, and soy milk is blech, IMO), and sometimes I just want a burrito with a wheat flour tortilla, even though I can get essentially the same thing in my corn flour tacos.
I've actually been surprised at how easy the diet has been. I was on a similar diet in high school for a little while, and it was a nightmare. It's been pretty easy to find yummy food that matches my requirements. FYI, though, Super Target carries almost no wheat alternative anything, but Super Walmart actually does a decent job. Who woulda thunk? King Sooper's has been great, but Vitamin Cottage has the best deals, and usually the best selection. There are a few things I've only been able to find at Whole Foods.
All in all, it's been a good experiment. I'm starting to allow wheat, sugar, and milk back into my diet, and it is definitely easier. But I don't think I'll ever abandon those secret nooks amid the super market aisles of flour-this and sugar-that. There's a certain delight in discovery, and in creating something delicious, despite the boundaries.
mmm...smells like my wheat-and-sugar-free banana bread is ready!