What to Eat Wednesday Series: Healthy Holiday Hankerings

Last night, I magically found myself standing in the middle of my Grandmother's kitchen. I was dressed in a bright red dress, its silver buttons catching the light of the festive candles and shimmering decor surrounding me. Delectable holiday dishes sat atop the counter, their sweet and savory aromas filling the room around me. Off in a room in the distance, I could hear the clinking silverware of my feasting family members. As I peered around the dimly lit room, a decadent pumpkin pie caught my eye. I magnetically moved toward it, almost able to feel the texture of the flaky crust from afar. I picked up a fork from the pile of silverware laying beside the pie, and just as I was about to dip in and sneak a bite....

I woke up.

It's that time of year again. The time of year where the leaves start to turn golden brown, fireplaces begin to ignite, and a faint sense of holiday cheer fills the air. For most of the population, its time to break out those aprons and oven mitts and start baking, whisking and stirring. It's the season of indulgence. For a small population though, it's a time of ultimate temptation. Our feasting is solely limited to what we consume in our dreams. And I must say, after a few mentions of holiday parties and after watching one too many episodes of Holiday Cupcake Wars, my decadent food related dreams are becoming quite vivid.

Unfortunately, when festivities roll around, Lyme Disease, Chronic Illness, Celiac Disease and Food Allergies don't take a holiday. Food sensitivities are the gift that never stops giving. For most of us, our food related symptoms are so drastic and consuming allergens are so detrimental that it isn't worth indulging with the rest of the population. The resulting weeks of hives, swelling, digestive upset, dizziness, migraines, immune suppression and overall feeling of malaise is just not worth the moment of taste-bud related satisfaction.

Yet, even though we may not be able to participate in feasting on the traditional glutenous, creamy, sugar filled dishes, our tastebuds don't have to be entirely deprived. A handful of talented and creative gluten free bloggers have whipped up some delicious recipes that may be just as good (and definitely much healthier) than the conventional tried and true favorite holiday dishes. So, I've created a recipe round up comprised of gluten free, refined sugar free, corn free, soy free, nightshade free, peanut free, shellfish free, egg free dishes that aren't free of flavor or holiday spirit. It's my hope that at least one of them satisfies one of your Christmas cravings, Thanksgiving temptations, or harrowing Halloween Hankerings.

Halloween Treats: 

Instead of traditional Candied Apples or Caramel Apples-

The Little House on The Canyon's Coconut Covered Apples

Instead of those notorious Halloween party Doughnut Holes-

Cats in The Kitchen's Gluten Free Carrot Cake Bites

or

Healthy Blender Recipe's Raw Vegan Mango Coconut Ball

Thanksgiving Dishes:

Instead of Conventional Pumpkin Pie-

Real Sustenance's Gluten and Dairy Free Pumpkin "Cheesecake"

Instead of Mashed Potatoes and Cranberry Sauce-

The Prairie Homestead's Whipped Carrots and Cranberries

Instead of a Stuffed Butterball Turkey-

Primal Palate's Roasted Turkey Breast and Asparagus

Instead of Candied Sweet Potatoes and Stuffing-

Elana Pantry's Acorn Squash and Cranberry Apple Stuffing

Christmas Goodies:

Instead of Gingerbread Cookies-

 

Sketch Free Vegan's Gluten Free Gingersnaps

Instead of Green Jello Salad or Holiday Jello Pie-

Wheat Free Meat Free's Avocado Pie

Instead of Chocolates, Candy Canes and Christmas Cookies-

Healthy Blender Recipes's Raw Vegan Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies

Instead of Eggnog-

 

Healthy Blender Recipe's Creamy Cranberry Smoothie 

or 

Elana's Pantry's Vegan Eggnog

Whether you are a Late Stage Lyme Patient, Gluten Free Feaster, or you are merely a Health Conscious Holiday Celebrator, I wish you a very happy, healthy  holiday season.

Hospital Tales

Beep.....Beep......Beep......Beep.......

Thursday evening, a thin partitioning sheet separated my gurney from the gurney just a foot from mine. My neighboring hospital bed was empty upon my admittance to the Emergency Department, but a few hours into my stay, I watched the shadow of a new patient settle in, and listened to the worried voice of their accompanying loved one, intermittently interrupted by the intrusive sounds of inflating blood pressure cuffs and beeping machines. As the triage nurse brushed by the curtain separating us, the sheet rippled as it caught the air of the nurse’s brisk wake, and for a fleeting moment I was able to harbor a glimpse of the two beside me. The patient laying in the hospital bed was a pale elderly woman, her silver-haired husband sitting in a chair by her side. As time elapsed, she was wheeled in and out of the area for a number of tests, her husband always shuffling in tow of her traveling bed. Eventually, the couple was visited by neurologist clad in a crisp white overcoat, who informed the elderly woman that she had suffered a small stroke. She had lost the use of one of her arms, but she’d be treated and monitored, and she’d be okay. The doctor proceeded to educate the couple about the further neurological testing that would be required and the rehabilitation that would ensue in the following weeks as they tried to help her regain her strength and the use of her impaired limb. I listened to the thick silence as the news sunk in. Finally, the woman replied:

“But how will I do my hair?”

I imagined that she was referring to her inability to use the arm that she naturally relied on. I listened for her husband’s response. To my surprise, I almost sensed a smile behind the tone of his voice. I watched the shadow of his raised hand as he lifted it to gently pat his wife on the top of the head.

“Oh honey, I’ll brush your hair. I’ll put your curlers in for you too.”

Now that's love.

Illness has a way of stripping life of glamor, glitz, and the nuances that blind us to what lays before us. Illness exposes weaknesses while unearthing strength, and reveals what is real and what was merely smoke and mirrors. It quakes a life until its cracks widen and what is feeble falls away, and leaves what is relentlessly real standing clearly in front of us. Living life with an illness has proven to be one of the truest ways to live and has blessed me with the opportunity to witness raw courage, true compassion, and authentic love. For that, I am grateful.