| Author | Message | ||
| MikeS Unregistered guest |
How did you make out navigating the mine field which is Thanksgiving Day Feast? | ||
| Di Unregistered guest |
Fine, how did you do? What did you eat? | ||
| MikeS Unregistered guest |
I've been exploring my boundaries lately, trying to get a sense of what bothers me. I'm not ready to form absolute long lasting conclusions yet, but after having a whole jar of Whole Foods pasta sauce, I seemed to be having problems last week. As for thanksgiving, I had turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and immediately became very congested at the table (even before the cheese cake). After the cheese cake, I drove my sister in law to her 2nd destination. On the way home, I felt a bit foggy, but then again, that could have been due to the 6,000 calorie dinner :-) Foolishly, I accepted the extra sweet potato pie to go, which due to my lack of will power, I ate entirely over the next day (yes, i can be a big pig this time of the year). Luckily, no terrible catastrophic reactions, though I didn't feel optimal the next day (but that could easily have been from eating an entire sweet potato pie and left over turkey. I just came back from dinner at my aunt's place. She was very thoughtful, asked what I could eat. I had turkey, apple sauce, yam, and haagen das coffee ice cream. Though I skipped the gravy, string bean casserole (with soup mix), and soup courses, I didn't feel left out at all. I had plenty to eat and had a really enjoyable time. For me at least, I appear to have backed away from the brink having discontinued the huge amounts of protein powder, slow cooked corned beef, and gelcaps. I gained back the weight I lost (and then some). Was down to 170 at my lowest, now 183 (I like to be 177). I still feel pretty confident it was the items high in free glutamic acid that cause all my problems this year. I can't imagine what would have happened had I not made the connection and eliminated those items (I was really miserable for much of this year). Now, happy as a clam. Hope everyone was able to get through the holiday ok; I realize that many people have many different degrees of sensitivities and restrictions. Mike | ||
| Mariann Unregistered guest |
Hi everyone, I hope you all had a great day on Thanksgiving. My experiment worked. I was interested to see if using all safe ingredients had an impact on my family. As in, no bloated distressed feelings after dinner. It worked. I used Bell and Evans Turkey, stuffing from my own bread, org. celery, onions, poultry seasoning and my safe broth. Org. Potatoes, carrots, onions and sweet potatoe roasted. Safe gravy from my broth, and of course chicken soup to start made from scratch with Bell and Evans chicken org. orzo pasta and safe celery and carrots. Everyone felt great we were all lively and talking no one complained about tummy problems after dinner. I made Debs instant pumpkin pie, yummy, and her best brownies, they were deeelicious. I used Green and Black organic cocoa for them. So good. That is what I ate for dessert and others did too. Of course there happened to be a couple of desserts that were not made with fga free ingredients that the girls brought, so after dessert there was a bit of fatique and bloat going on. But my dinner was a success. I did not get sick, and slept like a baby all night. No 3 AM migraine. YIPPEE!! Thank you all so much for your support and help, I really appreciate it. I know I need to stay vigilant, but this was a major accomplishment and it gives me courage to keep it up. Mariann | ||
| MikeS Unregistered guest |
Sounds delicious!!! Mike | ||
| EmilyS Unregistered guest |
We had a great Thanksgiving. We have all been pretty sick so I had to simply and divide the cooking between two days, but I really liked it that way and may do it like that going forward. I bought an organic, free range turkey on Tuesday. Put it in a brine of a gallon of water, 1 cup of Mortin Canning Salt, 1 cup cane sugar and 1 cup organic apple cider vinegar. When it was ready to roast, I rubbed it with herbs and olive oil, then roasted it upside down. It was so juicy and tender- by far our favorite turkey so far! I also made stuffing with homemade bread I had cubed and dried the week prior. I added olive oil, chopped onions and celery. Lots of spices and turkey broth that I made. The stuffing was also a favorite as well. We did baked potatoes from our garden along with gravy made from the turkey broth and corn we had frozen from the summer. I make a pumpkin pie using milk instead of evaporated milk. In years past I’ve made it with half and half. It took longer to cook with just milk but it tasted great. Overall it was a very simple Thanksgiving, but it was one of the best tasting we’ve had. Zero reactions, 4 days of leftovers- we were all very happy! | ||
| Marnie B. Unregistered guest |
My first Thanksgiving MSG-free. Everyone thought the food was delicious. Homemade dressing with my safe broth, homemade noodles, green beans and I even ate a piece of my sister's safe cream pie. I baked a beef roast fresh from a local farm for the numerous family members who don't like turkey. No reactions. December 1 is my 1 year anniversary living a normal life free of MSG and I read the discussion blog everyday to keep informed. I am so thankful to Deb A, EmilyS, guru, Roy, Carol H and the countless others for the posting and support. | ||
| Di Unregistered guest |
Marnie B., Congratulations for one year tomorrow! That's great, good for you. We are all so thankful to Deb A., and the countless others that contribute to this board and make the info we glean here priceless. | ||
| EmilyS Unregistered guest |
Marnie- congratulations on your anniversary tomorrow! I'm so glad you had a reaction free Thanksgiving- your dinner sounds wonderful! | ||
| Mariann Unregistered guest |
Marnie congratulations and to all of you it sounds like we all enjoyed a wonderful holiday. It is so centered around food that it can be a bit daunting, but it sounds like we are all picking up the gauntlet and making it work for us. Stay well Mariann | ||
| Marnie B. Unregistered guest |
I have decided to bake a pumpkin pie for Christmas and am thinking of substituting half and half for the evaporated milk. The half and half contains only cream and milk. Do you think this will be safe? EmilyS, I saw you used milk and you have never steered me wrong. If there is anything I need to modify, please feel free to give any and all suggestions. Being MSG sensitive has forced me to become a cook but this is my first attempt with pies. Thank you all for the wonderful help and support! | ||
| Mariann Unregistered guest |
Marnie I use Organic Valley half and half with only cream and milk and I do fine. I also use their organic whole milk. They have 2 kinds of whipping cream. One says ultra pasturized the other says just pasturized. The Ultra has carrageenan in it the pasturized does not. I use the Pasturized one and it makes a great custard pie. I think the half and half is a good option for pumpkin. Deb A's instant pumpkin pie in the book is awesome. I use Farmers organic plain pumpkin. Good luck and I hope your Christmas Holiday is as successful as Thanksgiving was. We are awaiting a huge snow storm in New England. We are hosting a large (85 people) family party tomorrow at an association club house in our neighborhood it is on hold until we see in the morning how good the roads are cleared. Holding my breath here. It is the 17th year of us (my husband, kids and I) doing this. It will be the first cancellation, if we have to do that. Hoping not. Mariann | ||
| Marnie B. Unregistered guest |
Mariann, thank you so much for your help! Your insight and good advice is greatly appreciated and I will also re-read the recipe in Deb A's book. I sure hope you get to have the Christmas gathering. The east looks like it is getting a really bad snowstorm! Fingers crossed... | ||
| Mariann Unregistered guest |
Marnie thanks for the good wishes. We did get blasted by the storm. 20 inches and counting. I have been on the phone with nephews, nieces and siblings all morning. We connected by phone line instead of hugs, but it is what it is. We are going to get the clubhouse for a spontaneous gathering when the weather clears and will watch old movies from 40 to 50 years ago that my nephew has gotten from an elderly Aunt. I'm told that as a youngster I look exactly like my now 41 year old daughter. Ought to be a hoot. We feel blessed that all are safe and sound at home, all warm and enjoying the snow. The food is all in the freezer and will come out later, it's all good. Mariann | ||
| Nana Unregistered guest |
I use canned coconut milk (without sulfites) from Whole Foods in my pumpkin pie instead of milk because of milk intollerance. It works very well for me. | ||
| Mariann Unregistered guest |
Nana what is the brand name of the coconut milk that you use. I have been wanting to try that out. I bet it would work good in a smoothie as well. I'm a Nana too and love every minute of it. Mariann | ||
| Marnie B. Unregistered guest |
Mariann, thank you so much for your help with the pumpkin pies! I had a test run yesterday to make sure the pies would be okay. The flavor is so much better than the national brand chemical concoction I used to use. Our oldest son and daughter-in-law made it in from Virginia this morning and we are awaiting the younger son's arrival shortly. I hope everyone has a safe and Merry Christmas! | ||
| Mariann Unregistered guest |
Marnie I am so glad that the pumpkin pie worked for you. I love it and it is so healthy. I am now going to use that organic canned pumpkin in a pumpkin smoothy tomorrow. Didn't want to try anything new until I got through all the holiday cooking and gathering. Enjoy your children and stay well. Happy Holidays and a Healthy Happy New Year. Mariann | ||
| vicki s Unregistered guest |
Has anyone ever reacted to the turkey because of it roasting for so many hours? I had a msg reaction to our dinner... non-injected fresh turkey, fresh broccoli, homemade mashed potatoes (with whole org. milk and org. butter), homemade pumpkin casserole (like pie without the crust). The only other two variables that I can figure would be auxigro on the potatoes or the rice flour in the pumpkin casserole. Has anyone reacted to white rice flour? Man, I've tried so hard to stay msg free for these couple years and still get messed up. Now that I am also gluten free, I'll admit to having a bad attitude to the extra restrictions.....but I do try very hard to eat clean. Any ideas where I went wrong on Thanksgiving? | ||
| bo'nana Unregistered guest |
hi vicki... do you know what brand your turkey was, or how it was raised? i think there can be A LOT of "off-label" processing residues in much of the poultry out there... i had a bad reaction about a week ago after eating 1 bite of the skin on a piece of Foster Farms chicken i bought at CostCo & roasted at home. but it seems i still have no problems at all with the meat itself, provided i am careful to remove every bit of skin & scrape off as much fat as possible- and NO giblets either (darn! my favorite part) so far i can still get away with Foster Farms brand if i go that route, but i can no longer tolerate most of what's available around here, including the so-called 'locally grown' brands ie Draper Valley (pure poison as far as my system is concerned!) it doesnt seem to make much difference what the label reads as far as whether i am going to react to it either... thats why i would suspect processing residues in your meat, possibly. altho, one would expect organic and free range brands to be safer than most... its so frustrating, isnt it!! hope you are feeling better now | ||
| bo'nana Unregistered guest |
btw, your dinner menu sounded really yummy  | ||
| kristy Unregistered guest |
Guys, there seems to be very little meat that is processed in the U.S. that isn't treated with citric acid or lactic acid (both corn derivatives). I suspect those are a big problem for most people on this board but it is so hard to find meat not treated with them that most people have never had "clean" meat to compare. I called every poultry company that is available in my local stores and none of them were safe. I finally found whole pastured chickens at the farmers market that are totally safe for us. The farmer processes the chickens herself using nothing but a mechanical plucker and water. We can finally have chicken again. We have tried every beef and pork there is with no luck until we found a local meat processing plant that will custom butcher cows for the public. They gave me the number of a farmer that raises grassfed cows. We are picking up our second half a cow tomorrow and it will fill our freezer to the brim and last us over 6 months. Some facts about meat processing: The soaker pad under meat is saturated with citric acid. Cryopack plastic is coated with cornstarch to prevent sticking. Even organic meats and grassfed meats in stores may be treated with citric acid since it is allowed by the USDA for use in organic meat processing. U.S. Wellness meats are treated with lactic acid and packaged in cornstarch dusted cryopacks. The fresh meats in Whole Foods are also treated with citric acid. I recently tried some ground beef from a local family owned grocery store. They ground it directly into my glass storage container and it still contained corn and caused a reaction. I suspect the cryopack that contained the larger cuts they recieve from the distributor or maybe the primal cuts are sprayed with citric acid before they are packaged. Whatever the case, we now have no illusions about being able to eat meat from the grocery store. BTW, we are still looking for safe pork, turkey, duck, fish and seafood...... | ||
| bo'nana Unregistered guest |
thanks kristy... so far my own family doesnt seem to react to corn at all per se. for us, ive finally narrowed the major culprit down to Solvent residues from packaging & processing.... which brings to mind something else 'fishy' going on with the meats lately... red meats are cherry pink but dont bleed! i think it must be some sort of gas they are injecting under the plastic wrap, it looks like a puffy bubble with meat inside (did that make sense?)... i would bet it is something meant to keep the meat LOOKING 'fresher' longer, which worries me for that reason alone. i simply cant afford to buy 'clean' very often- the prices on REAL food in this area are 3-4x as much! hence, for my family, it is more a matter of choosing which reactions we can live with and trying to avoid the worst. ugh. but that's life. i will say tho, that 'pink' meat just doesnt cook right, it doesnt bleed, and the flavour is definitely 'off'... i was able to buy a small piece of beef in butcher paper- and there is no comparison! i am pretty sure we probly all reacted to the pinky stuff too, altho at least it was mild and tolerable... but, BEWARE the ultra-pink bubble packed meats showing up on the shelves guys! there's definitely something new going on there  | ||
| bo'nana Unregistered guest |
i said major culprit... i meant major HIDDEN culprit | ||
| Roy Piwovar Unregistered guest |
bo'nana, I'm guessing it's carbon monoxide added to make it appear fresher than it really is. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/19/AR2006021901101.html | ||
| vicki s Unregistered guest |
Thanks everyone! I will call and find out about the processing for the turkey. Just so many mysteries about finding clean food! | ||
| kristy Unregistered guest |
bo'nana, the reason I mention the corn problem with meats is that the corny organic acids like citric acid and lactic acid are high in free glutamic acid alone and also cause more to be created when you cook those meats.....think of browning citric acid coated hamburger meat much like pouring a bunch of lemon juice or tomatoes on a roast and slow cooking it all day. In that way, I think the cornstarch on meat or the citric acid/lactic acid is causing reactions for everyone with a fga problem. That's another reason it is so disturbing that none of the meat from the store (even organic) is free of these organic acids. Roy is right about the carbon monoxide.....Walmart is notorious for their carbon monoxide pink-looking rancid meat. The dead give-away is that bubble looking top on a deep plastic package. I first noticed this a few years ago when I realized that the meat from Walmart looked super fresh but smelled rotten when I cooked it. I have a very sensitive palette and nose so I was unable to eat it even before I knew of my corn issues. | ||
| ali Unregistered guest |
eeeeuw thats a bit grim, passing off rancid meat as fresh. Im wondering do they do that here in Europe with the carbon monoxide. Most probably. I think ill stick to my local butcher. I rarely if ever by packaged meat off the shelf. Ive just gone from rarely to never having read this thread..thats just not right!! |
