I'm a food nazi. I shamelessly admit it. Truthfully, I was a little ashamed last week. I hurt someone's feelings. I'm becoming more and more proficient in offending others, while protecting my gf food. I've done it 3 times in the past week-that I'm aware of. So I confess, I'm a food nazi. I will always be a food nazi.
When it comes to avoiding wheat gluten, I am over the top careful. Too frequently, Elisabeth gets sick from accidental ingestion of wheat gluten. Or barley. Or oats. Or Rye. She tries not to make it an issue. She doesn't want to be "one of those people" who constantly complains how easily cross-contamination happens or how sick she gets. She doesn't it to be an imposition on her friends and family, or make them uncomfortable. She doesn't want to trouble them. So I do it for her, happily. Sometimes it embarrasses her.
What does a food nazi look like? Let's just say, I view wheat gluten and her cohorts as the enemy. I do everything I can to keep them out of my home and away from my kitchen. So far, that has not been possible. When I see toast crumbs in the butter, or on the counter, I tend to freak out. I border on OCD.
When making a sandwich on wicked wheat bread, you commit a grand faux pas if you stick your knife in the mayo, spread it on a slice, then dip it back in the jar. You have just contaminated an entire jar of mayonnaise . If I didn't see it happen, and I use that mayo to make salad dressing, I inadvertently introduce gluten into what I believe is a gluten free meal. I am left wondering what made my daughter so sick, when I was so careful.
Sometimes it is preferable for others to NOT try to prepare gluten free food. When Sarabeth arrived in London, her new family knew she couldn't eat gluten. They very carefully prepared a soup recipe that they believed was gluten free. Before serving their lovely stew, a decision was made to thicken the soup. What ingredient was used? Flour. Good ol' gluten-stuffed wheat flour. So their careful attempt at making gluten free soup was sabotaged.
At Thanksgiving, one of Sarabeth's friends painstakingly attempted a gluten free dinner. She took Sarabeth shopping and had her oversee the preparations to make sure she had lots of gluten free food Sarabeth could eat. Gluten free turkey, stuffing, pie crust...she even thickened her gravy with cornstarch instead of flour. Right before serving the dinner, the host grabbed a dinner roll and dipped it into the gravy to taste for seasonings. And with that quick dunk, she contaminated the gravy with gluten, making it inedible for Sarabeth.
Unlike most 12 step programs, I'm not here to change. I feel it's my job to bring an awareness to others-and force them to change, when necessary. Believe me, it's necessary.
2 comments:
I really wish I could "like" this lol. Oh mom you're a wonderful writer.
I know what you mean. My sister has crazy food allergies, so when she comes to visit, I buy an extra butter and write on the container AUNT MARY'S - DO NOT TOUCH!!!! It's difficult and I cannot imagine having to cook for her all the time.
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