I have a pretty long list of food allergies. Unfortunately the things that bother me the most are in almost everything. This precludes eating out in all but a few places and most potlucks. It is a loss of a break in routine and a social connection with others. I often feel isolated from society in general by just this difference. People will sometimes say rather thoughtless things to me like: “I’m sure you are used to it by now.” My reply is, “try eating a rather limited diet for a month and then come back and discuss this issue with me from experience.”  Some people say, “You would be fine if you would just eat.” They were the same people who were always criticizing me when I was broke out.

To be healthy and look reasonably well, I must restrict my diet severely and make nearly all my food from scratch. To paraphrase the Great Bard—“To eat, or not to eat. That is the question.” I learned in a psychology course that people on restricted diets often suffer depression. The change in lifestyle and isolation make it worse, but hardly a day goes by that I don’t hear of another person with food sensitivity problems. The lesson is that I am not alone, but we need to communicate with one another. “Hey!!! I’m over here!!! Let’s talk about living life outside the Fast Food Lane.”

Alternate White Sauce

2 to 3 Tablespoons corn or other oil                   2 to 3 Tablespoons rice flour

1 cup rice or soy milk (original not vanilla)         dash of salt (optional)

In a small heavy sauce pan, placed over low heat, stir 2 to 3 Tablespoons of rice flour into an equal number of Tablespoons of either corn or rice oil. Three Tablespoons makes a thicker sauce. I like corn oil because it has a more buttery flavor, but use an oil you can tolerate. Once the mixture is well warmed and thoroughly mixed slowly add a cup of original flavor (no vanilla) rice or soy milk. Be patient and add the liquid very slowly over about 2 minutes and then continue to stir until the sauce thickens.

This will make a great replacement sauce for Fettuccine or with the substitution of one Tablespoon of a home-made chicken stock (most bullion contains ingredients I can’t eat), it can be a replacement for chicken gravy.