Marcy - Holiday Meals

[Guest guest]

Marcy,

Your worries about the upcoming holidays reminds me of a

funny story. Holiday meals are always something we worry

about. The second year after I was diagnosed with CP, my

girlfriend offered to cook the feast, instead of me. This is a family

that we traditionally always invite for T-day. We only see them a

couple times a year since they live in another town, but we

always get together for Thanksigiving at my house. My friend

usually brings a dessert and rolls, I do all the rest. Thanksgiving

is my most favorite holiday meal of them all!

Our hostess was terrified of cooking the meal and it not being

acceptable for my CP diet. So she didn't use any spices, butter,

etc., didn't even make gravy, and overall, the meal was very bland

and totally unremarkable. In short, it was pretty awful.

Fortunately, my adult children and husband were well mannered

and made all the appropriate appreciative comments, but I could

see the looks on their faces, and no one asked for any seconds!

That's a clear sign that they didn't enjoy it. We said our farewells

and our thanks several hours later, and when we all piled in the

car for the trip home, my family ganged up on me and asked me

if I would cook the dinner all over again the next day, using my

own methods! Of course, I did, because we love the leftovers as

much as the first meal.

What ingredients does your sister use that aren't acceptable to

your diet? Lots of butter? I know butter is a real antagonist for

me, it's proably the most offending trigger of an attack that I have

to be wary of. So I substitute Country Crock margerine or

Brummel and Brown spread for anything that calls for butter, and

I find these products with 4-5 grams of fat are most tolerable.

Gravy....that's tough. I now make turkey gravy with one of the

packed gravy mixes (no fat), substituting no fat chicken broth for

the water that it calls for. I throw in some spices generously, and

no one knows the difference. Stuffing....what's in there that you

can't tolerate, is it the butter, or does she put in sausage or

something else to flavor it? I use oysters in mine, and we all

love it that way, but I make a " plain " dressing for anyone who isn't

an oyster lover. That bowl is usually untouched! Wine....well, I

make a batch of my favorite Crystal Lite Raspberry tea, and serve

it to myself in a pretty wine goblet. I brought this to my hostess'

dinner that year, just for myself really, and it turned out that just

as many people wanted that as those who wanted wine.

Would your sister be willing to review the ingredients she uses

and perhaps make some substitutions to accommodate your

diet? A good cook can make all these substitutions and STILL

have a delicious meal. My entire family eats the same thing I do,

(just more of it, hahaha) and no one ever complains. They still

are amazed that it's so low fat and tastes so good.

If she wants to cook it all in her preferred way, the only thing I can

suggest is that you just take tiny portions, totally skip anything

that you know will upset you, and eat sparingly. You might take

your sister aside, beforehand, and explain to her that although

you love her cooking, now there's some things that you just

CAN'T eat without bringing on a painful attack, and would she

support your food choices with understanding and tact?

As far as your traditional Christmas feast....yummmmmm! I'll be

right over! But maybe this is the year that you could start a new

tradition. Scour the cookbooks, cooking websites like

Epicurious, Southern Living or CookingLite (I have all their links)

and internet recipe sites, and come up with a new dinner that is

primarily low fat. You can still prepare some of the regular high

fat side dishes and just abstain, but start with a main course

that's low fat, and go from there. Salmon and pork tenderloin are

two fancy dishes that come to mind.

I know this is a common concern with all of us, especially this

time of year. A discussion about what we do, what can we do,

and tips that everyone else may have on how to handle this

would be a great forum. So let's hear everyone's ideas on this!

With hope and prayers,

Heidi

Heidi H. Griffeth

South Carolina

SC & SE Regional Rep.

PAI, Intl.

Note: All comments or advice are personal opinion only, and

should not be substituted for professional medical consultation.