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Lesley, if you can get good steak and lamb... I'd let the rattlesnake and bunnies wait
Of course, the best meals are in good company. Glad you have that camaraderie with your son - that's better than any spice. My nephew and I shared the last of the cranberry sorbet I had made, before he headed back to college - sweet/tart (like him; like me, too).
I'm planning steak and duck for tomorrow's meals - I made a great turkey/sweet-potato hash this morning, but I'm about turkey-ed out, and wish I'd frozen some of it. (Or, the dog suggests, I could share...)
We went to a restaurant to which we have been many times. The chef there has been great in accommodating my food difficulties. He really tries to prepare things for me, and he truly uses the best ingredients.
I asked about the steak and fries, which he makes on the spot. No flour on the fries and the oil is dedicated. The grill, though, might have been contaminated with something, although he said it wasn't. It also could be the ongoing upset from the turkey, because that was far from over before we ate. You could hear the gurgles going on from a mile away.
I think maybe it was just putting food into my stomach that hurt some, but it's nothing like the gurgling and D I had yesterday. This attack is taking some time to resolve.
This week I am staying at home and eating what's here. Back to meat and potatoes, and turkey is OUT!
I've had that "ongoing upset" experience - it does cloud the next meals, even if they're perfectly safe. I believe you're right that just eating, when the system hurts, can seem like a provocation even if no ingredient is to blame. And I've found good/safe/beloved/favorite eateries, so I know how wonderful it is that you've found this place.
Here's wishing you a week of safe eating and symptom relief,
This is by no means a cheap place, but it's very good, and the chef will come out and make sure one is getting needs met. He hears that we are in the joint, he comes out to ask us what we need, to commiserate with me, and to help me figure out what he has that will not be toxic to me. He has actually put on the bottom of the menu a sentence saying they will try to meet any dietary requirements requested other than kashruth (Jewish ritual requirements for anyone who isn't familiar with the term).
He also gave us his # and told us to call ahead so he can prepare something for me. The place is right around the corner, so it's easy for me.
I worry that it's not going to last because people are not warming to it. The people in this area like to go to Beverly Hills for "fancy" food, and to eat very mundane, even chain food restaurant food around here.
Adam grew up with my cooking and baking, which used to be good, and is a very good cook himself. When he eats out he doesn't like to spend money on something bleh. He doesn't mind paying for really well prepared food.
So we both will be sad if he place closes.
It sounds weird to say, "Great--you can't eat turkey!" but to me it's always a relief when I figure out something that's been giving me trouble. Hope your system settles down in a few days and you can embark on the search for safe meat (I will eat venison, but draw the line at bunny)!
Cynthia,
I know exactly what you mean. I have a VERY long way to go before I have anything of a menu. I am still so limited with my food. I am glad, though, that I figured that one out, even if it takes the comfort food I thought I had off the menu.
I am not crazy about venison. I will be glad to find a mild, chickeny type meat.
I have cooked and eaten rabbit before, in France Cooked well it was delicious. I've adapted rabbit recipes to chicken, so, once I figure out what else I can eat so I can cook it and make it tasty. It's not like chicken in that it has no fat under a skin that can crisp when broiling. It can be dry, so you have to be careful when you cook it.
At this point I am still feeling so wonky that I can't think about cooking and eating anything.
Sara, how do you cook your duck? I have a breast to make.
And yes, I can get good beef and lamb. And Tilapia, which I love, and is lighter than the meat. It doesn't seem to disagree with me, for which I am grateful.
Lesley, what's the name of your restaurant? It sounds wonderful... would love to try it when next in your 'neighborhood.'
I usually pan-sear/fry duck breast, sometimes with a splash of apple cider to finish. My husband likes it with 5-spice powder, or ras-al-hanout. It's pretty flavorful with just plain salt, too! Last week I rendered the fat from the skin, and have been using it for cooking. It's wonderful with greens, especially. And it makes a nice change from coconut oil, which I use often. I had bought an especially big duck breast, and it has lasted a while, and I think I'll do that again, when my husband's back from his travels.
Yesterday, after my chicken soup was finished, I found another giant bunch of turkey leftovers. Ack! I just gave some to a neighbor who's recovering from surgery, along with some stock, and if she's not looking mighty perky in the next 24 hours or so, I'm heading over there with another special turkey dish - I have to move on to some other protein source!
My husband always cooks the breast with the skin on, which is very tasty. So I cooked it that way, too - but because the breast was so large, and the fatty skin was so - BIG - it just seemed intimidating. So I removed it, and while I ate the breast itself, I slowly rendered the fat on the stovetop. I guess I used a decent amount of duck fat in the cooking, too, but there was plenty left over. I started it skin-side down.
The skin, after the fat has been rendered, is DELICIOUS! Did you try it? In yiddish it's called gribenis, and usually refers to chicken skin. The fat is shmaltz. I grew up on it.
I did the duck without onions, because I wanted to taste its duck-iness. I had a fair amount of turkey fat, and did render it with onions (thank goodness, because I am getting tired of the taste of turkey - which I would hesitate to say, as you have just had to eliminate it, but you were sick of it long before I was!).
I have never liked turkey except smoked. It's not a hardship to give it up. It just limits my meats.
The duck was delicious, and I still have a lot left. I don't have an onion. Something to get on next visit to the store.
I was pouring off the fat while it was cooking luckily because I burned it towards the end. I still got a lot out of it.
You know living in the Northeast, we have a lot of restaurants serving duck especially with the French Canadian influence, and it is a great tasting meat. However the best duck I have ever had hands down was in Australia of all places made by our very own Gabes, it was beyond incredible!! Now if I can only fnd a restaurant that serves it a bit closer to home. I noticed that like lamb if settled better than just about any other meat. Now we just have to get Gabes to the USA...or at least her top secret recipe :-)
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