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I'm at a conference in San Diego and have been working long hours. Was up until midnight last night and back at work at 8am this morning. The conference has been amazing at providing both Vegan and GF meals. Unfortunately, those labels do not mean also dairy free. This morning they served Conghee which is overcooked rice ... supposedly without milk. I ate some and paid the price within a couple of hours.
Then, this afternoon they served hummus and plain pita chips. In my mind, plain meant no dairy, but I forgot about gluten! I ate a handful of chips with hummus and even went back for more. Then it hit me, PLAIN does not equal GF! Ayi yi yi. So now my body is reacting and it won't be long before I visit the restroom again (already did this morning with D courtesy of the rice).
I'll be working until probably 10pm tonight, but fortunately this is the last day of the conference. I can't believe I lost track of keeping track!!!
I do have Larabars with me and they, along with bananas, have been very sustaining for me. I'm about ready to quit eating anything I didn't buy myself.
Sending quick-healing thoughts your way - several of us recently shared dreams, in which we mindlessly munched down a bunch of pasta (or a brownie, or a piece of bread...) and then had exactly the same AI AI AI response you report. Luckily those were dreams, but it's amazing how easy it is to put something in your mouth that turns out to be unsafe.
Our area is full of fantastic food stands/vendors where maybe I could eat, IF I were their first customer (before the ice cream scoops and non-dairy scoops rest in the same container... before the immaculate latex gloves that touch the meat put that meat on BREAD and then touch the meat again...). (Ai ai ai, is all I can say.)
Potato chips, my friend! (Great for when the sweet treat of Larabars starts making you crave salt/savory...)
I'm working on new snacks, portable options, and purse standby favorites, all the time! I know you are, too.
Hope you're feeling better than you feared today. Something about this makes me aware of how much mindless eating there is - we just had visitors from Europe, who were amazed at how many people they saw walking through the streets with food in their hands.
I never thought of myself as a 'mindless' eater - that phrase made me picture someone with a giant bag of cheez-doodles in front of the TV, not really noticing. But I have absent-mindedly reached for the bread basket. It doesn't feel that different, dreaming or waking, to tell you the truth!
It makes sense that outside of your "natural habitat" your new habits wouldn't be totally routine yet. You'll get there - you are already getting there, in fact... hopefully with minimal bumps on the road, going forward.
I'd better go stock up on potato chips, on my way to my day out of the house... meatloaf muffins are ready to go (but a lot harder to take on the road for a big trip such as yours!).
What about Rice Works chips? They are my new favorite thing. My hair stylist, whose son is GS, told me about them. Brown rice-based, several flavors. I am trying really hard not to eat GF junk food just because it is GF, but every once in a while, I need some crunch.
I have always been a potato chip fan, and am thankful they aren't off my food list.
Also, look for a brand called Food Should Taste Good. They have GF chips in a number of flavors.
Food Should Taste Good chips are wonderfu. I like the jalapeno chips and sweet potato chips. Those two are GF, DF, and SF. Some of the others have soy, so be sure to check the ingredients if you are avoiding soy.
Thank you, all. I'm home, totally exhausted from working such long hours and, no doubt, from getting glutened and I think dairy-ed. They served something called rice conghee in the vegan and GF lines. I inquired about dairy and was assured it was only water. I'm certain that wasn't right because within 30 minutes my stomach was churning. Then that afternoon I made my aforementioned mistake with the pita chips. So, I've been making trips to the bathroom with D, but not XD. (Always looking for silver linings)
I like a bit of crunch, too, and am not one to eat potato chips. I'll look for the Food Should Taste Good sweet potato chips though.
Sara, meatloaf muffins??? Please explain.
I left 13 hours last night and am headed back to bed in the next hour.
conghee is usually made with water and was something I ate often when I was vegan. Being a vegan for 30+ years, if they told you no dairy in it and they were serving it to the vegans I would bet it was dairy free. Vegans do not eat dairy or eggs.
Snacking is a tough one for a lot of us.
Maggie
Maggie Scarpone
___________________
Resident Birder - I live to bird and enjoy life!
For my first GF trip I visited my son and his family for a few days in Panama City and told he and his wife not to worry about feeding me. I was going to bring everything I needed with me and could eat plain meat & potatoes without a problem. First of all, I forgot my GF bagels for breakfast, forgot my teabags and left without the wine, etc etc etc. This was a real learning experience!! Can I blame this forgetfulness on persistent brain fog? From now on there will be a list of everything I need to bring IN my suitcase. It was very difficult to find GF food in the small outlying town of Calloway. Another thing, GF is fattening!! I eat snacks when I shouldn't and things that I never used to eat. I guess I'm feeling deprived and make up for that with "mindless" munching. This really is a re-education process. The GF pizza at the Red Elephant wasn't bad but gave me a huge stomach ache. Surprisingly, the chocolate homemade ice cream that I ate didn't bother me at all. I enjoyed the list of items to eat for breakfast. I am getting tired of Van's waffles and have to choke down the GF bagels. I should just give them up since I don't like them and only eat them because they are filling. Thanks for all the ideas.
Sheila
To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein
Glad you're home, and recovering. I wouldn't expect dairy in the conghee, either - I hope that doesn't mean you have another food to watch out for.
Potato chips are a new vice for me - I have probably eaten more potato chips in the last 2-3 months than I have in the last 10-15 years. I was outside most of yesterday, and I think the potassium & salt are helpful... though clearly it's not something I want to rely on as a major calorie source.
Our 'meatloaf muffins' are really just mini-meatloaf, made in muffin tins. I had given away our muffin tins, in a fit of GF/Paleo pique... so I had to buy new ones when this idea came along. (I would 'decontaminate' pretty seriously, if you have well-loved muffin tins on hand.) This batch was ground turkey, a little coconut flour, and my husband sauteed some chopped carrots, parsley, onion, and chopped pistachios. Sometimes we've used a little coconut oil as well (the ground chicken I got was very lean, and the first batch was quite dry.) He seasoned this batch with a little bit of coconut aminos (yum!). We bake them for about 25 minutes at 350.
Two pounds of ground meat yields 12 'muffins' (depending, of course, on the size of the muffin tin!). We have done this also with ground lamb (with olives, oregano). My idea was to make a batch and freeze some for taking with me on days when I'm out of the house for long hours, but I haven't actually gotten around to freezing any yet. We are terrible at lunch, and today I had an appointment all morning - great to have a nice meal ready to go. In this heat, they're delicious cold.
Two of them add up to a good lunch on a not-too-active day.
Sarah, what a great idea!! Your muffin meatballs reminds me of a recipe for chicken burgers that I haven't had for a while because new husband doesn't like them.
This is a great recipe because they are much more moist than turkey burgers, freeze very well and reheat beautifully in the microwave. I love them and I thank you for reminding me of them.
Mix 1 lb ground chicken with 2 T horseradish, 1/2 grated onion or shallot, 1/2 carrot grated, 3/4 tsp salt and 1/4 C chopped parsley. Mix all the ingredients together and form into 4 hamburgers (or however many meatballs you can make). Heat a nonstick pan, sprinkle w/ a little sea salt and cook the patties 4 min each side over med-high heat. I usually sprinkle the tops with soy sauce and garlic chips before cooking. They are great with mustard.
Sheila
To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein
The problem with the rice conghee may have been gluten, since conghee is probably viewed as a vegan recipe by many/most food service facilities, rather than as a GF recipe.
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
A word of caution about the chips . . . a while back I developed a bit of an addiction for potato chips when I gave up most starches. Prior to that time I NEVER bought chips, but I suddenly got very permissive. They became a bit of a problem because I started to crave the salt and fat and crunch (and probably carbs) and I put on a few pounds. I am happy to say I am back in Chipaholics Anonymous.
Mary Beth
"If you believe it will work out, you'll see opportunities. If you believe it won't you will see obstacles." - Dr. Wayne Dyer
LOL, Mary Beth. So far, I only eat them once or twice a week, when working all day outside the house... and am not yet buying them in bulk - but you are right, there is a real addictive quality there. I've always been more drawn to salt than sugar (well, as an adult, anyway!). I feel lucky that I don't have to worry at the moment about losing or gaining weight, and have been steady for some months now since my initial loss... but there is no doubt about where to look if my weight were to creep back up! Just like you, I went from "never!" to "wow, these are tasty" practically overnight... thanks for the heads-up ;)
Is it just my imagination, or are Lay's Potato Chips much thinner, lighter, and tastier, than they used to be? They don't seem to be as greasy, either.
This is another product that has a ridiculously low serving size - 1 ounce, (about 15 small chips). The 10 and a half ounce bags, (which were 13 ounce bags, up until about a year ago ), are lucky to last me for 2 or 3 snacks, if I don't pay attention to what I'm doing. Luckily, I don't snack on them very often.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Visit the Microscopic Colitis Foundation Website
I ate a handful of chips with hummus and even went back for more. Then it hit me, PLAIN does not equal GF! Ayi yi yi. So now my body is reacting and it won't be long before I visit the restroom again (already did this morning with D courtesy of the rice). 
From now on there will be a list of everything I need to bring IN my suitcase. It was very difficult to find GF food in the small outlying town of Calloway. Another thing, GF is fattening!! I eat snacks when I shouldn't and things that I never used to eat. I guess I'm feeling deprived and make up for that with "mindless" munching. This really is a re-education process. The GF pizza at the Red Elephant wasn't bad but gave me a huge stomach ache. Surprisingly, the chocolate homemade ice cream that I ate 
didn't bother me at all. I enjoyed the list of items to eat for breakfast. I am getting tired of Van's waffles and have to choke down the GF bagels. I should just give them up since I don't like them and only eat them because they are filling. Thanks for all the ideas.
