‘Spread’
Thin
It seems to
be allergy season in my house. My kids
are allergic to listening me. I spend my days repeating everything over and
over and bedtime has turned into over an hour of herding cats. They are allergic to wearing ‘weather
appropriate’ clothing and can often be found running around the school yard in
t-shirts in non t-shirt weather. You can
find me by following the ‘what a bad parent’ gazes from the by-standers.
My husband
is allergic to actually getting his dirty clothes into the laundry hamper even
though he seems capable of taking them off his body. They can be found in a pile beside his side
of the bed (I told him if they don’t make it into the hamper they won’t get
washed). He is also allergic to remembering the days that I have evening plans
(ie POM meeting) and looks surprised and abandoned as I walk out the door. I always have to remind him that if I don’t
have a suitcase in my hands, I am probably coming back. He can’t make the same threat, because he
doesn’t have any clean clothes to pack.
I am
allergic to the long delays between tv episodes. Of the very few tv shows I
actually watch there will be weeks of no episodes because of the airing of some
‘reality show’ (whose reality really??) that apparently everything in the world
has to go on hold for. I have also developed an allergy to anything with an
‘elimination ceremony’.
I have been
struggling with other allergies too. Since September and I have been called
forth to come up with a nut free snack daily for the kids to take to
school. I realize that this is a serious
allergy and I don’t mean to be disrespectful but it is driving me CRAZY!
Our house
is a dairy milk free house, for our own dietary reasons we don’t drink cow’s
milk. I make almond milk every 4-5 days that we consume on cereal etc but we
don’t drink milk. Because we are a
gluten free house, again out of necessity, much of the baking I do involves nut
flours. They are a great protein flour
alternative. And because I don’t buy anything processed, I don’t buy the
premade snacks. So in other words, other
people’s food allergies are getting in the way of our food allergies.
Yes I have
sent them off with the stand bys – Apple and cheese, crackers and hummus…all
the fruits and veg you can imagine but at the rate that my kids eat, there has
to be some protein in the mix or they will never stop eating to learn anything.
So this has pushed me to get creative……no nuts eh? (sounds like a Bob and Doug
McKenzie sketch….or maybe some low budget Canadian porn) but seeds are ok…..
How about
some Sunflower Seed Butter? Lower in saturated fat than peanuts and higher in
iron and fiber…..
2 cups
roasted sunflower seeds (buy them raw and roast yourself)
1-2 tbsps a
neutral tasting oil like flax or a more refined coconut.
Salt to
taste
And if you want (we don't) sweetener
to taste, you can use stevia, agave, brown rice syrup, honey, sugar (avoid)
Place sunflower seeds in a high speed blender or food processor and start blending. Stream in oil a tablespoon at a time, until the seeds go from a chunky paste into a creamy blend. Adjust salt and sweetener to taste. Transfer to a jar or resealable container
I was amazed how good this is….I was amazed how many different ways I could use it. Not just as a nut butter replacement but as a dip for apples, in smoothies, in baking, sweet and savory – think veggie burgers with sunflower seed sauce (if not sweetened).
I know the food allergies will never go away, ours or theirs but fingers crossed some of our other allergies are just going through a ‘season’.
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