Having trouble spicing up our life (well, our meals anyway!)

[Jean in Newcastle]

As many of you know, we went through this whole family elimination thingy. The results have made my cooking not as tasty. The biggest problem - my dd6 gets a rash from ONIONS! I used them lots and lots for flavoring of stocks, sauces, etc. We also can't have CORN, WHEAT, SOY or DAIRY. That pretty much rules out all commercially prepared bouillon type seasonings (unless you know of one I haven't seen). Any advice for tasty seasonings? My dh complicates matters by hating thyme, sage and rosemary (he says they taste like dirt!) My children hate curry spice. Dd6 can handle some chili pepper (but not too much - it makes her "tongue hurt!") Please help, there is only so much I can do with sea salt, onion-less broth and tomato paste.

[Doran]

They are both alliums, so it may be that garlic is also out. But, if not, I'd be using a whopping ton of that. ;)

In the absence of onions, I'd be using any of the following in various combinations:

Italian flavor:
basil
parsley
celery salt

Indian/Mexican flavor:
cumin
corriander
cinnamon
tumeric
ginger (fresh or powdered)
cayenne (use sparingly)
mustard poweder

~ Or, instead of the above, you can purchase curry powder. Eliminate the bottom four spices and you'll have more of a Mexican flavor, esp. if you toss in cilantro. Some dal recipes are quite nice, using curry powder, lentils (red or green) and brown rice. They do also call for onion, but I'd just eliminate them and see how it goes.

~ Speaking of mustard, that might make for a tasty addition in some cases -- but double check ingreds first. -- can't say I know them by heart

~ Asian stir fry with celery, bok choy, chicken, carrots, snow peas using sesame oil and replacing soy sauce with salt?

~ There is an Indian cookbood called No Onion/No Garlic (http://www.niruskitchen.com/books/no_onion.asp) that might give you ideas, though you'd need to modify it in order for it to not be too spicy for your family.


Well, that's a start anyway. We're not as restricted as you -- just wheat and dairy avoidance here -- but I do understand how hard it is to alter your cooking/eating habits completely. Good luck!


Doran

[Jean in Newcastle]

Just today I was thinking that the mysterious rash she's been having despite being on "safe" foods might be from garlic! Bummer - because I love garlic. I love onions too. Thanks for these suggestions. They look really good.

[kalanamak]

Green:
2 oz chopped coriande
1 oz chopped mint
1 hot chili, chopped, or as desired
1 T lemon juice
1/4 teas salt
6 oz yougurt. (Soy yough WORKS
Blend well

Brown:
1 T heaping chopped coriander and mint (one each)
3-4 T gur, or dark brown sugar
3/4 " fresh ginger minced
1/4 t kalamanak (black salt)
5 1/2 fl oz tamarind paste
1/4 t cayenne
1 teas ground dry roasted cumin (do this fresh)
1/2 teas salt
Blend

[Amy in TX]

Dal without onions or garlic: Cook lentils in water, with salt to taste, until soft. Blend with hand blender if desired. In a skillet, heat some olive oil, drop in a couple of tsps. each of cumin seed and dried curry leaves. Fry for just a minute or so, then pour the whole thing, oil & all, into the dal. Stir in. This does not have a "curry powder" taste but is delicious.

Simple tomato sauce for spaghetti or lasagna: Heat your choice of any of the following: canned tomato sauce, paste, diced tomatoes. Add to taste: salt, pepper, dried basil, dried oregano. Add a little honey if you like a touch of sweetness.

Salsa: Chopped canned or fresh tomatoes, bell pepper, cilantro, salt, pepper. Pulse a couple of times in the food processor.

Can you use leeks, fennel, or celery in place of onions? (I don't know if these are related to garlic/onions or not.)

Good luck; I hope you get more suggestions.

Amy

[LlamaMama]

I'm wondering if oyster sauce or fish stock would be a good substitute for soy sauce? One of my daughters is also allergic to soy, but not to the point where we don't have to use it for seasoning.

Oh, it's so tough to deal with food sensitivities. The book "Gluten-Free Girl" was an entertaining read and helped me appreciate what we can eat.

[Lorna]

Marmite (vegemite, yeast extract) in place of stock.
Add cans of tomatoes to vegetable soups
Chives? I don't think they are from the same family as onions (and they are a favourite with our two). Someone correct me if I am wrong.

[Arch At Home]

I have done similar diets. When things were are their worst, we discovered Penzey's. They have a whole slew of spice blends which are wheat and corn-free. We particularly like their pork seasoning and 4-S season salt. I would suggest that you look at Thai or Vietnamese recipes. They often use fish sauce in lieu of soy. Lemon and lime juice can add zip. Fresh herbs might help also. The flavor is more intense. I would probably also try making pesto with just basil and pine nuts if garlic turn out to be out also.

[Doran]

Marmite (vegemite, yeast extract) in place of stock.
Add cans of tomatoes to vegetable soups
Chives? I don't think they are from the same family as onions (and they are a favourite with our two). Someone correct me if I am wrong.


So, unfortunately, as members of the same family, may cause similar/same allergic response.


Seeing as how you're in Denmark, I am curious...what is Marmite? I've only heard of vegemite as a "down under" product and never really knew what it was. Is it available in the States?

Doran

[Jean in Newcastle]

I have done similar diets. When things were are their worst, we discovered Penzey's. They have a whole slew of spice blends which are wheat and corn-free. We particularly like their pork seasoning and 4-S season salt. I would suggest that you look at Thai or Vietnamese recipes. They often use fish sauce in lieu of soy. Lemon and lime juice can add zip. Fresh herbs might help also. The flavor is more intense. I would probably also try making pesto with just basil and pine nuts if garlic turn out to be out also.

Where do you find Penzey's spices?

[Arch At Home]

http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/shophome.html Tonight I roasted some sweet potatoes with Penzey's Chinese 5 Spice Powder. It gave the pototoes almost a sweet flavor without any sugar.

Another tip thing I do is when I cook potatoes to mash, I put 1 Tb of salt in the cooking water. Then after I drain the potatoes, I mash them with olive oil. My kids actually like this better than butter and sour cream in their mashed potatoes.