My journey through the world of food intolerances and allergies and special diets has taken me a lot of different places. I’ve tried therapies and pills and herbs and homeopathy. I’ve visited Doctors and doctors and “doctors”. Most of these things were helpful in their own way (though I ran from, and did not look back at, the doctor who told me I had heartburn and should just take some Tums). But there isn’t one thing that I can point to as THE thing that has really made me stronger and healthier. And by no means have I “arrived” at a place of strength and healing. I still have both feet on the path and am still journeying.
I talked to a friend a while back who has struggled with her own GI issues for years. She raved about this cookbook called Nourishing Traditions. It had been on my reading list because it sounded all conspiracy-theorist (confession: I do enjoy a good conspiracy theory) but it hadn’t occurred to me that it might shed some light on my health and eating challenges. Maybe this was the next thread in my web of GI therapies? I decided it was time to look into the matter.
I first checked the book out from the library, thinking it was something I could thumb through on a Sunday afternoon and return in a week or two. Three weeks later I was still engrossed in the introduction and decided to just buy the thing so I could mark it up with my own notes and marginalia. And so, with pleasure, I welcomed Sally Fallon to my shelf of treasured cookbooks.
This book is unconventional and challenging, but so intriguing that I simply can’t ignore it. Saturated fat does not make you fat? Cholesterol does not cause heart disease? And what is in that glass of milk anyway?
Being so captivated by the premise of this diet, I naturally wanted to put some pieces of it into practice. I was a little disappointed to see that so many of the recipes are process-oriented and will take more planning on my part. It also seems that it will be more expensive than the grocery choices we’ve been making. And then there’s the all-important question of WILL THEY EAT IT???
All of which begged the question: Is this a sustainable diet for a busy mama with four kiddos? Yes, I want to feed my family well, but not at the expense of actually living life with them.
And also the more personal question: Is there a part of this diet that can help me in overcoming food intolerances and chronic illness?
Maybe you ask yourself the same questions. If you do, I hope you’ll follow our journey through Nourishing Traditions. My friend, Lisa, and I are offering up ourselves and our families (and our grocery budgets) as guinea pigs in a quest to find some answers. We’ll be tackling some of the recipes in Nourishing Traditions together, and posting the good, the bad, and the ugly here. We have our fingers crossed for more good, than bad and ugly. And we hope that Sally Fallon gets to keep her place next to Irma Rombauer on my shelf.
