Cornbread with Applesauce

I have been baking with applesauce a lot because I have a large jar of it. I would like to use the jar completely before experimenting with other substitutes.  While baking with applesauce usually results in only a slight change in taste, the texture is always off.  I think once this jar is empty I will try other things.

One epic fail I have experienced was with cornbread.  Applesauce in cornbread does not work.  It did not stick together at all.  The taste is horribly bland.  I will use lots of honey and a little butter to get through this pan, but I will not be trying that one again.

Seven days!

Seven days without eggs and counting!  And this includes two trips to Disneyland!

How much longer can I go?

That Didn't Last Long

I made it two days.  I had to grab something light and quick from McDonalds yesterday. We were car pooling, I was driving, and someone from the car was very sick and wanted to get home quickly.  I ordered a McChicken without mayo, downed it quickly, and then drove.  While I remember not mayo, I forgot that most breaded meets have eggs in the breading. So I looked on their website and, sure enough, there were eggs.

I need to make sure that I remember this.  Breaded chicken generally not ok.  Trader Joe's, however, does have chicken strips without eggs, so it is possible. Just don't try it without knowing ahead of time!

Cookie Epic Fail

I said cookies were my downfall.  Tonight as I ate a white chocolate macadamia nut cookie at Bible study (and while several friends were yelling at me) I decided to see how many days I can go completely egg free. I recently went just shy of a week, and that was interrupted because it ended up being cornbread stuffing.  I am going to try to tap my competitive edge. I am going to see how long I can go, and when I do eat eggs, I will see if I can beat my record.  Hopefully I can keep that up and see what I can do.

Will Power

I know no one really reads this blog, but I am asking anyways.  If you have food allergies or intolerances (that are not life threatening), how do you have the will power to not eat that food?  This is why I haven't been terribly strick about my allergy in the past. When I do eat eggs and am sick afterwards I just figure that's what I deserve.  The problem though is that I still don't have the will power when that cookie is in front of me etc to actually pass and not eat it.

When your life is not on the line, how do you do it?

Discipline is Hard

I ate half a chocolate chip cookie today. A friend of mine had made them and I was baby-siting he kids. The boys were each allowed to have one.  I was fine until she offered the remaining half a cookie. Chocolate chip cookies are a major weakness for me.

Discipline is hard. How do I do this?

Feeding the Husband

My husband loves eggs.  His old roommate once told me that my husband could eat eggs everyday if he wanted to. Now he doesn't eat them very often because of me.  Sometimes he buys them and he will hard boil them as a snack or part of dinner.

Tonight he wanted some of the eggs.  So we had burrito night. We had pinto beans, brown rice, whole wheat tortillas, and scrambled eggs.  He had a breakfast burrito while I had a bean and cheese burrito.

I cook dinner most nights of the week.  Since my night classes ended I make dinner a lot more than I used to.  I have always avoided making separate meals for the two of us.  A big factor in why I am not a vegetarian is because I didn't want to cook separate meals.  Since my decision to completely cut eggs out of my diet I have made separate meals a few times.  It is not nearly as big of a hassle as I once thought.  Sure there are extra dishes, but the whole process isn't as big of a pain as I had feared.  Usually only the main dish is different, so it's pretty easy to work with.

Maybe I should consider becoming a vegetarian again after all...

Boston Market

Tonight a bunch of friends came over and felt the need to eat dinner at Boston Market.  Considering we usually will do something such as sushi or pizza, it seemed rather random.  We got a family meal for five with an extra side plus ate some food we had as well.

The last time I ate at Boston Market it was with my grandma who passed away when I was 14. So... it's been a while.  I had a bit seconds and thirds of their stuffing. I was so careful to not eat eggs. I gave my cornbread to a friend. I stayed away from their mac and cheese in case the noodles had eggs.  I hate the turkey, several veggie sides... and their stuffing.  I figured it's regular bread, which rarely has eggs.  Well, turns out it was cornbread stuffing. Cornbread has eggs.  My stomach started to feel queasy, so my first thought was to look at the stuffing. I wish I thought to look before I ate it.  Now I know, don't every assume anything and, when in doubt, look it up before eating it.

Bleh.  Thankfully this is the first time I ate anything with eggs since this last Sunday when I had that doughnut!  I had been feeling really good too...

Brownies with Applesauce

Today I made some brownies with a mix from Trader Joe's. I used applesauce in place of eggs. I made these at a friend's house so I could use her kids as taste testers.  The consistency turned out weird, but they tasted fine.  I told the two boys that I want them to be honest and that if they don't like it my feelings would not be hurt.  The older boy, who is seven, didn't like how it felt when holding it, but told me he thought the brownie tasted good.  The younger boy, age four, thought they were really good.  He loves applesauce and was beside himself he learned that applesauce was one of the ingredients!

Once this jar of applesauce is gone I need to experiment with other substitutions.  Any suggestions?

A Little About Me and Bread

Yesterday I did not eat anything containing eggs.  I also stayed home all day, which makes this easy to do. I am a substitute teacher, so my job is to go to a different classroom in the district every day.  Well, testing season is upon us, so I am only working a couple days a week. When I am not working I spend a lot of time at home working on my Master's. I stay busy.

Anyways, let's talk about bread. My biggest challenge when it comes to eating without eggs is bread. When you buy a general ol' loaf of bread in the bread isle of the grocery store you can find bread without eggs.  Bakery bread, on the other hand, appears to be a different story.  I have done a lot of research about bread trying to figure out what to do. As a substitute teacher I bring lunch with me every day and I often rely on peanut butter and jelly to get me through the afternoon.

Many breads have eggs in them, many do not.  Sometimes bagels have bread in them, sometimes they don't. I have read various sources online that state that sometimes, while egg isn't listed as in ingredient, it is used as a glaze to create that shiny appearance. So I ask myself, what do I do?

While I look at the bread that is currently in my kitchen with suspicion I have decided that I need to start looking for vegan bread.  Is there such a thing? I am sure there is somewhere. I might have to start looking for and trying vegan bread just to be on the safe side. I am sure vegan bread wouldn't have yeast, so I am not sure such a thing exists.  If by any chance anyone should read this and has any information on the subject please leave a comment!  Until then, I will have to see what I can find and write about it as I go.

Doughnut and Pizza Dough

This morning, before I decided to create this blog, I ate a doughnut. It didn't really bother me, but I assume doughnuts have eggs as most baked goods do.  I have been telling myself for a while now that I will stop eating anything with eggs in it, but I frequently can not follow through with this decision. Thinking about the doughnut is what caused me to create this blog.

Other than this doughnut I did not eat ANYTHING with any amount of eggs today.  I made pizza for lunch (and dinner) using Trader Joe's pizza dough.  There is no eggs in the dough! I do not know if eggs is a regular ingredient, but making food such as this at home I can assure myself that I do not risk becoming ill.  Here is a shot of the amazing pizza before it went in the oven.  It had pesto, mozzarella, zucchini, various greens on one half, and chicken on the other half for my husband. I am not a vegetarian, but sometimes I just don't feel like eating meat. He doesn't care if I eat meat or not as long as he gets it for himself!

First Try

Yesterday, for the first time I made something baked and actually subbed the eggs. I always think about doing it, but in the past I have always been worried that it would end up being really gross. Well, yesterday I figured it's now or never.

For my first try I made Trader Joe's banana bread. I used 1/3 cup apple sauce per egg, resulting in 2/3 overall.  I also threw in some chocolate chips =-). This bread has no eggs in it. It turned out great! I couldn't taste the difference. I didn't think to take a picture until after my husband and I ate half of it, but it looks good!  The middle was slightly undercooked, but since there was no eggs it was no problem.

Starting a Food Blog

Ok, so first of all, I normally make fun of anyone who has a food blog.  It seems like "It's the thing to do."  Well, guess what, I am starting a food blog.  But this blog has a purpose.  I am allergic to eggs.  My allergy isn't life threatening, but it can leave me incapacitated for days. I usually eat what I want as long as it's not too eggy and hope for the best.  Unfortunately, I recently became really ill from a meal at a friend's house and decided that enough is enough and that it is time to get serious!

This blog is to help me keep track of my food.  Also, when I cook something good I might post it just to help me keep track =-).