Cooking for Thanksgiving when Dad has new food intolerance

[Anonymous]

Family visiting for Thanksgiving and my dad was diagnosed with a slew of food intolerances. He’s had a history of GI issues and a new doctor finally figured out a diet restriction for him that works and he’s feeling so much better.

The issue is he cannot eat a lot of foods. Gluten, dairy, garlic, nightshades, soy, eggs and nuts. It leaves me with very little options, especially when garlic (which is in almost every seasoning) is off the table.

Debating on making separate foods for him, but my mom seems to think I’m going to make everything we eat safe. I just find it very difficult and DH isn’t on board.

I can make him similar items, without the foods he can’t eat fairly easy, but it probably won’t be as tasty.

[Anonymous]

Mom and Dad need to supply you with meal ideas. You can follow the diet for one weekend outside of actual thanksgiving dinner. It won’t be exciting, but it won’t kill you. What about a nice zucchini lasagna for starters?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mom and Dad need to supply you with meal ideas. You can follow the diet for one weekend outside of actual thanksgiving dinner. It won’t be exciting, but it won’t kill you. What about a nice zucchini lasagna for starters?

No dairy.

[Anonymous]

Return to the basics: a meat, starch (quinoa) and a few vegetables, a salad with dressing on the side.

[Anonymous]

Do a mix of things with there always being something for dad of course. Definitely ask for his favorite recipies.

[Anonymous]

So this is like the poster who was asked to make all of the thanksgiving food palatable for a nonadventurous kid. What is with people thinking that ALL of the thanksgiving dishes must cater to their specific situation?

[Anonymous]

Meats, veggies, gluten free breads/pasta . You should really be fine. Buy a new spice blend without garlic or use individual spices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Return to the basics: a meat, starch (quinoa) and a few vegetables, a salad with dressing on the side.

This.

Turkey, salad, baked potato, cranberry sauce, and another veggie like carrots, broccoli, green beans. Plenty. Done.

[Anonymous]

Ignore what your mother says. Do what you know is right for your dad.

[Anonymous]

Pinterest has a lot of Foodmap ideas that eliminate all of these allergies.

[Anonymous]

Is he on a fodmop diet? It is very restrictive, not something I would expect others to cater too. I think Thanksgiving should be pretty easy. You should be able to do tasty and low fodmop turkey, white potatoes, and sweet potatoes along with one or two other low fodmop veggies. Seems like plenty for him. I would add in your favorites, every dish does not need to cater to him. Ask your mom to contribute a low fodmop dessert that your dad likes. Fodmop isn't just about foods, it is also about portions of certain foods.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So this is like the poster who was asked to make all of the thanksgiving food palatable for a nonadventurous kid. What is with people thinking that ALL of the thanksgiving dishes must cater to their specific situation?

Yup, exactly the same, and same answer too: make sure some of the dishes work for Dad, label them, and everything else can be traditional recipes.

[Anonymous]

Just FYI though, white potatoes are nightshades. Yams are not.

[Anonymous]

https://bonaippetit.com/aip-thanksgiving-recipes/

Autoimmune Protocol Diet Thanksgiving recipes though I saw leeks in some.

[Anonymous]

Just tell your mom and dad that you’re anxious to make sure there are lots of good options (read: options!) for him over the holiday and ask them to share some of the ways they’ve changed up their cooking to accommodate his new needs. Ask if there are specific brands of substitutes that he finds particularly good.

Making all foods acceptable isn’t fair to others so just clearly identify what you prepare safely.