My husband is allergic to…

AND

That’s right – fins and feathers. Well, not literally. But he is allergic to all poultry, fish, and seafood.

I’m not kidding.

He’s not I-need-an-EpiPen-or-I-think-I’ll-die allergic. However, if he eats any of these foods… well, first, put down that snack that you are mindlessly munching on while you surf the web.

Uh hem… If he eats these foods, his throat will get swollen, constrict and everything will eventually come back up. Not fun at all.

He likes to joke that he can only consume slow-moving land mammals.

This makes trying to lead a healthy lifestyle including a wide variety of lean meats, especially those including Omega-3s, nearly impossible. There are only so many recipes you can create with beef and pork until it starts to get old.

But that’s not all. There is a longer list of allergies, which include:

• Poultry (but not eggs)
• Fish
• Seafood
• Mangoes
• Papayas
• Kiwis
• Bananas
• Pinto Beans
• Raspberries
• Hazelnuts (newly discovered)

These are only the foods to which he is allergic. This list is not inclusive of the foods he just doesn’t like! And don’t even suggest that we can get our protein without meat. He won’t even order a pizza if it doesn’t have meat on it. Meatless meals are not an option.

The good news is that he’s picky about his meat. The beef has to be very lean and pork with minimal gristle. Consumption of fatty red meat daily could be a bigger cause for concern.

Which brings me to another reason why I’m so open to dining out: It’s another opportunity for me to eat chicken, fish, and seafood! (Of course, preparation matters, but that’s for another post.)

Still, after work Monday, I stopped at the grocery store and picked me up a good ol’ rotisserie chicken. We planned on eating dinner separately due to conflicting schedules. So I made myself a chicken sandwich.

Rotisserie Chicken, Spinach, Tomato & Havarti on a Toasted Bagel Thin with Grape Tomatoes

Sometimes something as simple as this can be absolute heaven when you don’t get it very often.

Do you have any allergies? Are there any simple meals that easily satisfy you?