Pick-A-Day

January 2011
M T W T F S S
 12
3456789
10111213141516
17181920212223
24252627282930
31  

Archives

Eatin’ out the fridge…

I’m on the verge of leaving Berlin for a few weeks: off to America for a trip that is partially “vacation” (although given the state of my Father’s heath, I’m not sure that part of the trip is vacation) and partially work.

There’s actually a good balance of things: Denver for family, Fargo for friends, and Bloomington, Indiana, for work – and the time in Bloomington nicely coincides with the Bloomington Pride Film Festival—so expect an orgy of gay film discussion at the end of the month.

In preparation for take-off, I’ve stopped buying perishable goods and am trying to eat out the fridge so that it’s empty when I leave town. This, of course, results in odd combinations of food: how about yogurt with sausages? Or eggs served with a frozen fruit smoothy?

I’m also trying to eat out the non-refrigerated perishables – like the bread that you just have to briefly bake and eat—and might I say some of that bread is incredibly salty? Won’t be buying it again—I’m curious as to how I missed its saltiness before—It claimed to be oregano flavored, and judging by the green specks on the plate, surely something like oregano was in it, but I never tasted it.

Half the challenge here is that 48 hours after I get back to Berlin, my brother is showing up for a week and a half long visit – and he’s got food allergies that make my food allergies look trivial—like the fact that he cannot eat corn or any corn derivatives.

Did you know that most baking powder has corn in it? I didn’t, but I can now tell you that both brands of baking powder in my kitchen have corn in it, as does every single brand I’ve examined at the supermarkets in Berlin, from the low end Netto, to Edeka, to Kaisers, and even the high end Bio Company.

The corn is the biggest issue—but he’s also Jewish and doesn’t eat pork (which I can deal with – I’ll eat the Nürnberger Rostbratwürstes before leaving town) and is also allergic to vegetables from the cabbage family.

Adios to my current favorite, roasted Brussels sprouts.

4 comments to Eatin’ out the fridge…

  • Sorry to hear your dad is sick – I hope it improves!
    I eat those bake-a-little-bit breads and the ones I haven’t aren’t salty…Mehrkornbroetchen or something.
    Have a nice trip!

  • Dude, no cabbage and no corn products — that is tough! When I think about all the items that have cornstarch (e.g. as a thickening agent) in them, that excludes an awful lot of sauces and desserts.

  • CN Heidelberg – Thanks! It will be awhile before my father is back to 100%. As for the bread, it was probably the specific type I bought — I should have known better.

    cliff1976 – Corn is in an astounding number of things — like, for example paper cups that coffee shops use for to-go orders. See http://www.cornallergens.com/ for a somewhat disturbing list.

  • koko

    Your brother and I should visit at the same time. We’d just not eat 🙂 Hooray for allergies!