Note: This post has somehow turned into mostly me complaining about my current skin flare-up, so please feel free to skip to the admittedly meager list of dinner ideas at the bottom, if you come here mainly for dinner ideas and not for skin-venting sessions.
I am not eating dairy, on the advice of my acupuncturist. This is her recommendation to help my skin. The dermatologist has yet to call me back, so has not had a chance to weigh in on this suggestion. (I did get a call from the dermatology nurse, though, who told me to discontinue the medication I had been using to treat my rosacea.)
Will the no-dairy thing even work? WHO KNOWS?! But I am at the point where I will try anything. My face got So Much Worse after I posted on Monday. Painful and inflamed and itchy and horrible to look at. I am only putting three things on my skin now: Cetaphil face wash, Cerave moisturizer, and water. And also air, I guess. I am trying Jenny’s suggestion to keep my face cool when I wash it, and I am trying the suggestion of another person in my circle not to get too sweaty (which is impossible, because I am a very sweaty human).
So. No dairy. The big problem is that now I don’t know what to eat. Somehow, dairy has become the main source of protein in my diet. I have been starting the day with a smoothie, made with milk and yogurt, and then eating cottage cheese with lunch or as a snack, and then eating yogurt for dessert. Even the delicious chocolatey lumps have yogurt in them! Now what? (I realize the world is full of non-dairy options, but they are largely unknown to me.) Also, my fridge is FULL of dairy that I bought before I was instructed to avoid it that will now go bad because I’m not eating it.
I made the mistake of discontinuing the medicine on the same day that I stopped eating dairy, so it’s impossible to tell which of those things is helping, or if this flare-up has just run its natural course. Neither is helping A LOT, but my face is slightly better than it was last week. Still not great, Bob, but better.
Okay, on to dinners. This is apparently the time of year (although this happens more than once a year) when I completely forget what food is. Meals? Never heard of ‘em. You say there is a foodstuff known as chicken? How might one prepare and eat such a thing? My husband and I started talking about what to make for dinner tonight on Saturday, because I wanted to have A Plan, and neither of us could think of anything. Neither of us came up with anything. Well, that’s not true. My husband suggested white bean enchilada soup and chicken paprikas, but as both have copious amounts of dairy in them, I had to veto both. I asked him yet again as he was leaving for work this morning and he finally blurted out, “Some sort of meat with broccoli.” Yes, I can work with that.
Should I be consulting my big master list of reliably good meals? Yes, I should. But I’m not, for reasons I don’t fully understand.
Also, this weekend is Mother’s Day, and my husband keeps asking me food-related Mother’s Day questions. Do I want to go out to brunch? (I don’t like brunch, and also the idea of brunch on the brunchiest day of the year sounds AWFUL.) Do I want him to make me some sort of baked good? Yes, but also no. The one thing I want to eat above all other things is a plate of cheese enchiladas with a big, salt-rimmed margarita on the side. That doesn’t exactly jive with the “no dairy” thing, though, so we’ll see.
Dinners for the Week of May 8-14
- Oven Roasted Chicken Shawarma with Broccoli: Yes, this sounds good.
- 20-Minute Chicken Broccoli Stir Fry: Now the only meals I can think of include meat and broccoli.
- Cauliflower Gnocchi with Asparagus and Pesto: Maybe with some shrimp? Or chicken?
- Fish Tacos: I have been wanting fish tacos lately; now’s as good a time as any. I will not be including the yogurt cream sauce though, which is a bummer. Maybe I will make an avocado/cilantro “sauce” instead.
What’s on your meal plan for the week?
I have done the same mistake with my boy trying two different things . I hope you find out soon what helps your situation.
Thank you!
Suzanne, I am here for you and your non-dairy thing. I stopped dairy in 2012 and I will say, anecdotally, that it did help my skin. Here are my recommendations for non-dairy products that are actually good:
-cashew milk for smoothies, it is so nice and creamy, and way better tasting than almond milk IMO
– cashew or coconut milk ice cream products are excellent
– cheese is the one thing that is a real bummer, because there is nothing like real cheese. That said, the options are SO much better than they used to be. Cashew and almond-based cheeses are quite good, as are coconut-based ones. Soy cheese is almost always terrible. Daiya shredded cheese is good to use as long as it’s for melting purposes. It is vile eating it cold. Even good non-dairy cheese doesn’t taste like cheese, though. It tastes GOOD, but be prepared for it to taste DIFFERENT.
– I have seen many coconut-based yogurts which are fairly decent.
– I have made tofu-based ricotta and it’s fine for making something like a lasagne, but I wouldn’t eat it on its own.
– There are some non-dairy cream cheeses, but they have a weird sweetness to them which I don’t like personally. I think a better substitute for cream cheese is to chill a can of coconut milk, scoop out the cream, and then add a little lemon. This is only good for the making of things, not to spread on a bagel or what have you.
Anyway, good luck. There are so many better options now than when I went non-dairy, so I’m hopeful on your behalf (NEVER TRY RICE MILK IT TASTES OF GRIM SADNESS)
After years of being very strict non-dairy, I now have small amounts of dairy in things like parm or feta on a salad, and I can digest it just fine, with no ill skin effects. But, these are small amounts. Just a note! I’m always here if you have questions! xoxoxo
Thank you, Nicole! I IMMEDIATELY went out and purchased some cashew milk based on this recommendation and it is lovely! Hahaha – rice milk tastes of grim sadness. I love it and I will stay FAR away.
Trader Joe’s has really delish non-dairy options, and I like to make this fish taco recipe even though we heart dairy over here: https://www.simplywhisked.com/dairy-free-fish-tacos-chipotle-aioli/
That looks so yummy!
Oh, no! If we didn’t do dairy, I honestly think my husband would collapse into a pile of skin and bones because where or where would he get his calories from? I’m SO SORRY.
So, we have been having a real heck of a time finding asparagus by us. Is there an asparagus shortage I am unaware of? Have you had an issues finding it?
Right?! I feel like dairy is very good at providing specific nutritional benefits — for me, I use it to make sure I am getting enough protein, without going wild on calories. So I am really not sure how I’m going to replace that.
No asparagus shortage here! So odd that you are having trouble finding it!
I’ve never heard the advice to not eat dairy to help your complexion. If it works, that’s great but won’t your PCP get on your case about not eating dairy. Around here the docs seem obsessed with pushing women to eat dairy, get calcium, yada, yada, yada…
I so rarely see my PCP I’m not sure she will even know. But *I* am certainly concerned about not getting enough calcium. There are non-milk sources, but it seems impossible to get your daily allotment of calcium without milk. I suppose I could use a supplement.
Giving up dairy would be tough for me. I wonder if I should mention this to my younger daughter. I’m wondering if the warmer weather is causing some issues with inflammation.
If your daughter tries it, let me know. I’m so sorry she is going through something similar.
Yes it’s all very fine and well to be scientific and just change one thing at a time, but when it’s your skin it makes sense to do All Of The Things and hope that something sticks. Hopefully everything will clear up soon.
YES. All of the things.
Giving up dairy is definitely hard. I hope you find a way that works for you. I know you must be miserable but glad for a tiny bit of improvement. Maybe, if it’s the medicine, you can graddddually add your favorite dairy things back in. Sending you a big hug.
One thing we’re eating this week is meatloaf, haha. I laugh every time I make it. So 1950s! Like, there are so many other recipes that have been created since boring ol’ meatloaf! But somehow it’s still satisfying once in a while.
Meatloaf! That is something that I have never once made, even though I don’t *dislike* it. It’s obviously not my favorite, but my mom used to make it and it was yummy.
From my experience, your dermatologist will tell you that cutting dairy won’t help. I got pushback when I tried in back when my skin was terrible and it worked for me at that point in time. I leaned heavily on vegan blogs but would add protein to their recipes. I’m sure vegan products have come a long way since then. Back then they were NOT great. But it’s really such a pain to deal with a dietary restriction. I removed dairy after I had removed gluten due to my gluten intolerance so I became a very very high maintenance person – not by choice obviously. But so it goes. Eventually I was able to add dairy back to my diet with no issues. But I was willing to cut it out if by some remote chance it helped. I found a very old post where I talked about my success from cutting dairy but it was really brief and didn’t really show how bad things had gotten. But I do remember that my skin cleared up very fast when I removed dairy – so much so that my older brother commented on my complexion a month or so after I cut out dairy!
https://lisasyarns.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-of-thanksgiving-day-5.html
I’m not helpful at all, but can completely relate to what you are going through and sending you so much compassion and empathy. Like why can’t be have skin issues on our feet or something? Must it be our face??
I only made one recipe this week – picadillo with rice and beans – since I’m once again traveling and figured Phil had enough leftovers/options to get him through my trip. I think we’ll grill when I get back, probalby seared ahi tuna. Oh that reminds me – Asian and Latin cuisines are usually DF friendly. Americans use a lot of dairy in their Mexican food, like cheese and sour cream, but authentic Mexican food/recipes don’t tend to use much dairy (Kae may correct me on this – she’ll know for sure!).
That’s true! They tend to just use much smaller amounts and it’s also usually the fresh crumbly type cheeses like queso fresco. Their real enchiladas are always kind of sad to me only because I actually love the melty cheese in the American style ones! Hahah! They also would never put the shredded cheese (or lettuce, for that matter) on a taco like you see in the U.S.
Thank you so much for the commiseration, Lisa! I am sorry you also had to deal with complexion issues but I am heartened to learn a) that you had success with cutting out dairy and b) that you were able to add it back to your diet eventually. I am definitely going to read the post you linked to!
I’m glad your complexion is a little better at least. It’s so hard to know what will cause a flare up. Giving up dairy sounds grim – hopefully, it will be short-lived.
Here’s hoping, Gigi!
I am pretty sure I would also starve if I had to cut out dairy because I wouldn’t be able to think of anything dairy free that I wanted to eat. Too much braining required.
Dinner this week includes chicken avocado soup with lime and cilantro, the salmon fennel dish that I like assuming I can find fennel, shrimp tacos, and chicken shawarma bowls.
Yum! Your dinner plan sounds fabulous!
Sorry to hear about the flareup and hope it gets better over time. I don’t know how I would approach dairy-free diet…
Dinners this week are pork with potatoes and pickles; chicken parm over noodles, and… No clue, will find something in the freezer I’m sure lol
The freezer is always a good place to turn to!
Oh bother. I’m sorry this is happening. I am with you on the issue of quitting two things at once and then NOT knowing. That bites. I’ve been in the process of IS IT THIS OR THAT, for years, regarding my gut and I was beginning to think I was crazy, thus the horrible meltdown at the hospital when I screwed up my prep. I did cheesey chicken for dinner tonight, sorry – that isn’t helpful right now. Tomorrow I plan to start a crockpot of chicken and potatoes. Will I? Well, I’ve thawed the meat -but cooking 2 nights in a row when there are still less mouthes to feed than what I’m used to is a challenge. Good luck.
I am so glad that you finally have the gut issues figured out and I hope that the treatment improves everything!
I second both Lisa and Suzanne’s comments; I went from making my own yogurt to dairy free during my foray into low FODMAP and it was not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I think that a lot of Asian dishes are pretty dairy free friendly and delicious. I don’t know how you feel about rice noodles, but I made a vermicelli rice noodle bowl for my vegetarian, nut free, seed free, dairy free friends — I marinated tofu in ginger, soy sauce, lemon and garlic and then fried it in the air fryer and put that and some stir fried veggies (also cooked in the marinade) on top of rice noodles. You can add peanuts or furikake on top (and of course meat if you like it!) and it is an easy, quick one bowl meal with no dairy!
I also like the coconut ice cream and yogurt, although they do taste coconutty; cashew or oat milk are pretty good, and you can always make Indian/Thai dishes and use canned coconut milk for a nice “dairy” feel! I am with Suzanne though; non-dairy cheese is not that great.
That vermicelli rice noodle bowl sounds delicious!
I feel like non-dairy would be a less big deal if I knew of a stand in that offered all the things I currently depend on dairy for: low-cal/low-fat protein and calcium. I am really struggling to make up for those things in my diet!
Do you eat tofu and/or beans? That is usually my go-to for protein! I see that you also have a fish dish above, which I think is a great idea. I also saw someone mention egg roll in a bowl and that is one of my favorites too (and you can use any meat or tofu for protein)!
I would find it hard to give up dairy, as I rely on it for high-protein breakfasts (Greek yogurt, chia pudding, etc) and I like my coffee and tea very milky.
I have had coconut milk yogurt that was pretty good, though. North was drinking almond milk instead of milk for years, though they don’t any more.
The protein issue is really what’s perplexing me, I think. I mean, I enjoy yogurt and cottage cheese, but there are other things I could eat; I eat them because they have such a high protein content (and can be low calorie and low fat). I enjoy almond milk, but the kinds I can find in my grocery store only have 1 g of protein per serving, which is SUCH a difference from regular milk. And I was trying to look up high-protein non dairy yogurts, and my grocery regular stores don’t carry the brands I found. I will have to keep looking!
Ugh. Rosacea is so hard. I’ll just say that I’ve been vegan since my 20s, and I still ended up with rosacea. Then I would hear people saying things like “When I went vegan, my rosacea went away!” Grr. BUT, I definitely think it’s worth cutting out dairy to see if that helps- I think it might be the type of thing that has different triggers for different people. There are a lot of good dairy substitutes- oatmilk, almond mil, soy milk (soy milk has the most protein) and non-dairy cheese has gotten SO much better. We like the Violife shreds, and I’ll bet you could make a good quesadilla with them.
Yes, we’re supposed to avoid heat, and like I said the cold water on my face seems to help (?) BUT, I live in Florida and am constantly getting hot and sweaty. After I did my 50k race, where I was out in the sun and heat for 7 and 1/2 hours, my face was fine. Then last week it flared up for no apparent reason. So…. I know there has to be a reason, somewhere, but I can’t seem to find it. From what you’re describing, yours is worse than mine (sorry.) But when mine flares up, it’s VERY noticeable, and it gets itchy and irritated. I’ll definitely let you know if I discover anything tangible that actually helps- but in the meantime, just know that mine definitely has gotten better over time. So at least there’s hope for the future.
Dinners- I give up. I can barely even think about it this week, and next week my son and his roommate will be here, AAAACK! I’m going to need a ton of food for them. I’m going to have to get my ass in gear and do a lot of cooking over the weekend.
This is very comforting, thanks Jenny! (For whatever it’s worth, my acupuncturist also told me to avoid soy. So I think soy milk is also a no go. ARGH.)
For tonight I’m tossing a pound of boneless thighs into the crockpot with a jar of chunky salsa and a packet of low sodium taco seasoning. I serve it on soft tortillas with all the toppings.
Tomorrow I’m making Egg Roll in a Bowl, which is so easy with ground pork and a bag of broccoli slaw (you could use cabbage slaw), and fresh ginger, etc. There are a ton of recipes for it all over the internet. I forget where mine came from, but it’s easy and all in one pan.
Anyway–so sorry about your skin situation. It sounds painful and frustrating.
I keep seeing egg-roll-in-a-bowl recipes on Instagram and it sounds yummy and easy! Not sure why I haven’t given it a try yet.
Your poor skin! I’m sorry you’ve been dealing with that; hopefully, things have settled down now?
When I got my cholesterol numbers, I was told to cool it on the dairy, and honestly, I thought I’d die. I love cheese of all shapes and flavors. I mostly avoid it altogether, but I miss eating cottage cheese with pineapple daily. 😳
Things are improving, which is a relief! We (and by we I mean my skin and I) are back to the state that led me to seek out the dermatologist in the first place, which is a more tolerable level of breakout. No idea if it is the lack of dairy that is helping — and I am not missing the dairy terribly so far. I am just perplexed at how to get adequate protein without it.
I did the no-dairy thing for a bit of time when I was had congestion for 6 months straight. By that time, I was willing to try ANYTHING. I was very happy to find out that it didn’t do anything to help my congestion, lol, because I don’t know if I could have handled being dairy-free. The cheese! Think of the cheese!
I hope you find a good balance that helps your skin issues. Dealing with flare-ups like that is so frustrating. <3
I am so terribly sorry about your skin issues. The hardest part is to nail down what the offender is and eliminate it …. and that can take time and is still often so ambiguous. I understand that you’re willing to try things though. Fingers crossed!
Skin issues suck. Period. End of story. I had hideous acne for a while in my adult life and wound up trying a home red (or was it blue?) light thing. It helped, maybe? But what really helped was consistent use of gentle products over time. I never even considered dropping dairy. Cheese is too essential to life. 😉 I hope you get some answers and soon!