Special Diet – No Problem!
This was a month of special diets. Namely these were simple vegetarian, to gluten free, to gluten and dairy free, to vegan, to vegan and gluten free with organic sugar, to no eggs on a plate, to no eggs in anything! And most of the time we had a guest with a special diet having breakfast with guests who were eating a regular diet. But two of our strong points here at Hallauer House B & B are our flexibility and our ability to meet a challenge head on. And also we like to serve our special diet guests the same ‘concept’ type recipe as the regular diet guests so as not to single them out as being different. To do this for example, we will serve regular and special muffins, scones, quick breads, regular and special sweet dish, and regular and special savory dishes.
So below are the SPECIAL DIETS that we plan and serve but we request at least a 24 hour notice in advance.
VEGETARIAN DIET
This is the easiest to prepare and serve at the B & B. It is just a matter of knowing ahead of time so that an entree is prepared without meat. Also meat is not placed on a plate for vegetarians when served. No problem! With advanced notice.
During the last fifteen years this is the diet that has grown the most. In those early yeas finding gluten free flour and other products and recipes was a real challenge but in the last few years the gluten free product isle has grown as well as the number of recipes and cook books available. And using a little experimentation in our kitchen we have accumulated quite a few really good recipes to make for our gluten free guest. I have had good luck taking some of our regular recipes, substituting gluten free flour in place of regular flour and coming up with a pretty good gluten free product.
So with the gluten free only diet regular dairy products can be incorporated into the recipe. When the no dairy is added it is pretty simple to substitute a non dairy product like soy milk, almond milk, and my favorite coconut milk. But that limits the use of other dairy products like cheeses and butter. A simple solution is simply to plan ahead with recipes that do not have these products or to buy dairy free products.
Vegan Fritatta for special diets
The vegan diet consists of no eggs, no dairy, no meat, no cheese. Only whole grains, beans, nuts, fruits and vegetables are consumed. And it was a challenge for us in the beginning. Then we had a vegan family of 7, 2 parents and 5 children, here for 9 days! I think we got our vegan groove that week! As they were the only ones here we did not have to worry about doing a duel breakfast with regular diet guests. and, vegan so we relaxed and developed some really great recipes. The most popular was the vegan pancakes and I know this because the kids goggled them up!
Vegan and Gluten Free Muffins for special diets
VEGAN, GLUTEN FREE, AND ORGANIC SUGAR
I will say this presents the biggest challenge as the all purpose flour and regular granulated sugar which can be used in just vegan cannot be used here in the combo diet. But again we were able to find and tweek enough recipes for our guests who were here for a six night stay. They became star members of our clean plate club as every plate came back to the kitchen with nary a crumb left on it!
This is interesting as there are some people who just do not like to see an egg with that yellow smiley face looking up at them from the plate! And then others cannot eat eggs altogether for health and allergy reasons. So while searching for vegan recipes I discovered an egg substitute which is a flaxseed egg. Simply add 1 T. of ground flaxseed meal to 3 T. of water. Wait 5 minutes and use this a replacement for 1 egg in a recipe. It works!
Special Diets – No Problems
But nothing is a problem here at Hallauer House as we plan our breakfast menus around the diets of our guests. When you make a reservation you are asked about any special diets or food allergies. So be sure to let us know. We will accommodate whichever diet or food avoidance that you or members of your party have.
RECIPE: VEGAN FRITTATA WITH VEGETABLES
7 ounces firm tofu, drained
1 T. soy sauce
1/2 T. corn starch
1/4 tsp. tumeric
1 T. olive oil
1 gold potato finely diced
1/4 cup finely diced red onion
1 scallion, chopped
1/2 of red bell pepper
1 cup lightly packed baby spinach, sliced into thin strips
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. Tuscan seasoning or your choice of herb or herbs
Directions
- Place tofu, soy sauce, cornstarch and tumeric into the bowl of a food processor fitted with an S-blade. Set aside.
- Process until smooth and creamy scrapping down bowl as necessary.
- Heat olive oil over medium heat. Saute onion, potato, peppers together until browned and crispy.
- Add spinach, pepper and seasoning of choice. Saute a minute longer.
- Fold in tofu mixture until evenly mixed and place in lightly oiled round pie plate
- Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for about 35 minutes.
- Serves 2-3.
- This is a recipe that can be varied, doubled, or halved. Be creative!
