LACTOSE FREE....is far from EASY! I've been lactose intolerant my whole life. My mom was diligent as I was a child but as I grew up I honestly did not care. "So what if I get sick, at least I got to enjoy it." I started noticing in my teens that milk, ice cream, and large amounts of cheese would bothered me more than normal.  I would try to avoid them or even limit the amounts. This made for some interesting conversations/dates as I would pick off the cheese from my burger, tacos, or nachos. Yes, I know what you're thinking "nachos? you ate nachos?!" Yes I have always had a love for Mexican type foods which is also high in dairy." What can I say I loved foods and truly thought I was invincible. My rule was, if I eat this that means I can't have anything else with dairy. See, I was such a problem solver... I can see my mom's disappointment and the roll of her eyes because we both know what is coming.

As things slowly got worse, a heavenly angel came to me. I soon discovered the miracle drug Lactaid, which would help with much of the discomfort from these foods. This covered me until my early 20's which is when the "cow" went back on our deal.

I thought we had a good thing going, the cow and I. I would continue to eat it sparingly, take a lactaid, and it would leave me alone. Never trust the cow because in my 20's I discovered that not only did I need to avoid the harder dairy products, but all dairy. We had both accepted our life together, "why would you do this to me cow?"

I tried to live in denial for awhile, "I will just be careful and take more lactaid." But NO my body had enough! I became sick with everything I ate. Even the smallest amount in foods would send me running to the restroom where I would wish that death would take me.

After trying several different options, it became apparent that I had to surrender. No more dairy! I needed to became lactose free. My husband was kind enough to help me in this effort and would go out of his way to find lactose free products. I will never forget the day that he discovered the brand Lactaid. You would have thought he had seen a unicorn! He would buy it and sit inches from my face watching me slowly enjoy every single bite...slightly creepy I know, but super sweet because he knew how hard it was for me to give up to the cow.

That is where you all come in. I have spent my whole life dealing with a MAD COW and now that I've admit defeat I'm physically feeling better. I don't have to deal with discomfort or paying the price for going toe to toe with the mad cow. I'm really happy...except I've now had to give up my of my favorite recipes.

I love cooking and have found it difficult to cut out dairy, especially for my husbands sake. Several of the recipes I have found for "lactose free recipes" have not gone over well. I decided that I would start trying different things to help make good food and not bring on the wrath of the mad cow. I'm going to start posting all that I find.

Here's to Mooooving on....
(sorry couldn;t help myself)