This Week's Cooking Challenge: Low Iodine Diet

 So over the past few months it finally dawned on me that I was Not Feeling Well.  I blew it off, thinking "overwork and stress," the Usual Suspects, but finally the extreme fatigue, achiness, bloating, and feeling cold all the time made me do some research.  My mom had thyroid problems, and my symptoms were consistent with hyperthyroidism, so I went to the doctor and she ran a few tests.  Then she sent me to another doctor, who re-ran the same blood tests and added a thyroid sonogram and nuclear thyroid uptake test to the list.

In preparation for the nuclear thing, I have to be on a low iodine diet for at least a week prior to taking the pill that will make me glow in the dark (at least any bad bits).  I looked at the list of banned foods and thought "challenge accepted."

Faced with "no dairy, no egg yolks, no salt except Kosher, no iodine/iodate conditioned doughs (huh? okay, no bread unless I make it myself), no carrageenan or guar gum, no vitamin supplements, no Red Dye #3 (I'll try to restrain myself), no chocolate except cocoa powder and some dark chocolate, no soy but soy oil is okay . . . well, you get the idea:  a challenge.  I cancelled my lunch dates, got out my shopping list, and planned a workable menu for the week.

First thing I made was my favorite vegan Sweet Potato Almond Butter Muffins (minimalistbaker.com recipe).  I bought Trader Joe's Coconut Creamer for my coffee, since I had to forego my usual decadent dollop of whipping cream.  Breakfast sorted.  On to lunch.  Using my beautiful semi-new Instant Pot, I made a double batch of my mom's lentil soup recipe, which is simple and delicious, just lentils, water, onions, carrots, garlic (duh, of course!), tomato sauce (I used Whole Foods' salt free diced tomatoes), salt and pepper.

Whole Foods, by the way, sells chicken that has not been injected with the usual saline solution (hey, if I'm going to avoid all salt except Kosher, I'm going to be OCD about it), so I bought a whole chicken and a few chicken breasts.  I made beer can chicken with the whole chook, which I enjoyed last night with my vegan daughter's contribution to my diet:  Roasted Cauliflower, Freekeh and Tahini (cookieandkate.com recipe). Yummy!  The chicken breasts will probably be marinated for souvlaki, and I also bought short ribs which I will pop into the slow cooker tomorrow.

It may seem daunting, but it's helpful that I cook most meals anyway, so all I have to do is make a few adjustments to my normal menu. Plus, nowhere on the list did it say "no liquor!"  I'll trade chocolate for a glass of wine any day.  And I have: Côté Mas Rosé from Whole Foods with the chicken last night - c'est parfait!