St Polly Loses Control

You know, it's all well and good my Mom being on this exclusion diet; except for the fact that I am the 'lucky' recipient of many cast off foods. Normally this wouldn't be a problem; except for the fact that in the last twenty-five years I have developed a somewhat broader range of tastes, plus a tendency to change shape and size rather too often.

As each day passes by I find myself glibly reassuring BJK that such and such a thing is actually quite nice; that she might even prefer the new product to the old one. It is such a shame then; when this all turns out to be a big disappointment for her.

As a child I developed a strong dislike for Cow Juice. Thanks to the School Milk Scheme; the effect of fluctuating temperatures (it was stored outside in the crates) and associated alteration in flavour and subsequent effect upon the body. In winter the creamy white fluid was so cold that I would develope instant neuralgia, or brain freeze come summer time the opposite was true and I would gulp it down; to avoid the un-natural taste of early sourness. Yuck!

With my inherited propensity for over-eating and disproportionate weight gain; I became a member of Weight Watcher's at an early age. This has been an on and off relationship spanning decades. I learned many of my eating habits there; including the addition of those essential diary products.

Skimmed milk soon became my best friend; for a while, at least it was pallatable and provided me with the necessary nutritional support. I've ventured into the realms of Rice Milk and Soya Milk, in an attempt to escape the clutches of Cow Juice; unfortunately the high cost always pushed me back to dairy.

In recent years this situation has changed considerably; due to an increase in demand as people become more aware of the health benefits to be gained from making the change from dairy. Even the major supermarkets are selling their own affordable brands.

Rather than smother the true flavours of the food, the non-dairy complements it. In tea; I like a drop of milk, just to take the edge off the tannic flavouring. With cow juice even a little drop can be too much depending on who's pouring!Nowadays I can honestly say that I prefer my meusli served with rice or soya.


On the occasions LB decides to become a vegetarian, with but a moments notice; I fall back onto good old soya milk for protein and calcium input. We use it in sauces, puddings, custards, etc. He's none the wiser; happily finishing off his vegetarian whatever and I'm happier in the knowledge that his diet is balanced.

Unfortunately; the same cannot be said for my Mom. The flavour of soya milk is too sweet and perfectly disgusting! I wish I had a magic wand to wave and make all the healthy alternatives taste better for her; but I can't! I tried it once and it doesn't work with everything. Carob being a typical example; it looks a bit like chocolate, but has the consistency of a mud pie and a flavour to match.

In the meantime, I think I'll be in for a carton of soya milk and the rest of the Dairy Milk Chocolate stash; at which point Saint Polly will lose all self control and gain yet more unwelcome weight!

I'm off to polish my halo in my studio now...

Polly Peirce
Lover of Chocolate and Purveyor of Fine Hand-made Irish Greeting Cards and Wedding Stationary