"The GenoType Diet"

Our pediatrician was reading "The GenoType Diet" by Dr. Peter J.D'Adamo when we took our kids in for a check-up. She mentioned how fascinating the book was, which sparked our interest because we are always looking for some new experiment...will this diet help me feel better? Help me be more alert at my job? Give me more strength/stamina to run after two young kids all day? Cure my food allergies?!

While I can't say it has been the miracle cure we're always searching for, it has been an interesting book and has led to some fun experiments (including Roast Duck). We also had fun learning how to eat artichokes. I just steamed them and served them with melted butter (for my 3 1/2 year old) and pine nut sauce (pine nuts, olive oil, water, vitamin C powder) for my husband and I.

My husband and I enjoyed doing all the little "tests" to discover our genotype categories - measuring our torsos and legs, our index fingers and ring fingers, determining our head shapes and body types. I think I might be either an Explorer or maybe a Gatherer; my husband thinks he's a Hunter (though he doesn't know his blood-type yet).

The nice thing is that several of the recommended foods for all genotypes are "non-typical" foods in the "Standard American Diet." The extensive (and expensive!) list offers quite a few foods my husband is not allergic or sensitive to. For example: buffalo, goat, lamb, duck, and several different seafoods. Also included are several "whole-foods" sweeteners like agave syrup and molasses (Hunter) and rice syrup and honey (Explorer).

I did try cod and lamb, two things I never really liked before. I enjoyed trying something new and it was fun to try some new recipes (an Indian pilau for the lamb), but I can't say I've been radically won over on them. While I'm proud of myself for trying something new, I realized it is really very difficult to change. I think the important thing was that I tried something new, and I'll be willing to try different foods again...gradually. Changes take time and I can't expect myself to instantly fall in love with something I've never liked - simply because I read a new book about it.

"Chocolate" Oatmeal Cookies

It has been almost two months since I've posted. During that time we've read two new diet books, started the process of buying a new condo and preparing to move, and traveled back to Michigan to say a final goodbye to the best cook I'll ever meet...my grandmother.

I'll write about the other topics later, but here is a great new recipe for a whole-foods cookie:

"Chocolate" Oatmeal Cookies
1/2 c. vegetable shortening (Spectrum)
1/4 c. brown rice syrup
1/2 c. honey
1 t. vanilla
1 c. buckwheat flour
1/4 c. carob powder
1/4 t. salt
1/2 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
2 c. old-fashioned rolled oats

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream shortening, brown rice syrup, honey and vanilla with an electric mixer. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until combined into the shortening mixture (will take a little elbow-grease, add a little more brown rice syrup or honey if the dough seems too dry). Drop by heaping teaspoons onto a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake about 10 minutes. Remove from baking sheet after about 2 minutes, being careful because they are more fragile than other cookies; cool on a wire rack.