Caution: May Contain Nuts

Dear Brother-in-Law’s birthday is this Saturday and he has requested a German Chocolate Cake.  No problem right?  I know a ton of people who make them (who, might I add, are not on Rachael Ray’s Most Wanted list).  They obviously have something figured out!  However, this is not a feat that I have yet attempted.  In fact, successful cake making has eluded me for several years (okay, twenty-five).  I have made the odd decent dark chocolate cake.  You know, where you can eat the edges but the center is still gooey?  I also made a half way decent pound cake one time (“half way” meaning a little on the powdery-dry side, ”decent” meaning the home whipped cream that I put on top).

Tackling the project with enthusiasm, I started the baking process where I always do: www.recipezaar.com.  If it wasn’t for you, my friend, I don’t know where my marriage would be.  I did a quick search for German Chocolate Cakes and found a nice, modest list of recipes.  I was a little surprised at how involved they were, but considering the caloric infamy of German Chocolate Cake, I was not entirely surprised. 

I decided to check with Dear Sister-in-Law to see what the family tradition was in this case.  Does mom have a top secret recipe?  Weee-eeee-eeellll……….. not per se…….. but Duncan Hines does!!!!!!  Apparently, common lay folk like myself can simply purchase a little box of magic for $1 at the shop and turn out a lovely confection creation, courtesy of culinary prowess beyond my comprehension (plus the added factory-processed gift of high fructose corn syrup and “mono-triglycerides” whatever those are).  In fact, “family tradition” stipulates that Duncan Hines provide the icing as well!  Hmmmm… I must have grown up in the wrong family.

It took DSiL a minute to sell me on the idea of “cheating”.  I have never actually used a cake mix before (perhaps this explains my cake debacles of the past, as I do not wear the fair badge “Rachael Ray’s Most Wanted”).  My mom and “Nanny” always made the most amazing cakes from the barest of essentials.  Why shouldn’t I be able to do the same?  After pointing out that the cake-in-the-box and the frosting-in-the-can were the traditional providers of Keller Family birthday happiness (not to mention the fact that these little cheats would save me hours in the kitchen on a Saturday), DSiL had me convinced- Duncan Hines it is!

I headed back to my computer and prepared to kill all the tabs containing my carefully sorted German Chocolate Cake recipes.  As I flicked through the pages, I paused to read some of the baker comments along the side and found myself laughing at the friendly baker whose boyfriend “loved the frosting so much he couldn’t stop eating it, even though he’s really allergic to pecans and literally passed out in the end.  He said it was worth it.”  Or the determined baker who said she “tried over seven recipes on her husband before discovering this amazing, delicious cake.”

In that moment, I realized why I have continued to make cakes, birthday after birthday, determined to learn the tricks and master the art.  Baking cakes is not just about tickling the tongue.  It is an experience in culinary artistry, an opportunity to combine the basic elements of chemistry and physics with the delicate nature of the palate.  Baking gives amateur kitchenistas everywhere a chance to brave the journey and raise ourselves up with the greats.  Most importantly, it’s a blast.  

Always remember….. 

Even if the cake flops, you can still lick out the batter bowl!!

After several years of tenuous experimentation and elimination, we have finally figured out that Timothy is allergic to whey (the waste product produced in manufacturing dairy products).  In 2007 we narrowed the field to dairy… with a lot of exceptions.  After a lengthy detox adventure, we started reintroducing dairy products.  Over time I figured out that Timothy can have certain  dairy foods, but I couldn’t figure out the pattern.  For example, he can eat cheese, thus casein wasn’t an issue.  However, he has a problem with rind cheese (brie, camembert) and most soft cheeses (cream cheese, cottage cheese)… but not all (Boursin and chevre go down just fine).  Where is the pattern there, I wondered?!  He can eat good heavy whipping cream, but not milk, ruling out lactose (additionally, Lactaid never helped him).  Milk, ice cream, and cheap pizza are all sure fire reaction nightmares. 

Eventually, I had to accept that I had to carry a long, detailed list in my head of “can have” and “can’t have”.  It seemed very arbitrary, and it was frustrating to communicate to friends & family members (many of whom thought I was nuts and over protective, I’m sure!)

Then I had my epiphany.  The other day I made homemade cream cheese from raw milk (priceless treasure that it is).  I used the simple, old fashioned fermentation method.  After leaving the milk lightly covered on the counter for four days, I drained it in cheese cloth for 5 hours.  Both the four days and five hours were the outside recommendations I found on most recipes, one of which specifically recommended the long drain time for people with whey intolerance.  I thought, “Whey intolerance… how intriguing.”  Well, the cheese being successfully concocted (with help from my mother as pregnant ladies do NOT interact well with stinky cheese!), we cautiously watched Tim eat a few mouthfuls on crackers.  He loved the taste (kind of sour cream meets cream cheese), and time would tell the rest. 

The next day- no reaction!!!  No headache.  No lethargy.  No problems!!!

This successful reinvention of a product which had always been on the “can’t have” list sent me back to the article on cheesemaking.  I found myself Googling “whey allergy” and the rest is history.  Timothy has ALL the symptoms.  You see, a whey allergy is vastly different than most common allergies, especially other dairy allergies (lactose & casein).  Instead of your digestive systems saying, “Erm, ick, ouch, get it out,” producing bloat, cramps, etc, whey proteins are [improperly] digested, then absorbed as nutrients into the blood stream.  The body’s immune system sees the poorly digested whey proteins as invaders and attacks.  The more the allergy suffering body interacts with the whey protein, the more practiced it becomes and recognizing and attacking.  Thus, the reactions become WORSE instead of better, as your body wants to “nuke” the whey out as quickly as possible.  Side effects of this warfare include headaches (whey proteins and their attackers in the blood stream reaching the brain/neck), nausea (reaction to “invader”), gastro cramps (acid secreted as body is at war), blood shot eyes (warfare in head), lethargy, etc, etc.

“No whey!” has become the cry of our household (and the pun of many as we gleefully inform them that we have finally figured out the root problem of Timothy’s allergies).  Shopping is a bit of a hassle now as EVERY ingredient list must be CAREFULLY considered.  It is amazing where whey lurks.  However, good home cooking from all fresh ingredients (with the exclusion of milk) produces tasty, nutritious, and (most importantly for us) whey free meals.

So a”whey” with our problems.  Here’s to healthy happiness!

For more information about whey allergies:

http://www.godairyfree.org/

http://www.wheyallergic.com/

http://kidshealth.org/teen/food_fitness/nutrition/milk_allergy.html