Easy Allergen-Free Weeknight Dinner Series: Chicken and Gluten-Free Pasta with Parsley Pesto and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Chicken and Gluten-Free Pasta with Parsley Pesto and Sundried Tomatoes

Homemade pesto is as versatile as it is easy to make. This allergen-free recipe uses sunflower seeds in place of the pignola nuts (a.k.a. pine nuts) that is commonly used in pesto. The sunflower seeds add the depth that a bold pesto requires, while garlic, salt and oil bring out the brightness and aromatic flavors of the fresh herbs.

Parsley is often more readily available and is also a great economical choice at about one dollar per bunch. I will say, however, that it is quite peppery when prepared this way, so you’ll need a bit of sweet basil (or dried basil) to offset that peppery bite of the parsley. Or… you could mix in 1-2 of your reconstituted dried tomatoes.

The sundried tomatoes were well worth the extra 10 minutes in the store to find and acquire. They add the acidic tang to round out the flavors of this classic Italian-American dish. My son does not like fresh tomatoes but loves these dried tomatoes.

And while mushrooms are depicted in the image (they *are* pretty aren’t they?), my fiance and I both agreed that a more spring flavored roasted veggie, such as asparagus would go a little better with the parsley pesto. The mushrooms weren’t bad – it’s just that they weren’t the optimal choice. So, instead, roast some asparagus, green beans or broccoli in lieu of the mushrooms. (Once I make this again with asparagus, I’ll update the picture).

Ultimately, this was very flavorful and satisfying. All family members devoured it and leftovers barely made it to the next day.

Chicken and Gluten-Free Pasta with Parsley Pesto and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

1-2 pounds of chicken tenders or breast, cut into cubes or sliced in strips

1 medium yellow or white onion, chopped medium dice

1 Tablespoon fresh cracked pepper, salt and dried Italian Seasoning or Dried Basil

1 16-ounce package of gluten-free pasta

1 8-ounce package of sun-dried tomatoes (either in dry package or in oil, either will work)

4 cups (32 ounces) of parsley, packed (set aside some for garnish)

2 cups (16 ounces) of fresh basil, packed

3 cloves of fresh garlic, minced

1/4 cup of olive oil

1/3 cup of sunflower seeds (check for allergens), or 2 Tablespoons of sunflower seed butter

1 peck of mushrooms, roasted at 350 degrees for 10 minutes (optional)

1 bunch of asparagus, roasted at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes (optional)

2 Tablespoons of Earth Balance or your favorite dairy-free margarine (make sure that it is totally free of whey, casein, and all milk proteins)

2 Tablespoons of Nutritional Yeast

Directions:

1. Wash and chop all of your veggies and herbs.

2. In a large skillet, cook the chicken and onion in some water with and seasoning such as salt, pepper, dried Italian seasoning or dried basil. While the chicken is cooking (put a lid on it to keep warm once finished cooking), reconstitute the dried tomatoes and prepare the pasta according to package directions. Also, roast your mushrooms and/or asparagus if you like.

While all of that is cooking, prepare the parsley pesto:

Add the parsley and basil to the food processor with the oil, garlic and sunflower seeds or sunflower seed butter. Add more oil or water if needed. Process until smooth.

Drain the soaked dried tomatoes and chop. (Note: they are large chop in the picture but we liked them better when we diced them smaller and had more bites with dried tomato flavor.)

Drain pasta, chop chicken and add to the pasta. Stir in the parsley pesto, dried tomatoes, earth balance and nutritional yeast. Taste and add salt as needed.

Serves 6-8

 

Easy Allergen-Free Weeknight Dinner Series: Blackened Chicken with Orange-Jalapeno Coleslaw

blackened chkn with slaw A vibrant slaw made of purple and green cabbage with shredded carrots, spring onions and jalapenos  are tossed in a bright teriyaki-orange vinaigrette and topped with blackened chicken to make for a gorgeous late summer dinner that is just as much fun to eat as it is to see. My son loved it and asked to have some for his lunch.

If you are allergic to sesame: replace the 1/2 cup sesame oil with 1/2 cup fragrant olive oil mixed with a Tablespoon of sunflower seed or pumpkin seed butter. (Sunflower seed butter often has soy in it, ask if anyone has a soy allergy). And then replace the sesame seed garnish with plain shelled and salted sunflower seeds (make sure you check the ingredients label on this because roasted sunflower seeds are often roasted with allergenic ingredients such as wheat and dairy).

If you are allergic to chicken: Replace with another protein of choice, or omit it entirely as this is very good by itself.

Blackened Chicken with Orange-Jalepeno Coleslaw

For the chicken:

1 2-lb package of skinless chicken thighs (or breasts if you prefer)

2 Tablespoons of chili powder

1 Tablespoon of powdered garlic

1 teaspoon of ground coriander, cardamom or allspice (one of those will add a touch of sweetness)

1 teaspoon each of ground mustard, ground ginger, onion powder, salt and pepper

Coat the bottom of a large skillet with vegetable oil of choice (make sure the oil is allergen-free) and heat to medium high heat. Then mix the spices on a plate and coat each piece of chicken with the spices. Place the chicken in the hot oil and let cook for 3-5 minutes until thoroughly seared and blackened. Turn the chicken and sear for a minute or two. Add a little water, cover the skillet and let simmer while you are preparing the slaw. A long simmer will thoroughly cook the chicken and if you cook it long enough, it will break down and become “shreddable.” Just make sure you check on it often and add water if needed.

For the coleslaw:

1/2 head of red cabbage, sliced very thin or shredded in a food processor

1/2 head of green cabbage, sliced very thin or shredded in a food processor

~(feel free to try different varieties of cabbage for fun and/or add other greens)~

4 carrots, coarsely grated

4-6 green (aka “spring”) onions, slivered

4 jalepenoes, slivered (Note: Cut around the seeds. The seeds will burn your fingers and will add significant heat to your slaw. I omit the seeds for this reason but you may add a few if you want the heat. Use gloves if you are not adept at avoiding the seeds.)

1/2 cup raisins (or dried cherries, cranberries, mangoes, or apricots) – omit if you don’t like dried fruit in your salads

For the dressing:

1/2 cup (gluten-free) sesame oil or 1/2 cup olive oil mixed with 1 Tablespoon of sunflower seed or pumpkin seed butter

1/2 cup gluten-free rice vinegar (both seasoned and unseasoned will work, always check for allergens)

1 Tablespoon of gluten-free tamari (This is important to get gluten-free. Most soy sauces are made from wheat. Gluten-free soy sauces are made from soybeans instead of wheat – always be careful with soy sauce and ask if the people you are serving have a soy or gluten/wheat allergy. If you there are allergies to both soy and wheat, omit the soy sauce and substitute with 1 teaspoon of salt mixed with 1/2 teaspoon of dry mustard)

1 Tablespoon of orange zest

1/4 cup of fresh squeezed orange juice

1 teaspoon of finely grated ginger

2 Tablespoons of sugar

2-3 dashes of Sriracha sauce (optional)

For garnish: 1/2 cup of toasted sesame seeds, sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds (check label for allergens)

Chop and wash your veggies and combine in a large bowl.

Using a jar with a lid, shake the teriyaki-orange vinaigrette until well blended and pour over the coleslaw. Toss the coleslaw in the vinaigrette and serve on plates topped with the warm blackened chicken and garnish with the sesame, sunflower or pumpkin seeds.

Serves 6-8

(Make extra chicken if serving more than 6)

I Never Thought We’d Have to Think About Needing Epinephrine

AuviQI’ve been putting off talking about this all week. I have blogged and blogged about all of us needing to develop compassion for kids with life threatening food allergies. I even wrote an article last week about how my son wants to protect his friend with the life threatening peanut allergy. And just this week, we found out that his dairy allergy has the potential to get worse. This is scary. Like going from being the person holding the rope to help others to being the one on the edge of the cliff that needs the rope.

I took my son to the doctor last week because he had developed a new symptom: taking a lot of deep breaths, a lot of yawning, and some unusually bad circles under his eyes (they call them “shiners”) with some fatigue.  A bit of Zyrtec at night seemed to have made him feel better the next day. Maybe it was all due to seasonal allergies. We have a nebulizer at home with a steroid medication that helps him when he has the stridor barking cough that happens with the change of seasons. He never outgrew the stridor/croup, and I got tired of going to the ER every three months, so the pediatrician gave us the nebulizer and it has come in handy when he has had a breathing panic in the middle of the night.

So, wondering if he was developing the beginnings of seasonal asthma, I made an appointment with a well-known allergist here (recommended by other parents of allergic kids). We were able to get in the next day due to a cancellation. I figured we would walk out of there with a prescription with an inhaler. Plus, I did want to talk about ongoing monitoring of his food allergies.  It’s been a year since we moved here. And slightly over a year since he saw the allergist in New Jersey. And I know it’s important to keep going periodically to see if new allergies have developed.

So there we were, talking to the wonderfully understanding and patient allergist who went over seasonal and food allergies with us. Sometimes, when respiratory symptoms arise, it is hard to tell which one is happening: food or environmental. But my son was fine and the deep breathing was not the labored breathing that one sees in the throat area with asthma. So no need for an inhaler but to continue to use the nebulizer should he feel out of breath again.

I let the allergist know, too, that a few days earlier, my son had been food bullied (yes, food bullying is a thing). A kid at his lunch table rubbed an M&M cookie all over his face to see what would happen. My son felt like he’d get in trouble with the teachers if he got up from the table, so he didn’t.

This is disturbing because he is allergic to dairy and does not tolerate wheat without getting sick.

The dairy is a confirmed allergy, which means that it is an immune response, not a digestive one. Though, up to this point, the symptoms have been digestive (vomiting and stomach pains that last for hours). But after the food bullying and then the breathing issues, I was told that symptoms can also turn respiratory.

I wasn’t expecting anything more than digestive.

The doctor was concerned about the food bullying and instructed my son to leave the table should he be threatened again. We also encouraged him to tell the teacher to call me if he/she has a problem with him getting up from the table. The doctor was also concerned to hear that last year, my son’s then-teacher didn’t take his food allergy seriously when, on the one day that I forgot his lunch, she had put cheese and croutons on his salad and said “I bet you’ll be okay with a little bit.” I saw the salad because the school called me and I quick packed his lunch and got it to him. I sat and had lunch with him and ate the salad that he couldn’t eat. I was proud of him for not eating it, but thoroughly disappointed the the teacher did not take him seriously.

I had not reported the teacher last year because I was working so hard and was so exhausted that just managing daily life was enough of a chore.  And I just vowed to never forget my son’s lunch again. It gets tiresome to constantly have to work on this issue. I could have (and should have) made a big deal out of it, but I didn’t.

The doctor provided a document – a food allergy plan  (also called a 504 plan) – that I could use to work with the school principal. This year, I’ve had time to make the phone calls that I’ve needed to make. The principal has been an absolute gem in working with me. Tennessee also just passed a law that allows schools (if they want to take advantage of the new voluntary law) to stock epi-meds that can be used for any student without a prescription, and without liability on the part of the school. This is great because most first time anaphylaxis episodes happen at school where parents can’t control the environment as much as they can at home. Example: I don’t have nacho cheese chips with milk dust all over them here at home, but plenty of kids have them at school and you know how messy kids are. One food bullying incident, perhaps another kid rubbing his nacho cheese dusty hands all over my son’s face, and he has officially ingested milk through his nose. It is completely out of my control.

The good news is that the doctor said that about 50% of kids that have milk allergies will outgrow them.

The bad news is that it could also get worse. And anaphylaxis can and does happen with milk allergy.

The doctor offered to write a prescription for epi-meds for him should it ever actually get worse.  I decided to opt for it. I don’t know any parent that wouldn’t want to have a lifesaving medicine on hand should it ever be needed.

The more I think about it, and imagine the episodes where other parents have had to use epi-meds, I feel immensely lucky that his allergies have never caused him to stop breathing. I feel immensely lucky that I have never had to fear for his life.

Until now.

The fact that my son has an allergy that *could* get worse and that has even the remote potential of causing him to stop breathing scares the living daylights out of me.

I thought his reaction would always be digestive. Not that 8 hours of vomiting is fun. It’s horrible suffering that I do everything I can to prevent, but it’s not at the level of which I need to call 9-1-1 and administer CPR.

And after being so actively involved in the food allergy community as of late, I’ve learned that first time anaphylaxis reactions happen at school and are more likely the older the child gets. The demographic at highest risk for anaphylactic deaths are teens. So, I’m really nervous about my son’s future. And being prepared is going to be no picnic. This means that he is going to have to be visibly different than his friends and wear a medic bracelet and carry his epi-meds on him at all times. It’s going to cost me $30 plus shipping just for the really cool camouflage pouch alone. I don’t really have the funds for it with both me and my fiance being out of job at the moment , but I’m going to try. If that’s what he wants to carry his lifesaving meds, then that’s what he shall get.

As for the meds, I went with the Auvi-Q version rather than the Epi-Pen. It is a speaking device that will walk your child, or you, or your child’s teacher though the delivery of the meds. This is good because the sheer panic and fear and adrenaline that happens in the midst of dealing with a reaction could prevent a person from properly giving the meds. It does a countdown and sounds a beep when finished. No guesswork. It comes with a Trainer that can be used to train the child and any other person that would have to administer it.

Now I have to think about whether or not I should drive my kid to school and pick him up since the bus driver may not be trained in handling anaphylaxis emergencies. What else am I missing?

Now I’m one of those parents that has to think about my child’s life being in danger every day… during the 480 meals (lunches and snacks) where I will not be in his presence to control the environment and watch the children around him like a hawk.

It’s a strange day to be on the Epi-pen side of this scenario. I’ve talked about other kids needing compassion and support. And for us, reality has set in more deeply. A lot of contemplating this week. And a new level of fear to live with. This is kind of scary.

For friends and family that are reading this, it is important that you know about this in case his milk allergy gets worse. If you are a family or friend that has my son in your care, feel free to utilize the Trainer and learn how to give the medicine to him.

And thank you for reading this, for your compassion, and for your support.

The Best Allergen-Free Chocolate Pudding

Chocolate PuddingWhen your guy says “oh my” and gets lost in the first bite,  you know you’ve got a winning recipe. My two neighbors also gave this a big thumbs up… with jokes about licking the bowl.

*Ahem* One of us (who shall remain nameless) might have done such a thing.

Tapioca starch is recommended for this recipe. We tried making this with arrowroot starch but it didn’t turn out so well. Tapioca starch is perfect for this and as an aside, is also a versatile substitute for cornstarch in gravies, and a substitute for eggs in custard-style pies (see the pumpkin pie recipe for an example).

This chocolate pudding is quick and easy to  make and it’s also good enough to eat when it’s still warm. It tastes a lot like that delicious gooey chocolate filling of a chocolate lava cake. YUM!

If you’d like to add an allergen-free whipped cream, I recommend Cybele Pascale’s Whipped Topping from her book The Allergen-Free Baker’s Handbook. If you are not allergic to eggs, you could use marshmallow fluff whipped to a softer consistency with a little water to make a whipped topping. In the meantime, enjoy this delicious chocolate pudding!

P.S. Hint: Freezer Molds! Make chocolate pudding pops out of this, too! 🙂

The Best Allergen-Free Chocolate Pudding

4 cups water (Note: You can replace water with a safe milk-substitute for a slightly creamier consistency. If you do this, please ask whoever you serve it to if the milk-substitute is safe for them. Many people are allergic to rice, almond, and soy milk. We are pretty happy using water, and it’s less expensive that way).

1/2 cup tapioca starch

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup of dairy-free chocolate chips such as Enjoy Life brand (check for other allergens if needed). Add less or omit chocolate chips if you want a more mild chocolate flavor. If you do omit the chocolate chips, add 1/2 cup of palm oil shortening or else the mixture will be very gel-like.

1 teaspoon of vanilla

In a large saucepan, stir 1 cup of the water tapioca flour and cocoa until blended and smooth. This step helps get rid of lumps before you begin cooking.

Set the heat to medium and stir in the remaining 3 cups of water. Then add sugar and salt. Cook and stir constantly until mixture thickens to pudding consistency. Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate chips and vanilla. Keep stirring until chocolate melts.

Chill in refrigerator or pour into popsicle molds for pudding pops later.

Neato: Stylish Cases from Epi-Essentials

 

 

epi essentialsWhat a neat product. I had to share. Here is their website: http://www.epi-essentials.com/The-Collection/The-Accessory-Case/

Easy Allergen-Free Weeknight Dinner Series: Italian Sausage, Peppers and Rice

Sausage and RiceShort and simple. Filling. Tastes good. This recipe utilizes a product that I know is safe for us to eat. A Simply Nature Mild Italian Chicken Sausage from ALDI that is labeled Gluten-Free and Lactose-Free. Lactose-free does not mean Dairy-Free, so I have to be careful with that indication. After careful examination of the ingredients, it appeared totally dairy-free, so I decided to go ahead and prepare this easy one-skillet dish.

The good news: we’ve enjoyed this sausage in several meals now with no problems.

While we did very well with this sausage, always be careful of your food, always check the ingredients label and check with your dietitian or doctor if needed. Here’s what’s in this:

 

Italian Sausage, Peppers and Rice

1 package of allergen-free mild italian sausage

1 onion, sliced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 green bell pepper, sliced

1 14-0z can of diced tomatoes

1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

2-3 dashes of your favorite allergen-free hot sauce (or a dash of cayenne pepper), optional

Salt and pepper to taste

Prepare rice according to package directions. (Preferably cooked in broth for extra flavor).

While rice is cooking, add the sausage, onion, and green bell pepper to large skillet set to med-high heat with a little allergen-safe oil. Saute until sausage is browned and vegetables are tender.

Add the spices, tomatoes (with juice) and minced garlic to the pan and let simmer until flavors have melded and liquid has thickened.

That’s it. Dinner is finished. Here is a picture of the sausage and the ingredients label:

Simply Nature Chicken Sausage

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Simply Nature Chicken Sausage Ingredients

Vegan Peanut-Free Oat-Free No Bake Cookies (Super Quick and Easy!)

No Bakes 2By virtue of the powers that be: Earth Balance, Sunbutter, and Gluten Free Rice Krispies,  I bring you this classic no-bake cookie recipe. Now you can have your childhood back and enjoy this fun and easy-to-make classic treat. It’s so easy and so quick. Just melt, stir and drop onto waxed paper. It truly tastes like those old fashioned peanut butter, oat and butter laced no bakes you used to have.

The reason I substituted the oats with the  gluten-free rice krispie cereal is due to the fact that many people who cannot tolerate gluten, also cannot tolerate oats. As for flavor, I recommend that you go to the trouble of getting the plain gluten-free rice krispie cereal instead of using a sweetened Mom’s Best cocoa krispie cereal (I tried that and it came out too sweet).

If you have a Soy allergy, you will need to use the Soy-Free Earth Balance and find a different seed butter product (like pumpkin seed butter) as Sunbutter is processed in a facility that also processes soy.  Remember that avoiding peanuts and nuts saves lives, so if you can make a switch to a seed butter, you’ll be making the world a better place.

~As with any recipe, always double check your ingredients to make sure everything is safe and nothing has changed. ~

Vegan Peanut-Free Oat-Free No Bakes

2 cups of sugar

1/2 cup of cocoa such as Hershey’s Cocoa Powder

1/2 cup of Earth Balance non-dairy margarine

1/2 cup of rice milk

1/2 cup of sunflower seed butter (or soy-free pumpkin seed butter)

1 teaspoon of gluten-free vanilla extract

3 cups of GLUTEN-FREE rice krispie treat cereal

In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cocoa powder, earth balance margarine and rice milk . On medium high heat, bring to a boil and boil for one full minute.

Remove the pan from heat and stir in the sunflower seed butter and vanilla extract. Make sure the seed butter is fully melted and incorporated into the mixture.

Stir in the rice krispies and coat all of the cereal. As you stir, the mixture will cool down. You may want to wait about 5 minute for additional cooling and thickening.

Then, drop mixture by spoonfuls onto waxed paper. Cookies will set in about 10-15 minutes. Let the cookies fully cool down before transferring to an airtight container. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Makes about 20 small cookies.

Parent upset about school nut ban loses lawsuit.

peanut butter jar

The fact that this story exists demonstrates such a lack of caring.  It’s but one of many examples of what parents of food allergic children have to deal with. It is so sorely disappointing that it takes a court to mandate protection of a child’s life.  Even worse, that adults are capable of this behavior:

“…some parents sent their kids to school with peanut products and appeared in the cafeteria to prevent enforcement [of the nut ban that was put into place to protect students with life-threatening allergies to peanuts and nuts].”

http://www.wsbt.com/health/wsbt-parent-upset-over-school-nut-ban-loses-lawsuit-20130807,0,1672724.story

Easy Allergen-Free Weeknight Dinner Series: Chili Lime Tortilla Soup with Red and Black Beans

Multi-Bean Chili Lime Tortilla Soup with Harissa Olive Oil

One of my favorite things to eat when I was younger was white chicken chili from a pub around the corner from my college. It was loaded with lots of butter, milk and cheese (of course). But I haven’t stopped craving those flavors. With this version, the green chili and lime flavors, along with a bit of the meal from the crumbled tortilla chips or taco shells, add the body and flavor that I’ve been wanting. If I don’t post this now, I’ll forget how I made it. 

The lime juice makes it, so if you can, try to get a lime. If you don’t have a lime, use your favorite vinegar based hot sauce to add the acidic component that this needs to be just right.

 

Chili Lime Tortilla Soup with Red and Black Beans

Serves 2 – Double or triple the recipe for a family

In a medium saucepot, add the following ingredients:

1.5 cups of broth (CHECK FOR ALLERGENS BEFORE USING)

1 (14 oz) can of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 (14 oz) can of dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 (8 oz) can of green chilis

2 taco shells or a handful of tortilla chips or fritos style chips crumbled into the soup (CHECK FOR ALLERGENS BEFORE USING) – this will thicken the soup as it cooks.

1 Tablespoon each of cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder

salt and pepper to taste

Bring to boil, then turn down heat to simmer for about 15 minutes to develop the flavors.

Take soup off of heat . Add 1/4 cup of non-dairy milk and the juice of one lime.  Taste and add salt if needed.

Serve in bowls and give your family more taco shells or tortilla chips for crushing. Enjoy!

I Wasn’t Expecting to Cry Today. Then, This Touching Letter To Allergy Parents…

letter to allergy parents

To Allergy Parents by Rebecca x’s blog: (And Rebecca, thank YOU.)

http://www.peanutfreegourmet.com/2013/08/to-allergy-parents.html

Easy Allergen-Free Weeknight Dinner Series: Savory Beef n’ Quinoa

Savory Beef QuinoaThis warm, filling, savory dish of beef, onions, and fresh string beans is simple, quick and takes advantage of standard pantry items. And so begins this series of easy allergen-free weeknight dinners to help those needing some ideas of what to whip together in a hurry.

Quinoa (pronounced: Keen-wah), is really quite an easy side dish to prepare. The ratio is the same as rice, and so is the cooking technique: 1 cup of quinoa to 2 cups of liquid. Bring to boil, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, or until grains have absorbed the liquid.  Drain any excess liquid (do not overcook or it will be mushy). And there you have it.

The most essential tool needed for quinoa is a fine mesh strainer as you will need to rinse before cooking. The purpose for this is that there is a coating on the quinoa seeds that will taste bitter if not rinsed off.

Savory Beef n’ Quinoa

Prepare quinoa according to package directions using beef, chicken or vegetable broth. Add a little salt if desired. While the quinoa is cooking, in a large deep skillet:

1. Brown 1 pound of ground beef.

2. Add 1 yellow or white onion, diced

3. Add 3 cloves of garlic, minced

4. Add a little water and season with fresh cracked pepper, salt, Italian seasoning, garlic powder and onion powder.

5. Add a generous amount of string beans (fresh or frozen) and stir fry with a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar until beans are crisp tender.

Plate with sliced fresh cherry or grape tomatoes.

That’s it! You may also want to consider adding mushrooms, leeks, green onions or other favorite vegetables that pair well with beef.  I recommend adding a dash or two of gluten-free Worcestershire sauce if you have it. If not, this dish is good on its own.

The Little Lifesaver

2Have you ever seen, before your very eyes, a real life little boy, become a real life little hero? Last night, what I witnessed was something truly amazing. My son looking up at me with those sparkling and inquisitive hazel eyes. His eyebrows raised real high like kids do when they are excited about learning.  He was coloring at the counter while I was washing dishes and he asked if I had remembered to go get a product called Sunbutter, a peanut-butter substitute that is made from sunflower seeds and is safe for those with a peanut and nut allergies. I almost forgot that I bought it. I said “Oh!”, and ran to the grocery bag on the dining room table and retrieved it like I pulled a bunny out of a hat, “I did get it!” He smiled really big and said, “That’s awesome, Mom! Can we try it?” To which I happily replied, “Absolutely!”

You see, my son is really interested in what I’m doing on this blog. He knows that I’m constantly writing, researching and talking about food allergies. He has been wanting to participate and help me come up with recipes.  He has been particularly interested in the Natalie Giorgi story. I didn’t let him watch the news story, but I did tell him, in terms that were honest, what happened to her. It sparked a conversation about his own diligence in food inspection.

He has been a bit scared about it. He has asked if he will die from his food allergies (gluten and dairy). We told him that it is unlikely from the gluten and dairy, but that he really has to be careful about exposure anyway, because – and I had to be honest – the body will react stronger each time. That is how an allergy works. The body sees it as an invasion and it sends in more of its “troops” to fight it with each exposure.

It is fact and important for him to know. It is a conversation that was not fun to have with him but I believe that gentle honesty and a very thorough explanation of strategies that he can use to protect himself eased his anxiety about it.

After answering a lot of questions about Natalie and other food allergies, he mentioned that he has a girl in class that has a peanut allergy and that he really wants to protect her. My darling talkative seven-year old even began lecturing me to make sure I don’t ever put anything in his lunch with peanuts or peanut butter so that she doesn’t get hurt, All I could say was, “Baby, you know who you are talking to, right?” He said, “I know Mom, I just want to make sure.” I smiled at him in pride. He was right. After all, I taught him to double check on adults -even me – and applauded him for doing so.

All of that said,  he was anxious and excited to try the Sunbutter.  As I toasted the gluten-free bread, and carefully swiped a very thin layer (with a generous helping of grape jelly to help mask any weird flavor there might be), I was worried that he was going to hate it. I really wanted this to work out.

Lo and behold, we were pleasantly surprised and impressed that there was virtually no difference in flavor from real peanut butter. My son wasn’t just excited about the flavor, he was excited that he found something that protects his friend. I am inspired by my son’s curiosity and compassion. I’m also wondering how scary it must be for him, and other kids, to hear the story of Natalie Giorgi. She was a girl, diligent in her own care, trying to live her life like any other kid. One bite of of a rice krispie treat in the dark at a camp potluck event (not knowing the cook had put peanut butter on the bottom of these treats), three EpiPen treatments,  and less than an hour later, she was dead.

This story has struck a nerve in our household as much as the Sandy Hook Elementary event did. For Natalie and her parents, there was no room for error. None. And the world has done nothing to help them avoid that error. Peanuts have not been banned. Schools still allow peanuts on the property. If you think about it, peanuts are everywhere and in thousands of things. And despite these news stories, people will still do what that cook did.

They say  that charity begins at home. Do we really have to have peanuts and peanut butter in our life? What if something I make kills somebody’s kid? I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to carry the knowledge that my cooking/baking killed someone. What if we could all honor Natalie and remove peanuts and peanut butter? This is America. We can be a country of people that can make progress. We can also be a country of people who live in blissful ignorance and throw tantrums when we have to be inconvenienced by others’ needs.  What kind of reputation do we want? How inconvenient would it be to use Sunbutter instead of peanut butter? Or just forgo the culinary need for the peanut? To the parents of the peanut and treenut allergic children, this small inconvenience would hold the same value as jumping into a whitewater river to save their child. Alternatively, serving the allergen would be the equivalent of pushing them into it, just to see what happens. Which would you rather do?

My son’s request for me to make a safe sandwich to protect his friend’s life demonstrates so much compassion and thoughtfulness to the value of life of others. It means he would rather save her life than harm her. And that makes me proud.

Would You Like Green Eggs and Ham? Or Eggless Please, and Thank You, Ma’am?

green eggs and ham 2“Oh no, I won’t have those!” said the little boy at last night’s table.

And I replied, “Resist these eggs? You won’t be able!”

Okay, I didn’t really say that. And so the story of last night’s dinner really went like this:

My son thought it was really nifty and different to have green eggs and ham for dinner, just like in the famous Dr. Seuss story – except these are not fried eggs and the ham isn’t green. But the idea was a brilliant froggy green dish. I suppose you could do all kinds of themes with this. Forest grass with broccoli trees and the like. I’m sure I’m not the first person to come up with this but, regardless, it’s still quite unusual and fun. The eggs, greened up with a puree of spinach, herbs, onion and garlic, was perfect for a natural effect – and flavor. All in all: a big hit!

Follow it up with a read of the story using your best silly voices. Aren’t food and stories fun?

Green Eggs and Ham….. and Cheesy Rice

Note: This CAN be made for the egg allergenic. If there are no soy allergies, use silken tofu in place of the eggs. If you need to avoid soy and eggs, follow the recipe for quiche on the Ener-G egg replacer product website http://www.ener-g.com/recipes/node/435 and mix in the spinach/herb mixture to make it green.

Start cooking your rice:

In a large saucepot, add 4 cups of allergen-free chicken or vegan broth

When it boils, add 2 cups of dry white long grain rice, cover and simmer on low for 15 minutes.

When finished, stir in 1/2 cup of Earth Balance non-dairy margarine and 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast and a little salt for flavor.

During the cooking of rice, cook your slices of ham until they are browned the way you like.

In a small food processor, puree 2 cups of baby spinach and 1/4 cup of basil (or mixture of your favorite fresh herbs).

Add 1/4 of a yellow or white onion and 2 cloves of garlic.

Add 1 Tablespoon of dried Italian seasoning.

Process all of it together with a little olive oil and mix into your eggs or egg substitute mixture. Make your eggs as you please (making sure you use an oil that is free of allergens).

Serve all together and Enjoy!

Fresh Basil-Mint-Rosemary Bruschetta

Fresh Basil-Mint BruschettaThis collection of ripe sweet tomatoes and fresh herbs were lovingly shared with us by one of the dearest couples we know. I wanted to honor their friendship by creating a recipe that incorporates everything that they are always giving us from their garden, as well as their constant love and care.

Bruschetta is a dish I love to make with gifts from the garden as it always reminds me of bonding with those close to me. A very close Italian friend taught me that bruschetta is not just a nosh, but an experience. A few years ago, my son and I visited her in her hometown in Pennsylvania and she showed me how to make it the way she does and to have it anytime you want it (not just when presented with it at a restaurant).

She taught me bang it up a little, to use the wooden spoon to press the tomatoes while adding salt and herbs to draw out their juices.  When the bruschetta was finished, she told me that it’s best when it’s in a big bowl to share, accompanied by a large loaf to of bread. She clearly loved it and ate it at least once a week or more. She had such a big smile and couldn’t wait to share it with me. We sat down on the couch and we broke bread together, hovering our faces over our napkins on the coffee table. We laughed, scooped up luscious tomatoes, and dunking our uneven portions of bread into the big bowl of salty, herby tomato juice. We ate and bonded like sisters. That’s how I remember bruschetta and that’s how I also feel about our friends that just gave us these beautiful tomatoes and herbs from their garden.

Last night, to take the bonding of bruschetta even further, my son and I worked on it together. He had so  much fun stirring and cracking sea salt and adding olive oil. He would smell the fresh herbs and we would relish in their aroma. We really had a great time together. After I tucked him in bed, my fiance and I shared the rest of it while watching our favorite show. So fun!

Every time I make this simple dish, it ends up being an experience in friendship, love and bonding. And the list of moments over bruschetta keep growing.

So, a heartfelt thanks to “K2”. Here is a recipe dedicated to you, my dears! 🙂

Fresh Basil-Mint-Rosemary Bruschetta

To be made free-form, with no exact measurements, adjust exactly to your liking.

In a bowl full of tomatoes of any sort, (which have been cut up into bite-sized pieces) add:

1. A generous amount of fresh basil, cut into small ribbons

2. Some fresh mint (about half of the amount of basil you added), cut into small ribbons

3. And just a little bit of fresh rosemary, minced (taste and add more if you like. Careful, rosemary is strong)

4. Then add olive oil, salt, pepper and fresh lemon juice (about 1-2 Tablespoons)

5. Stir and crush. Add little water if you want more juices for dunking.

Serve with your favorite gluten-free bread. Toasted or not toasted. Enjoy!

Vegan Soy-Free Marshmallow Recipe

Credit for this goes to inhabitots.com So glad to have found this recipe and wanted to share it with you.

I needed to find this because I’ve got my first Nashville cake request (very exciting :-D) and my client wants the cakes to be vegan. Sticking with my mission as a baker that avoids all of the 8-common allergens – while making sure it is also vegan –  is a challenge I’m a bit excited about. The design I suggested calls for marshmallows and she loves it. Marshmallows are generally allergen-free but the gelatin in them makes them not vegan, as gelatin is sourced from animals.

The first thing I did was look at  the available manufactured vegan marshmallows. Unfortunately, the vegan marshmallows I can buy where available have soy protein isolate, which is of the 8-common allergens I want to avoid in all of my baking. Further cyber search led me to vegan marshmallow recipes that also call for soy. Finally, after some more specific search requests, I found this. I am going to try it. Let me know if you also try it, and what are your results. Enjoy!

Vegan Soy-Free Marshmallow Recipe

What If The Next Great Pandemic Comes From Within?

Milk or Bleach? To his body, there isn't a difference.
Milk or Bleach? To his body, there isn’t a difference.

Milk or Bleach? To his body, there isn’t a difference. We need a fundamental shift in public attitude to protect our kids and find a cure for food allergies.

As of this writing, August 2013, the consensus is that an average of 2 kids per each classroom in the nation suffers one or multiple food allergies (See: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db10.htm) It is also considered to be a genetic inheritance. Also consider that when something is “on the rise,” it is because we have become better at diagnosing it. Years ago, someone might have said “milk doesn’t sit well with me” and they’d just avoid it. Today, people say “I have a confirmed milk allergy and must avoid it.” So, part of the increasing numbers is due to a more frequent diagnosis.

HOWEVER, what is new, and increasing, is the severity and toxicity of food allergy reactions. Not long ago, it was unheard of to hear of someone dying from ingesting commonly safe food. In the case of my own family history, my Dad had a hard time digesting something, although he doesn’t really know what it was. He said he felt nauseated every day from about age 5 to age 9 and then outgrew it. We will never know what caused his nausea and occasional vomiting, though I’m told he drank milk in abundance. It was also unpasteurized raw milk from the family farm. My maternal Aunt is also mildly lactose intolerant. I ended up with a similar bout of nausea as a kid as my Dad did, but it was off and on. At age 21, my morning cereal was causing me to have heartburn so bad that I could not function. As I told my doctor, “if there were such a thing as digesting razor blades, this would be what it feels like.” So, I was diagnosed with lactose intolerance but still can digest yogurt and cheese. My child had formula and I put him on regular milk as a toddler and he was fine with the exception of severe eczema that I just could not control. His pediatrician told me he would outgrow it, and he did, about the time he started complaining of belly aches at about age 5. It took a while to figure out that he had become allergic to dairy, as well as developing a severe gluten intolerance. He absolutely cannot have a drop of anything dairy or gluten without projectile vomiting for 8 hours straight and suffering severe intestinal damage that takes months to repair.

How did this get to be so severe? I let him play in dirt. I wasn’t super-sanitary. How did this happen?

I am not a scientist, and I only know what the average person knows about genetics, but now I want to learn everything there is to know about it. So much so, that I want to become a dietitian and then go to medical school with a focus on food allergy research. I need to know so much more. I wonder if the food allergy gene is going to be dominant like the brown eyes gene. I wonder if there is a gene therapy that could cure this. I wonder if it is true that food allergies are more prevalent in colder metro areas, and if so, why?

What is clear to me is the fact that we evolve and that we pass things down. So, right now, 1 in 13 children have a food allergy. What does that mean for the next generation? We can only speculate as to what will happen.

What if the children now end up having children with allergies that increase the list from “the 8 common allergens” to “20 common allergens” that cause a severe reaction? And of the 8 common allergens (milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, wheat, fish and shellfish)  that are harsh/severe in this generation, what of those will become the next life-threateningly sensitive allergen like the peanut allergen is today? Will my grandchildren die if they accidentally ingest milk powder in something that an adult thought “a little will be okay”?

Did you know that there is such a thing as being allergic to water? It’s true. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aquagenic_pruritus

Will we die off way before the supernova because humans become increasingly allergic to the very substance that their body is composed of? Does it sound far-fetched? Maybe, but I’m sure that dying from ingesting peanuts also sounded far-fetched to our great-grandparents.

We can’t deny that it is getting worse. We need a cure now like we needed one for polio.

As for the medical research, there is still a long way to go. So far, they have only been partially successful with exposure therapy and it doesn’t always work. And the children right now are the guinea pigs. As I write this, there are children sitting on doctors’ office beds getting drops of their allergen and waiting to react so that scientists can learn from them. Those children are BRAVE! They really ARE a legacy for the future and don’t even know it.

Tell an adult to sit on a doctors’ office bed and take a few drops of Ipecac each day to try to build a tolerance or immunity to it. I know that, personally, I’d be seriously loathe to do it. I don’t like feeling bad on purpose so that someone can use me as research.

Any advances we make in food allergies now are because of these kids. I like to call them little soldiers, courageously being walked into a medical research office by the hand of their parent, taking proverbial food bullets to help save the next generation. Amazing.

In my opinion, using a child as a test subject is already a serious ethical and moral issue. And if food allergies continue to become more and more severe in the generations to come, it will be criminal to test children.  Give the child a drop of milk and have an epi-pen ready? What if the epi-pen doesn’t work and he/she dies? Just last week, if you haven’t already seen the news article, died last week after three epi-pen doses. See: http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/31/health/california-peanut-allergy-death/index.html?iref=allsearch I am so sad for her parents and cannot imagine the grief they are suffering. My heart goes out to them. I can only hope her life can be honored with a public attitude that aims to take the issue of food allergies more seriously than they do now.

Everyone on this planet needs to start taking this more seriously, not just the ones who suffer. This is why we get upset when previous generations dismiss a food allergy as paranoia culture of my generation. We need to help them understand that we are not trying to be a pain, we are protecting lives. Yes, previous generations outgrew their food intolerances, and yes, those of us in the X Generation outgrew some of it too, but not easily. But now our children are dealing with a level of it for which the world isn’t prepared.

The super bug is something we all worry about, and rightly so, but the food allergy pandemic – the kind that kills, the kind that no epi-pen treatment will cure – could become a reality.

The best way to address this issue right now has to start with a change in public attitude. Everyone needs to know about the new severity and toxicity of food allergies, not just the people who are dealing with it. Teachers, care providers, family and friends all need to know how and why this can’t be taken lightly anymore. Our culture needs to stop dismissing people with food allergies. Even doctors need to start suspecting food allergies more in their diagnostic process when a patient isn’t responding to standard therapies. There has to be an overall acceptance that this is a real problem.

Beyond a fundamental change in public attitude, friends and family can read more information so that they can enter into conversations about food allergies with intelligence instead of an arsenal of myths about it. A great place to go for this information an organization called FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) at http://www.foodallergy.org. They have articles and webinars that even address the issues of food allergy bullying, a thing that kids do when they sneak an allergen into their allergic classmate’s meal to see what will happen.

I am looking forward to a time when understanding and compassion become more common than skepticism and dismissive attitudes. It is among the most important steps right now to keeping our kids safe.

The good news is that it’s finally being taken seriously by our lawmakers. Yesterday, the FDA mandated that products will have to be tested as being no more than 20 ppm to be claimed as gluten-free. This means that an establishment won’t be able to say a product is gluten-free without being diligent about cross-contamination. More work needs to be done, but it’s good to see that a more helpful and compassionate attitude is going to be required.  http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/08/02/fda-gluten-free-labeling-rules/2610841/

Tasty Macaroni and Cheese for the Dairy-Free Crowd (with Variations on a Theme)

Image

 

I’m overdue in putting this up on my wordpress page. So, here it is! A common weeknight staple in our house, this has a mild cheese flavor, like American cheese, and as most veteran dairy-free cooks know, the secret ingredient is Nutritional Yeast. You could add some Daiya cheese substitute to this also, but Daiya also uses nutritional yeast for their cheese flavor, plus pea protein and binders. So, to save my food budget, I just stick with the nutritional yeast and use a combination of a few ingredients in the recipe below that should be accessible to most, if not all, dairy-free cooks.

A little word about the credibility of this recipe (as I always appreciate it when others tell me that they actually make their recipe and that other people like it):

My son remembers having Mac n’ Cheese for most of his pre-school time. It wasn’t until he was 5 years old that his body started completely rejecting gluten/wheat and also dairy. He came up positive for dairy allergy at the doctor’s office with a deduction of celiac with regard to the wheat/gluten. I was vexed by living without diary. We lived in NJ where Italian food is prevalent. We usually had bread and pasta with cheese almost every night. Parmesan cheese became a flavoring of choice for a lot of my dishes. I made ricotta stuffed shells at least once a week. And aside from the Italian food, we loved grilled cheese and mac n’ cheese…. and rice n’ cheese. Oh, how we loved our cheese.

Trying to find ways to have “cheesy” things again is quite a challenge. After all, I’m still working on the non-dairy cheesecake recipe. In the meantime, this recipe is a big winner at home. My son, who recalls the real thing, really loves this. My fiance thinks its great and especially loves it when I add a little bit of meat sauce to it to make it a cheesy mac n’ beef. It’s decadent and satisfies our cravings for a hearty meal.

Here’s how to make it:

Cook a 16-oz package of your favorite gluten-free pasta, be careful to not overcook (I usually set the timer for two minutes less than the minimum recommended time as it will still cook a little on the stove while you are adding ingredients).

Drain the pasta and put back in the pot and turn the heat down to medium-low.

Add:

1 cup of your favorite allergen-free chicken broth

1/2 cup of Earth Balance dairy-free margarine (or 1/4 cup of light olive oil)

1/4 to 1/3 cup of Nutritional Yeast depending on how much cheese flavor you want

1 teaspoon of onion powder

1/2 teaspoon of dry mustard

salt to taste (very necessary for cheese flavor. Remember, the cheese making process involves salt)

pepper to taste (optional)

 

Stir and serve!

And, if you want to make it like a Hamburger Helper, or a full one-pot meal, here are some variations on the Mac n’ Cheese theme:

Sausage.

Meat sauce.

Chili meat or beans.

Baby spinach and sauteed onions and mushrooms.

Cubed cooked chicken and diced tomatoes with Italian seasoning.

Tuna, peas and hot sauce such as Louisiana Hot Sauce or a milder Cholula (I’ve always loved this combination).

My fiance just suggested using gluten-free beer instead of chicken broth to make the sauce. Hmm. Interesting idea. I might have to try that.

I have a friend that just makes the sauce (without the pasta) and uses it for nachos.

Do you have any more ideas?

 

 

Safe Treats Buffet. And The Kids Like Them, Too!

With Coriander Honey Roasted Chickpeas in the center, our dairy and gluten sensitive household can eat all the treats shown. I used an espresso cup to display the dum dums. Here are the ingredients for the candies and gum:

And my apologizes that this post won’t apply to the corn allergic. I will research corn-free candy soon. In the meantime, these are dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, mostly soy-free (double check), peanut-free and nut-free.

Treats

Rock Candy: 

Sugar, water, flavor via extract or oil.

If you are sensitive to flavor extracts or oil, please check the full ingredients from the store where you purchased the rock candy.

Dumdum Lollipops:

Ingredients (from their website):
Sugar, Corn Syrup, Citric Acid, Malic Acid, Salt, Artificial Flavor, Color Added (Includes Red 40, Yellow 6, Yellow 5, Blue 1). Store in a cool dry place. This product does not contain peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, wheat, or gluten. It has been manufactured on dedicated equipment. There is a trace amount of soy oil in the lubricant that we use in our cooking kettles. This soy oil has been refined, bleached, and deodorized and all of the proteins have been removed. www.SpanglerCandy.com

Starburst Candy: (not for people with corn allergies) 

Ingredients (from their website):

INGREDIENTS:CORN SYRUP, SUGAR, APPLE JUICE FROM CONCENTRATE, GELATIN, FOOD STARCH-MODIFIED, CITRIC ACID, LESS THAN 1.5% – PECTIN, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, COLORING (RED 40, YELLOW 5). GLUTEN-FREE.

http://www.wrigley.com/global/brands/starburst.aspx

Double Bubble Gum: 

Ingredients in Dubble Bubble gum include dextrose, corn syrup, gum base, tapioca dextrin, titanium dioxide, confectioners glaze, carnauba wax, cornstarch, artificial flavors and colors. Based on the two ingredients in the top positions on the nutrition label, sugar makes up the majority of this product.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/278081-nutritional-information-for-dubble-bubble-gum/#ixzz2aYDzKO4R

The Popcorn is air popped and the Candied Honey-Coriander Roasted Chickpeas was adapted from a recipe I found here: http://www.getoffyourtushandcook.com/2013/06/roasted-cinnamon-sugar-chickpeas.html

I added coriander and used honey instead of agave nectar. I found that the chickpeas roasted unevenly, so I would recommend moving them around often and not taking them out until they are almost burnt. The lighter ones weren’t as crunchy.

The Easy No-Bake Allergen-Free Cheesecake that You’ve Been Looking For. Almost Perfect. Accepting Challenges.

Foodie Challengers: Can you bring this allergen-free cheesecake to perfection? I developed this today but the filling needs refinement. It needs a creamier texture and stronger “real cheesecake” flavor. For some reason, the flavor weakened significantly during the chill and set process. It tastes like a mild vanilla jello. It’s good on it’s own (maybe for flan?), but otherwise, the crust overpowers it.

As for the crust, it is absolutely perfect and should remain unchanged. It has a really great graham cracker flavor and texture. When I ate a slice of this, the combination of the crust with the strawberries made me feel like I was having a cheesecake experience. It is the closest thing to cheesecake that I’ve had in years.

The filling really needs the most help, it needs a richer texture and deeper flavor. Ready to take on the challenge? Here are the requirements of the challenge:

1. it must use products that you can get from a store (not special ordered online)

2. it must be no-bake. And it must be free of dairy, eggs, soy, corn, peanuts and tree nuts.

So, should a solid fat be added such as earth balance or organic non-hydrogenated palm oil shortening? What about more nutritional yeast for the distinct cheesy flavor? Would a homemade condensed unsweetened milk help? Pureed bananas? Corn-starch-free melted marshmallows? Maybe?  What are your thoughts?

Anyway, if you like a milder, lighter, flan-style filling, you might want to stick with this recipe as is. It’s not bad at all. I had two slices of it and feel happy. But it could be better. And I look forward to hearing what you do with this.

Here’s the recipe:
No-Bake Crust

Coat the bottom of a spring form or cake pan with wax paper or a little oil.

In a food processor, process gluten-free chocolate rice crispy cereal until you have 3 cups of very fine crumbs. The finer, the better.

Then add crumbs to a bowl along with 1/2 cup of maple syrup. Mix until crumbs are all coated and it sticks together. Then press into the bottom of the pan. Cover and refrigerate.

The Cheesecake Filling

Boil 1/2 cup of water.

In a bowl, add 2 envelopes of non-flavored gelatin. Stir the boiling water into the gelatin and stir until dissolved.

Then add 1/2 cup sugar and stir until dissolved.

Add 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast, 1 tsp vanilla, the juice of 1/4 of a lemon and stir.

Then add a pinch of salt and 1 15 oz. can of full fat coconut milk.

Pour into the prepared crust, cover and put in refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours.

That’s it! What do you think would make the filling richer and creamier?

7 Easy Tips for Entertaining Guests with Food Allergies

cupcake wine1. Don’t Stress Out (aka: Don’t Feel Bad About Accepting Their Offer to Bring Something).

This is the most important thing to your guest with food allergies. Nothing makes them feel worse than causing unnecessary stress to the host. They are happy to be invited and spend time with you. If they offer to bring something, don’t feel bad about accepting that offer.

Also, realize that they will not question their own dish. Your guests might prefer having control and avoiding the awkward feeling of having to ask you what ingredients you have used to make something and if you took steps to avoid cross contamination. (And no joke, they really hate needing to ask). They know how easy it is to miss a hidden wheat ingredient in a broth, or a milk ingredient in hot dogs.  Or, how easy it is to forget old habits where one might accidently prepare gluten-free toast on a pan that still has wheat bread crumbs on it or dip a knife back into the butter that had bread crumbs in it.

So, if you don’t want to think about it, or worry about your menu items or cooking methods, know that your allergenic guest will appreciate you being flexible and allowing them to keep control to avoid a reaction.

2. If You Make an Allergen-Free Recipe, Save the Food Labels for Them.

Your guest will deeply appreciate the extra work you have done to include them in the food part of the celebration.  They may also worry that you may have missed something (see point 1). Do not be offended by this. Your guest has learned a lot about ingredients and what contains hidden allergenic ingredients – the hard and painful way. They have made the mistake of consuming it, suffering the reaction, and doing the detective work to figure out what happened.

Your guest knows that you don’t live like they do. Therefore, they don’t expect you to know that barley malt extract in a wheat-free sauce still has gluten; or that soy sauce is made from wheat; or that those hot dogs have casein milk proteins; or that soy cheese is still made with dairy (to name a few). So, be prepared to tell them how you made it. Not only will they appreciate that you have taken their allergy seriously, they will feel deeply cared for if you set aside the ingredients labels for them to evaluate.

Remember that it’s for their peace of mind. They trust you. They just don’t trust food manufacturers and the ingredients they use to make something that *should* be only what it says it is. Again, they learned the hard way that something wasn’t safe when they thought it was. It’s nothing against you.

3. Plan Ahead, Stick to the Basics and Forgo Buying Special Food Items  

Unless you enjoy learning about food allergies and want to spend an extra hour in the store reading ingredient labels, go take a look in your pantry for things you already have and that are already allergen-free such as beans, rice, potatoes and tuna. Also, look in your freezer for meats and your refrigerator and garden for fresh veggies and herbs. Proteins and starches are the most satisfying menu items at a party. You can easily make and serve deviled eggs (boil eggs, mix the yolks with a little mustard and sweet relish, scoop into the whites and that’s it!).

Here are some more quick ideas:

  • Cook some rice and turn into a beautiful rice salad with fresh minced veggies, fresh herbs, and homemade citrus vinaigrette.
  • Make some tuna salad with a vinaigrette dressing instead of a mayo dressing.
  • Chicken tenders can be coated with oil, dusted with salt, pepper, sage, garlic powder, onion powder and dry mustard, cook in the broiler until done and put in the fridge to get cold. Put them on skewers on a pretty platter with honey mustard and sesame dipping sauces.
  • Roll up slices of Hormel All-Natural Lunchmeat Ham or Turkey and stick a toothpick and an olive in each roll.
  • Cut up some potatoes, and toss them in olive oil, rosemary, salt and pepper and bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Serve warm or turn into a roasted potato salad made with red wine vinaigrette and fresh herbs.
  • You could also roast and season fresh broccoli, mushrooms, eggplant, carrots or red peppers.
  • Offer plain tortilla chips and plain potato chips with salsa and hummus which are usually allergen-friendly.
  • Search the plethora of allergen-free recipes online, add “easy” and “simple” to your search. Also try “Paleo”, “Vegan” and “Raw” as your search terms.

You’ll be surprised that preparing for them can be an easy, stress-free experience.

4. Make a Simple Fruit Dessert Instead of Baking.

When you are not used to allergen-free baking, you will find that it can be a complicated, time consuming and expensive endeavor. While it may be fun to learn and try it, you will invariably have many other tasks on your to do list when preparing for a party. Almost all from-scratch allergy-free baking projects require a learning curve, a few special kinds of flours, leavening agents and binding ingredients that can’t be found at your regular food market.

I’m a bit hesitant to suggest a baking mix for brownies or cookies, but I will go ahead and suggest it, provided you are careful to know if your guest also needs to avoid dairy or eggs or nuts as many baking mixes don’t avoid multiple food allergens. So, if your guest is also allergic to eggs, you will have to figure out the best way to substitute for the eggs following instructions on the mix. My favorite mixes are from Bob’s Red Mill as they are good at helping the baker avoid multiple allergies.

That said, baking, in general, adds a bit of time and stress to your entertaining endeavor. And I’d hate to see you go to all that trouble and find out that your guest still can’t have it because you didn’t know that oats or certain kinds of starches are hard for some celiacs to digest.

My best advice would be to come up with a creative fruit dessert such as:

  • Sorbet or Smoothies made into popsicles
  • Poached pears in a ginger simple syrup
  • Cinnamon baked apples
  • Grilled pineapple slices with cracked-pepper honey
  • Grilled plums with balsamic reduction
  • Strawberries dipped in melted non-dairy chocolate chips such as the Enjoy Life brand.
  • Candy using melted non-diary chocolate chips, dried cherries and sunflower seeds, dropped by spoonfuls onto wax paper which will set when cooled.
  • Raw food websites are also a great place to find easy and creative fruit based desserts.
  • Popcorn balls (if no corn allergy) are great for any party, not just Halloween.
  • Gluten free rice krispie treats using Kellogg’s gluten-free rice krispies, regular marshmallows (if no corn allergy) and Earth Balance dairy-free butter.
  • Cracker Jacks are a great party fun food if no one has a peanut allergy.
  • Swedish Fish, Starburst, Skittles and Smarties are gluten-free and diary-free. (as of this writing, I only know that Smarties are vegan, so check candies for other offending allergies if needed).
  • Homemade vanilla or chocolate pudding made with arrowroot starch and topped with fresh fruit.

Those are just a few ideas, but whatever you do, keep it simple and you’ll save lots of time, money and energy!

5. If You are Going to Prepare Food , Be Very Mindful of Cross-Contamination.  

It would be great if no one had to worry about this but it happens every day that a person with allergies gets sick or is hospitalized due to cross contamination. It might have happened because their safe food was cooked on a pan that had allergens on it, or the cook’s hands weren’t washed after working with wheat flour. There are many ways that cross-contamination can happen. When in doubt, use another pan or get a clean knife or buy another jar of jam that hasn’t been used to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

I know you don’t want extra dirty dishes, or more jam than you need, but what would you rather have, an extra knife to wash or a really sick guest? If extra diligence is needed, you may want to go the extra mile and inform the other guests to avoid bringing peanut butter cookies or anything with tree nuts if your guest is prone to airborne nut proteins threatening their life.

6. Don’t Focus on Their Allergies if They Don’t Want to Talk About it.

This is one you’ll have to feel out.Your allergenic guest thinks about their food allergies almost all day, every day. They need to talk about and think about something else. They want to enjoy your company, listen to your stories, laugh with you and have fun. Some allergy sufferers appreciate the opportunity to educate others on food allergies, especially when they feel heard and not judged as being too careful about it. Being dismissed and treated as if they are “too protective” is a sore spot since they encounter that attitude a lot. If it seems that they don’t want to talk about it, move on to another subject.

Kids who are food allergic can be even more sensitive and don’t want to hear the adults talk about them. Kids worry that their friends will make fun of them (and some do). So, if the kids are within earshot, and you are going to bond about parenting, stick to subjects that apply to all of the kids such as their sports or piano lessons and the challenges of limiting TV and Nintendos.

7. Enjoy the New Entertaining Experience, and Celebrate Life

We live in a time where food allergies can kill the whole person in an instant via anaphylactic shock or via a destruction of intestines over time. People with food allergies may have a life expectancy much shorter than everyone else’s.  So, as the saying goes “Live and Let Live.”

Their allergy might be inconvenient, but it won’t hurt you to help them avoid it. But if they don’t avoid it, it will hurt them. Be patient, understanding, accommodating and celebrate the joy of who they are outside of the food allergy. There are worse things in life than food allergies but do treat it like a digestive disability, because it is. They may look good on the outside but they hurt on the inside.  And I dare say, it’s even a social disability because of the lack of ability to participate in so many social food events. Continue to be understanding.

And from the bottom of my heart, thank you for reading, sharing, helping and supporting organizations that research cures for food allergies. Wonderful people like you are the ones that make the world a better place to live.

Easy Chocolate “Doughnut” Cake

Simple Chocolate Cake with Icing

But with a much more lively milk chocolate taste. This recipe is adapted from a standard quick and easy chocolate cake recipe. The icing consistency was an accident. I was going for a thicker decorator icing but this actually worked very well and really reminded me of going to a bakery and getting a chocolate cake doughnut. If you have a doughnut shaped pan, this cake recipe would be perfect for that!

This cake is free of all eight common allergens. The icing is made of pureed beans, confectioner’s sugar and almond milk. If you are allergic to legumes, you could puree a fruit of your choice or use a mixture of jam and your favorite non-dairy milk. Ooo… that just made me think of doing a strawberry icing with this.

The Cake

I. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and lightly coat an 8-inch square or round cake pan (or your doughnut pan) with vegetable oil.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together:

– 2 cups of your favorite GF flour mix

– 1 teaspoon of xanthan gum

– 1/4 cup of cocoa

– 2 teaspoons of baking soda

3. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together:

– 3/4 cup of mashed banana or applesauce

– 1/4 cup of canola oil

– 1 cup of brewed coffee  (Note: coffee intensifies the chocolate flavor.  No coffee? No problem, use water or non-dairy milk)

– 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

4. Mix together the wet and dry ingredients until well blended and pour into the pan. Bake until toothpick or knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 30-40 minutes. With a doughnut pan, I recommend checking to see if it is finished baking after about 15-20 minutes.

After cooled, cake can be wrapped up and kept at room temperature for about three days.

The Icing

1. In a small food processor, blend until as smooth as possible: 1 cup of white beans such as cannellini or navy, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and 1/8-1/4 cup of non-dairy milk.

2. Pour the bean puree into a mixing bowl and add 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1 pound of confectioner’s (aka: powedered) sugar (example: about 1/2 of a bag of Dominoe’s powdered sugar).

3. Blend until smooth and thick but drippy.

4. Transfer to a small bowl. When you slice a piece of cake, drizzle the icing over the slice and enjoy.

The icing can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for about a week. It also goes great on cinnamon buns or buttery cinnamon toast. Yum!

Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chickpea Choc Chip Cookies

These cookies are totally free of peanuts, nuts, eggs, gluten, wheat, and dairy.

Why the chickpeas? I ran out of shortening and earth balance but had everything else to make chocolate chip cookies. I really wanted to experiment with an egg-free cookie recipe. But without the fat, I was a little stumped. Could I still do it? Most recipes call for so much of said fat, really, the fat only does two things: add volume and softness. I remembered seeing some posts in my Facebook feed from raw food pages about making chocolate chip cookies using chickpeas. So, I thought I’d try pureed chickpeas and canola oil to replace the fat and 1/4 cup of applesauce to replace the eggs.

After deciding on these replacements, and consulting volume of ingredients from two cookbooks, this is what I came up with: a thick, cake-like chocolate chip cookie that, when paired with a tall glass of non-dairy milk, makes for a very comforting treat. The family raved.

I made these very large because I knew my son would get a kick out it. But you can use this recipe for any size and thickness that you want since these don’t spread out at all like the traditional wheat and butter cookie.

Ultimately, there are five really great things about this recipe: 1. They taste great, just like traditional chocolate chip cookies (my fiance did not know I used chickpeas until I told him). 2. They are totally free of the eight most common food allergens. If there is a legume allergy, use silken tofu instead of chickpeas (do not use tofu if there is a soy allergy) 3. You can eat this raw without worry of salmonella poisoning from eggs. Idea: Stir the dough into your favorite ice cream! (Oh yum) 4. You have the benefit of having total control over the size, shape and thickness of these cookies. 5. You don’t have to buy  expensive fats such as shortening, earth balance or peanut butter, and thus a bit more economical.

So, here is the recipe. Enjoy!

Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease two large cookie sheets.

In a small food processor, add:

1 15-oz can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained.

1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce

1/4 cup of canola oil

2 teaspoons of vanilla

Blend until mixture is very smooth and set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together these dry ingredients:

2 cups of your favorite gluten-free flour blend

1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum (if your flour blend does not have it)

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1/2 cup of dark brown sugar

1/2 cup of granulated sugar

Stir together the dry ingredients and then add the chickpea puree. Stir and then you may have to use your very clean hands to squeeze and mix the dough until it all comes together.

Add 1 cup of Enjoy Life or other non-dairy chocolate chips and mix.

Shape cookies and flatten to about 1/4 inch thick. Bake on a rack that is closer to the top as these cookies brown quickly on the bottom. Bake for 11-15 minutes depending on the size and thickness of the cookie. They are done when the edges are golden brown. If you want the tops of the cookies a deeper brown color, finish them under the broiler for just one minute.

Serve warm with a tall glass of cold rice, hemp, soy or other favorite non-dairy milk.

Fried Green Tomatoes

Fried Green TomatoesConsidered a Southern dish, it really doesn’t matter where you are from to enjoy this. Pluck some green tomatoes from your garden, fry these and it’s like having mild fried pickles with a fork. Oh, it’s so good. Not everyone likes these, but if you are looking for an allergen-free version, this is it.

Note that these are usually made with cornmeal, but the rice flour in your standard gluten free baking mix will add the sought after grainy texture.

How to make:

In a deep plate or dish, add 1/2 cup GF flour mix, salt, pepper and 1 teaspoon of onion powder.

In a large skillet, fry bacon and set aside the bacon

If necessary, add enough canola oil to the bacon grease to bring the oil up to about 1/4 inch of your slices of tomatoes.

Slice your green tomatoes in 1/2 thick slices and lightly coat each side with the flour mixture.

Gently set into the hot oil and don’t move it. Let it fry on a medium heat for about 5-7 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip and cook the same way on the other side.

Remove from skillet and keep warm in the oven if you like.

If you want to add a sauce, I recommend mixing 1 cup of mayo or veganaise with salt, pepper, onion powder, a little mustard, a dash of apple cider vinegar or louisiana hot sauce (or your favorite hot pepper sauce).

It’s that easy. Enjoy!

Salmon Fagioli w/ Sauteed Balsamic Tomatoes

One word: Delicious.

Additional words: Made entirely from ingredients purchased at ALDI, plus tomatoes from neighbor’s garden.

To make the Sauteed Balsamic Tomatoes:

In a large skillet, heat just a little olive oil or spray with a thin coat of olive oil. Cut up tomatoes in large chunks or halve cherry tomatoes, enough to fill the large skillet (about 15 large cherry tomatoes, or 4 regular sized tomatoes, or 2 pecks of grape tomatoes).

Saute tomatoes with a little salt, balsamic vinegar (not a lot) and a very tiny bit of sugar. Do this until tomatoes are wilted and the juice from the tomatoes becomes thick.

To make the Salmon Fagioli, add the following to a soup pot:

1 can salmon, undrained

1/2 of a 32-oz container of chicken broth

1 cup of water

1 white onion, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

2 potatoes, diced into 1-inch bite sized pieces

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 10-oz can of mushrooms (or fresh if you have them)

1 14-oz can of white beans

1 Tbsp Italian seasoning

1 tsp ground sage

1/2 tsp thyme

1/2 tsp ground mustard

salt and pepper to taste

Boil and bring to hard simmer. Add 1 cup of gluten free pasta and cook until the pasta is done.

Take off of the heat and serve with the sauteed tomatoes. My fiance preferred this without the tomatoes but think the tomatoes would be great in a bruschetta application. So, I guess it depends on your taste (which is why I kept the tomatoes separate). My son doesn’t like tomatoes, but loved the addition of nutritional yeast to give this soup more of a Fish Chowder flavor.

“Just Peachy” Ice Cream

In the late summer, peaches, apricots, nectarines, plums and various stone fruits are in season. This is my favorite time of year because these stone fruits are my absolute favorite. I love peach pie, peach smoothies, peach sorbet, peach ice cream, peach jam. Yummmm.

In the days when I could eat real ice cream and frozen yogurt, I was always annoyed that I needed to work my way down into a pint to get another bite of a frozen peach encased in ice cream. And when I couldn’t eat ice cream anymore and I had to pay $7 or more for a pint of disappointing non-dairy ice cream, it was all good cause for me to respond with a sarcastic “Just peachy,” (if anyone were to ask how my day was going). Well, now that I’m in control of my own ice cream, I can say “Just peachy,” with a little happier tone in my voice. All it takes is a can of coconut milk for $1.79 blended with some inexpensive fresh or canned fruit, and the cost for a pint comes down from $7.00 to about $3.00. It’s so nice to afford this summer treat again.

“Just Peachy” Vegan Ice Cream

4 ripe apricots, peeled and chopped

1 14oz can of peaches in syrup (or the equivalent of fresh peaches)

1 14oz can of coconut milk (NOT cream of coconut) – always double check the ingredients

1 cup of corn syrup or 3/4 cup of sugar

1 tsp vanilla (gluten free)

In a food processor, blend all of the ingredients together. Transfer to an ice cream maker and run it according to your manufacturer’s directions. Freeze and enjoy the next day. Make sure you make more ice cream before you run out of that batch.

Cookbook Review: The Allergen-Free Baker’s Handbook by Cybele Pascal

Allergen Free BH

I have to credit my future sister-in-law for this gift. She gave me this book when we met about a year ago and it has been one of the most useful gifts I have received.

I have made several of the recipes in this book and the discovery of Socca de Nice was a huge hit in our household. We especially love it with fresh rosemary.

The chocolate chip cookies came out great!

This is an excellent resource for totally allergen-free baking and I commend the author for doing all of the testing and writing so that the home cook can quickly have a good go-to recipe for school functions, fundraisers, work functions, and other events.

The recipes work best when they are followed using the exact ingredients called for (at least until you get the hang of allergen-free baking), such as the egg replacer and agave nectar and gelatin. Those little ingredients make a difference, so I highly recommend that you follow the instructions. I did use real eggs in the cornbread and it came out okay. As does the almond milk or water in lieu of rice milk for most recipes.

The author uses relatively inexpensive flours to create a general mix for quick breads, cookies, etc. and then another general mix for yeast breads. I really like the convenience of preparing a flour mix ahead of time. This is a good approach when you are doing your allergen-free baking as it saves time on future baking projects. I recommend doing a double or triple batch and storing in a large container in your pantry or refrigerator.

The taste and texture is pretty good for most of the recipes I tested; very close to what you’d expect from your grocery store bakery. The chocolate chip cookies truly are outstanding. The cakes were also very good. Double the recipe for two layer cakes. The socca de nice was surprisingly novel and good! I still have to try some of the savory yeast breads but all in all, I still grab this book every single time I want to bake something.

This book is one of the very few baking books on the market that avoid the eight most common food allergens. Please don’t be overwhelmed by all the flours and alternatives. Once you have the items in your home, you’ll be anxious to start working with them!

If you’re on a budget, some of the recipes can utilize canola oil instead of the palm-oil shortening. You’ll have to test it out, but we had good luck with using canola oil in the quick breads. However, continue to use the shortening in cookies and cakes as it needs to coat the crumb for good texture. You can also replace the rice milk with water if you haven’t been able to get to the store.

I admire the work of Cybele Pascal and she deserves all of the praise that she has received for this work. I bring this book with me to my seminars and educational events to let others know that this resource is out there. For more about Ms. Pascal’s amazing work, please visit http://cybelepascal.com/

Delicious Pancakes

Behold. These are the ones. The pancakes. The IHOP/Waffle House/Jersey Hometown Diner (or whatever happens to be your definition of) oh-my-god delicious pancakes.

So far, the pancakes I have been making have not been worth really talking about on here, except the flourless banana pancakes, which taste more like bananas foster, than anything else. And I posted them for novelty sake. Some like them, some do not. We do. But still, they are not actual flour pancakes.

So, out of some frustration with being too broke to go to the store for the Bob’s Red Mill Pancake Mix (which is what I usually use), I decided to adapt my gluten free flour mix to a recipe in my Fannie Farmer cookbook. I adapted it even further to use oil to save on the cost. And these were born.

Surprisingly spectacular.

Here’s what the wheat eater in my household had to say about them: “Wow, I cannot tell at all that these are gluten free. And they have that nice eggy, fluffy, tender texture, like the pancakes you would get at a really good diner.”

WIN!

So, here they are

Make this GF Flour Mix: 6 cups brown rice flour, 2 and 2/3 cup potato starch, 2/3 cup tapioca flour, 2/3 cup sweet rice flour.  Mix all together and put in a large ziplock bag. (If you can’t find sweet rice flour, you can substitute it with more tapioca starch. If you do that, I cannot guarantee this recipe).

For the Pancakes:

Use 2 cups of the GF Flour Mix for this recipe and store the rest for other baking recipes.

1 and 1/2 teaspoons of xanthan gum

4 teaspoons of baking powder

4 Tablespoons of sugar

1 teaspoon of salt

Mix the dry ingredients well with a whisk.

In another bowl add:

2 eggs

4 Tablespoons of Canola or Vegetable Oil

2 cups of unsweetened almond or unsweetened hemp milk (Note: these milks have a creamier texture and are great for baking. I’m not sure how rice milk would come out. In my opinion, rice milk is so watery that there is no difference in baking with rice milk vs. water. So, I just use water instead of wasting my rice milk if all that I have on hand is rice milk. My recipes have come out fine that way).

Whisk the wet ingredients together. Then mix the wet and dry ingredients together with a wooden spoon. Add more almond or hemp milk (or water) if the mixture is too dense. It should be very pour able, like cake batter.

Then, make the pancakes how you would normally make them. If you are just learning how to make pancakes, see instructions below. Serve with a pat of Earth Balance spread and your favorite maple syrup (make sure it is free of caramel color. Caramel color in pancake syrup doesn’t seem to bother my son. But if it bothers you, use a mixture of light corn syrup and molasses to make an inexpensive syrup).

How to Make Pancakes:

Set your oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. (For keeping cooked pancakes warm).

Heat a large non-skillet skillet over medium high heat and, depending on the size pancakes you like, scoop 1/4 or 1/2 cup fulls of batter into the pan. Cook about 5-7 minutes or until dry looking around edges and you see bubbles throughout the pancakes and then flip over. Cook another 5-7 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through.

Transfer pancakes to a plate in the the warm oven while you are making the 2nd and 3rd batch.

For the pancakes you have not eaten, put them in a large zip lock bag and put them in your freezer for up to 3 months.

Reheat 1-2 pancakes as you need them.

Reheating instructions for microwaves:

Put 2 pancakes on an oven safe plate and cover with an almost sopping wet paper towel (this steams the pancakes and keeps them from drying out). Cook on high for 1-2 minutes until heated through.

Reheating instructions for people like me, who have broken microwaves and can’t afford another one:

Set your oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. Put your desired number of pancakes on a cookie sheet. Cover with about 2-3 sopping wet paper towels to keep them from drying out. Heat for about 5 minutes or until heated through.

Chicken Shepherd’s Pie

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I hope this savory shepherd’s pie, free of the eight common food allergens, is something you find delicious, comforting and satisfying. I want to tell you a secret about the mashed potatoes: keep the colander in the cabinet and don’t pour out all of the potato water. Leave about an inch of the potato water in the bottom of your stockpot as your liquid for mashing. There is a lot of flavor in that water (and also nutrients). Also, it’s easier and less expensive than using a milk substitute. As you know, I’m a fan of spending as little of my money on special ingredients as I can, so I used olive oil instead of earth balance, at least for the potatoes. Many of these ingredients are from ALDI. I shop there for many things so that I can save my money for things like the special ingredients I can’t do without. Okay, enough chit-chat, here is the recipe:

Peel, wash and put your potatoes in a large stock pot with boiling water. You only need about 6-8 potatoes but I make a whole bunch to save for leftovers. Start boiling your potatoes (Idaho potatoes work best for mashing but feel free to use what you have on hand). While those are cooking, prepare your chicken filling.

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In a deep skillet add:

One package of chicken tenders (about 2 pounds) – you can even put them in frozen, they’ll just have to cook longer until done. I do this all the time since I’m not a fan of using the microwave. If you have only chicken thighs or legs, or you’d rather do this with beef, lamb or pork, go for it!

1 yellow or white onion, medium diced

1 green bell pepper, medium diced

8 fresh mushrooms, sliced

4 stalks celery, small diced

10-15 baby carrots

water for simmering (the water will pick up flavor of everything, no need for broth)

1 tsp dried sage

1 Tbsp garlic powder

1 Tbsp onion powder

1-2 tsp salt

fresh cracked pepper to taste

Cover and simmer over medium heat until your chicken is cooked all the way through and your carrots and celery are tender. Watch and add more water if needed as you don’t want it to burn. When done, lower temperature and add:

1/4 cup of earth balance or olive oil

1/4 cup nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp yellow or dijon mustard

If you don’t have the earth balance or nutritional yeast, don’t fret, this will still taste good!

Stir and keep warm while you prepare the potatoes as follows:

Image

Drain the potato water until you are left with about 1 inch of water at the bottom. Keep the water in there. Add 1/3 cup olive oil, 1 Tbsp onion powder, 1-2 tsp salt and cracked pepper to taste. Always taste and be sure you like it.

Set your oven to broil (or 500 degrees Fahrenheit) and then assemble the pie. Add the filling to an 8-inch or 9-inch pie dish, top with enough mashed potatoes to cover and then sprinkle 1/4 cup rice flour or your favorite gluten free flour blend on top. Using a pastry brush, lightly drizzle 1/8 cup of olive or vegetable oil over the the flour, getting as much of the flour oiled up as you can. Dust with paprika, salt, pepper, and ground mustard. I found a spice grinder at ALDI for poultry and I love it for this application (it has all of the spices I just mentioned and no bad additives).

Put your oven rack to the top of your oven, put in your pie and broil for 5-15 minutes or until golden brown on top. Depending on the type of oil and flour you use for your topping, this time can vary so keep a close watch on it to make sure it doesn’t burn.

Serve with chopped fresh rosemary. If you don’t have fresh rosemary, dried rosemary or dried Italian seasoning would also work.

If you have any questions, let me know. Happy Eating!