Recalls Galore-- What's Up?

Scary to see so many recalls. At least I am unnerved. Especially about the cumin recalls:

Perhaps I should have been anxious about spices before these recalls. 

Perhaps I should have purchased  whole spices and ground them myself. 

Perhaps I never should have used cumin or chile or tumeric or curry --

Oh wait, I didn't. 

But even so, these recalls are scary, and although I never like to cross something completely off my list-- I am crossing off cumin. And other ground spices. 

  And, I may even stop using dried herbs and spices in general-- salt and pepper aside. 

  Years ago my mom told me " when in doubt, don't". Think it's good advice now in light of these recalls. 

Candied Orange Peel a lá Allergy-Free

As easy as one two three. 

   Candied orange peel-- which is orange peel, sugar, glucose, and sorbitol preservative. 

  Semisweet chocolate morsels from Vermont Nut Free Chocolates. Dairy free, nut and egg and other top eight- free. 

The finished product is in middle. 

Heat the morsels and with great dexterity-- which i do not possess FYI!--dip the orange peel in the chocolate to coat tips.  Refrigerate until chocolate is hardened. 

Eat!

Happy new year!

New Year's Soup! Allergy- Free of course

Happy New Year all. 

I trust the holiday season is going well for all-- aside from the usual impromptu parties with no safe food choices and the hostess gifts that are nuts rolled in other nuts topped with almonds. 

  All that aside-- there's lots of eating going on. 

  So, to combat that "I'm so stuffed I'm going to pop" feeling-- how about a nice  Italian soup for the New Year?

  I make a light version of " ribollita"-- which means " reboiled" and, traditionally, Parmesean cheese and day old bread round out the serving of this soup. 

 But my version is top 8 allergen- free; it does contain tomatoes and garlic which can be allergens. One can easily eliminate these ingredients; I'll note how. 

So you'll need:

(Serves 3-4)

3 tablespoons olive oil-- to lightly cover bottom of pot. 

1 small onion, chopped small

2 cloves garlic minced ( eliminate if wish)

2-3 carrots, halved or in thirds 

2 ribs  of celery, chopped

2 cups canned cannellini beans

1 15 oz can of whole peeled tomatoes (eliminate if need to)

1 bunch kale, washed thoroughly, leaves stopped off. 

4 cups vegetable broth or water ( or chicken broth-- it all works)

Rosemary sprig

Coat bottom of pot with oil and heat briefly on medium. 

Put in carrots, onion, garlic, celery and cook on low for 5-10 minutes until those vegetables are soft. Stir so nothing burns. 

Add tomatoes--cutting them in half and adding some of the liquid. Bring to a simmer-- you want to reduce the tomatoes slightly--for 10 minutes . Add rosemary (a stick or two), pepper to taste. 

 Add stock/ liquid and  cannellini beans and bring to boil. 

Reduce heat to simmer for 15-20 minutes. 

Add kale leaves and stir. Cook another 7-10 minutes.

Serve with bread or cornbread.****

This soup can be made in advance and reheated ( on low) to serve. 

Enjoy!

***If your family eats dairy-- melt Parmesean or peccorino on top. 

Family, Food Allergies-- Sometimes They Just Don't Get It!

Sometimes families just don't get food allergies. 

 At a Christmas party this week, it all came back to me.   The 30-something son of a longtime acquaintance told me his own son had been diagnosed with celiac. His dad, whom I know to be a smart, concerned grandfather, was good about buying GlutenFree (and had even gotten some foods I'd suggested).  But, this young man said, his dad never said the food tasted good. In fact, his dad always made a big deal out of "going without the real stuff." Did I understand that-- 

  Did I? Do I!  Don't we all. 

My parents were super careful about my son's food-- but they were always sad about what he couldn't eat. And would say-- until I put my foot down-- "oh it's awful he can't have this or that... "  AARGH

  Made me crazy. 

  Like I didn't know that?

  Like we-- like my son -- had to hear that?

  Like my parents saying "poor boy" would change anything?

   Sometimes, families--aunts and uncles, cousins, even grandparents--don't understand what it's all about--

   So, guys, here's a quick lesson:

We need you to say: 

***Yum, this lunch is delicious. 

Or

***Wow, these cookies rock! 

We need you to be happy to be sharing the meal--and we need you NOT to be so focused on the "can't haves."

Oven Baked Ribs

Here's how to make the ribs--super easy but they take a while in the oven. 

  Pork spare ribs -- about 4 pounds. 

  1/2 cup apple cider or wine vinegar 

   Honey-- lots of it!

   Pepper

   A sprinkle or two of chile powder. 

Mix vinegar and at least 1/3 cup honey in a cup. Stir until well mixed. 

  

      Pour over ribs which are in a roasting pan and are, more or less, room temperature. Sprinkle the ribs with pepper and garlic salt a little chili powder. 

       Let marinate for about 30-45 minutes-- turning ribs over a few times. 

Preheat oven to 450. 

After the ribs marinate, pour off the liquid--but reserve it. 

    Drizzle a fair amount of honey on them.

 

     Put in 450 oven. 

     After 10-15 minutes, turn oven temperature to 325. Tent the pan with foil, which you take off for last half hour. 

   Cook for about 1 1/2 hours-- drizzling honey frequently and liberally. Basting with the pan liquid also. (If there is not enough liquid, use some

of the marinade.)

   Again, take tin foil off for last half hour so ribs get nice and brown. 

   Enjoy!

  

Oven baked BBQ Ribs

Gluten Free Thanksgiving Tips!

As I start the holiday cooking for my brother- in- law's feast, I thought I'd pass along some tricks I use. Happy and safe holiday to all. 

Gluten Free Cornbread

Glutino Yankee cornbread mix

If you're not using dairy or egg:

Substitute one 3.9 oz applesauce-- that's one individual cup-- and one cup Rice Dream for the 1 1/2 cups Buttermilk the Glutino box suggests. 

I use Ener-G Egg Replacer -- doesn't  everybody!

Stuffing for mushrooms 

(FYI stuffed mushrooms are an Italian  American must on the Thanksgiving table-- as is broccoli rabe)

To substitute for bread crumbs--this year for the stuffed mushrooms-- I use plain

Rice Chex. I pulse them in the blender until coarsely ground. And mix in my salt, pepper, minced garlic and parsley. And viola! Mushroom stuffing. 

 I never used cheese, so don't have to substitute for it!

I always used olive oil instead of butter to coat the bottom if baking dish and I drizzle water and olive oil over the pre cooked mushrooms-- with the stuffing in it-- to keep it moist. 

Food Allergy, Holiday Meals and Family!

Holiday Time --Again

It’s Monday morning and you’re doing the final shopping for ______________(insert a Holiday here )and your –mother—aunt—cousin-- calls and says “I’m making strudel for the holiday dessert and I know that Johnny is allergic to nuts, but it really doesn’t taste good without them, so I just wanted you to know.”

You hang up the phone –and (circle one)

A. Scream B. Cry C. Laugh D. Shake your head E. All of the above

All of the above is the correct answer – and then you get the baking mix from the cupboard and read about how to make a strudel.

      This is a typical holiday conversation for a food allergic family. We’ve all been there, and we all know what it feels like to NOT be able to make that special family recipe for a holiday meal. Well, as Loretta famously told Ronny in Moonstruck “Snap out of it!”

This is our life.

      And this is especially true around holiday celebrations when ritual meals, steeped in tradition , are the standard fare. Food allergies can cut us off those traditions, memories—whatever you want to call those remembered moments from our past-- and not allow us to make those dishes.

But we can’t make them.  And neither can my mother or my Aunt Sadie. Instead, I can make a menu that does not include allergens—and no one will know the difference. I can ask Cousin Pesky to bring a green salad—since that would be ‘easier’ for her—and ditch the strudel altogether. I may feel a pinch at giving up a family tradition, but what really makes the meal a tradition is that we gather our family and close friends to share it. That part doesn’t change.

    As parents we must smooth the way for a happy holiday. People may mean well, but don’t have as much practice at keeping our children safe—or people may not want to change their habits. Whichever the case, your child will have a happy and safe holiday because you –and possibly only you—make the effort to prepare and bring a special meal or host a worry-free fete. That you must think ahead, prepare, and possibly reorganize tradition—that is a given in the food allergic household.

But, above all, we must remember that --while the menu may need to change-- the message of these holiday meals does not. What we are eating should not be as important as who we are eating it with— as well as the laughter and gusto we bring to the table—no matter if it’s ravioli or rice cakes and jam.

The love, the sharing, the connection are what truly matters and there is no substitute for that.

Community. Fraternity. Equality. ...and Food Allergies

Ok. Maybe I'm not French, but I felt community, fraternity( and sisterhood) and equality this weekend at the FARE Teen Summit. Once again kids gathered and bonded over being just like everyone else in the room -- and video games and karaoke and hair cuts and school and dating and bullying and allergens and Epi-pens. 

  While parents talked about eye rolling and 504s and college planning and Epi- pens. 

  It was fun. It was tiring. It was informative. But mostly it was about finding community, sharing strategies and making new friends.

   For me, oldster that I am, it was seeing old friends too. Friends I met at previous Summits-- and sharing pictures of our college age kids and telling the middle school folks-- you can do it AND it gets easier. 

  I'm very grateful for my food allergy community and the opportunity to speak about my experiences. And I learn something new every time -- like there's a mobile help alert system( wireless) that you can get your child (ok it's sort of like an old person's Life Alert system). So if he's alone and having a reaction or she passes out-- someone calls and help is sent. Something to think about. 

 So great to see everyone, and as I said in my presentation: it's doable-- and remember it's Who is at the table-- not what's on it that counts. 

  

Allergy Free College Cooking.

Putting the finishing touches on my new cookbook Allergy Free: College Cooking. 

This one I'm publishing myself because I want it out there and helping kids cook ASAP. 

    Easy recipes for basic fare-- meatloaf, roast chicken, chili. And then there's all the Italianate recipes: like minestrone. Escarole and beans. And kale with garlic. 

I'll keep you all posted when it hits Amazon-- and, it's good for any new cook-- college student or not, food allergic or not. Simple good food that's easy to make with ingredients from the grocery store. And NO Dairy, Eggs, Nuts,  Peanuts, Wheat, Soy, Fish, Shellfish or Sesame. 

 Support me on this one!

And see you at the Teen Summit!

Teen Food Allergy Summit

November 7-9

Washington, DC 

As you all know, I am a big proponent of FARE's Teen Summit. 

 Teens get to be with other kids who have had the same experiences. AND they get to mentor younger kids about getting through situations from bullying to eating out to dating to travel. 

     Seeing these kids together in a room, you can almost hear the collective sigh of relief. 

   

  This Summit I'm on a panel with two fabulous women-- we're talking about "success". 

  So what is success? 

  No reactions. 

  Doing mostly everything--travel, summer programs, sports, camp. 

  Always thinking " it's doable"

And always remembering that

It's who is at the table, not what's on it.  

See you at the Teen Summit. 

  

Food Allergy Beware

So I've been doing some research on hamburger buns at sporting arenas. 

Yup-- hamburger buns at sporting arenas. 

Isn't everybody researching that?

  As of September, my son can add wheat into his diet (yay) and end-of- summer means the US Open Tennis championships and lots of baseball. So... I was calling around. 

  At the US Open, Levy Restaurants -- Chicago based-- runs the concessions.  In hope of getting a burger with bun at our all- day outing, having been greenlighted on Wednesday at 5, I called Levy headquarters. Even in Central time it was still awfully close to closing, and the operator who helped me was respectful of my need for an ingredient list and promised to reach out to their vendors. 

 By noon Thursday- less than 12 hours later!--I had an ingredients list in hand! And my son and I had burgers for lunch!

Ditto "shout out" to the food services manager at Yankee Stadium who gave me his cell phone number and sent me the hamburger bun ingredients.  

( no luck at Yankee--sesame seeds in the hamburger buns-- which my contact told me as soon as I asked for a list) 

  The point here is WOW people are really nice and helpful. And, as I noted to various supervisors, these folks were respectful of  food allergy needs and knowledgeable about their dangers. 

 So I encourage parents to call and inquire and get all the help you can from these helpful restaurant suppliers.

As for the BEWARE note:

Brand name chain restaurants may not use the same products in their stores as they use at a stadium or arena. 

Case in point: Johnny Rockets: the buns and burger ingredients listed on the website are ONLY for the restaurants. At stadiums--Yankee Stadium, for instance--Johnny Rockets is supplied by an outside vendor, and the ingredients are different. 

So BEWARE! 

And use the parents' best defense: our mouths! Ask a lot of questions and expect the best from people. 

Cruise Control: Vacationing with food allergies

Vacation! I've been away -- sorry for the radio silence. 

We chose, as we often do, a cruise with Holland America line. We had a great time-- especially because it's truly a vacation for my son-- safe food made specially for him-- and me-- no cooking!

And another benefit is the same wait staff very night for dinner-- staff who strive to make your experience the best it can be. 

AND there's simple easy food throughout the day for snacks: clean salad bars  with no allergenic foods like nuts or fish. Carving stations manned by trained servers who always use separate utensils  for each food. Steamed vegetables and plain rice available for every meal. 

Now there's even quite a few gluten free options, good for some folks though not us. 

And there's fruits and this time, sorbet flavors for dessert-- that was a great thing since that hasn't been the case on previous cruises. I didn't know so i brought chocolate --- usually desserts are an issue because there's only the occasional Jell-O. But I think cruise lines are trying to serve healthier foods which works out for us.  There were Skittles also on the ship. 

  It may seem that I am making a big deal about some dessert-- but there is a focus on food on a cruise-- not so much on this cruise line but still at dinner there are three courses and it's nice if you're not eating dessert while your kid is sitting empty plated. 

 It speaks to quality of life -- my son's, mine, my husband's-- that these little things can make a BIG difference in how much relaxation is actually in the vacation. And this cruise there were many options for dinner as well as fewer substitutions-- food allergies seemed to fade into the background. My son had choices of different meals to eat -- instead of having one safe dish that had to be stripped down to be safe. 

 So we had smooth sailing and good memories!

Dairy and egg-free Granita

Italian granita is a deliciously refreshing treat on a warm day and a good dessert choice. 

 It's grainier than sorbet and usually less sweet-- given that the most popular flavors are coffee and lemon. 

  So -- you all knew where this was going--last night I tried making granita. 

I chose lemon because my family aren't coffee lovers. ( unlike me!)

 The true Italians pour the sugar and coffee (or lemon) into a pan and put it in the freezer and then stir every 30 Minutes!!! --for a couple of hours. 

 But, I'm much lazier than that. 

So I mixed up the sugar and water and squeezed in six lemons. And stirred it all together and poured it into an ice tray! When it froze up, I cracked the cubes out of the tray and pulsed them in my

mini- food processor. And violá I had granita! 

 Recipe:

Orange granita-- which was more of a hit than lemon at my house. 

3/4 cup water 

1 1/4 cups orange juice ( with pulp is   good)

1/4 cup sugar-- more if you like sweeter 

One lemon

One ice tray

Heat water and sugar together until sugar dissolved

Pour into orange juice and stir well

Pour into ice tray

Squeeze lemon over the ice cubes 

( I put some chopped candied orange rinds in sometimes)

Freeze

Get those orange ice cubes out of the tray, pulse in food processor until the mixture is crushed but not slurry. 

Serve!