Allerfree Recipes

Happy later mothers day! (in the US- but seriously it should be everyday everywhere!) Happy day for those who act as Mothers (not including my 5 year old)! My Mother's Day was spent napping.... HA! Jokes aside, we drove two hours to see a baseball game that got rain delayed for two hours.....a slightly different plan then my get some groceries and grill artichokes...this one included standing smooshed with a zillion people watching it pour on the field, paranoid that someone's hot dog, cheese, ice cream, pizza, or pop corn would touch our severely allergic son, reconsidering whether that was more scary than our exhausted two year old ticking time bomb, debating for 2 hours whether we should just leave and lose our tickets if they did play. packing ourselves into the team store with everyone else to get warm. and a debacle when a guy ended up in the ladies room (he was pretty surprised when he exited the stall to a group of security, and may still not know where he is...

Since I last wrote we have had some major changes to our lives! We are now vegetarian due to a beef allergy (along with the milk allergy that has skyrocketed in severity) and to my four year old (now 5) realizing where meat comes from and being very upset. Oh, and our third child is SOMETHING!!!!! The baby hasn't sat down in the 16 months we have had him. Needless to say, blogging is not number 1. However, it's time to start again. More changes that I'd like to share in hopes of helping others. We are on a tight budget. Takes a lot of planning and trading because we also buy only organic. so... Dairy free, meat free, organic, on a budget! Yikes! (and I have picky children?!) I've done easier things than plan our menus for the week and get my kids to eat!! To be fair, due to allergy restrictions, at the beginning my husband and I ate whatever we wanted and made special things for our oldest. Seems that came back to bite me. and chomps down every night! thankfully, he...

It's not Halloween, I know! But, in being desperate for a treat the other day, and feeling that eating one in front of the kids would be mean, I came up with a chocolatey, peanut buttery treat that is kind of a trick! Not sure what to call it, but it resembles the Chex Muddy Buddy stuff. I certainly am not endorsed by anyone, nor do I enjoy that Chex use a chemical preservative, however, the kids love them and they otherwise have decent food ingredients. They can also be Gluten free if needed. 9 cups of cereal (i seriously used up everything we had that  the kids won't eat!) 1 cup of oats 3/4 cup of peanut butter 1 cup (or a teech more, unless you're me and ate a handful, then two teeches more) chocolate chips (Ghiradelli semi sweet are the only milk free that are real chocolate and not hideous) 2ish Tablespoons of Earth Balance (or butter) and about 3/4 cup of ground flax seed (always a trick!) put cereal and oats into a big bowl melt the chocolate with the p bu...

Spring has sprung! Although, not sure we ever had winter... But, I am okay with that! If I had my way we'd live far enough south where winter was summer! It's been a busy season! The minute we get everyone better someone gets sick again. Thank you Gymboree! Anyway! I over bought strawberries, well technically Jake was putting stuff in the cart when i wasn't looking (with the help of his father)!Here's an easy fabulous recipe for Vegan, Possibly gluten free Pancakes. Strawberry Lemon Pancakes Whisk: 2 cups flour (i use whole wheat, white whole wheat is also good, as is spelt) 1 cup oatmeal 2 Tablespoons sugar (if desired) zest of 1 lemon 2 teaspoons of baking powder dash of salt Mix: 2 cups (plus a teech more if needed to think batter, I like mine fairly thick) of milk (i use rice) 4 Tablespoons of oil, or applesauce juice of 1 lemon (i actually prefer 2) dash of vanilla (optional) After you have separately mixed the dry and wet ingredients, add the ...

Tonight I played a frantic game of hide and seek. I lost. After dinner we brought the kids for baths. Jake has been acting funny for a couple days, but it's been impossible to figure anything out. At some point I rationalized it with his less than  balanced, probably too low calorie and fat diet (yeah, I know, completely opposite of my issue! He's the only one in the house, including two cats and three dogs, that I am concerned because he's all muscle and bones! Also opposite of my issues!) At any rate, I noticed red marks on him in the bath. Looking closer I noticed they were hives. SUPER DUPER! Honestly, every time we've had a medical problem with us, kids, cats, dogs, it's been a Sunday night. I don't know about kids, but in case you were wondering, a Sunday night pet issue pretty much requires you to swipe your credit card to speak to someone, and then to walk in the Emergency Vet... yeah probably still paying it off 7 years later! At any rate, hives. My...

After an early morning of painting (thanks to a Valentine present of paint)... What does one make for Valentine's Day for a family diverse in it's pickiness and it's allergies? Well, apparently two things. Individual heart apple pies (which will not happen again for a looong time!) AND these, fabulous and easy cookies... Delicious Allergy Free Oatmeal Cutout Cookies Beat: 3/4 cup Earth Balance (or butter) 3/4 cup organic sugar 1t vanilla 1 T ground flax seed mixed with 3 T warm water (the warm helps to make it goopy) (or an egg ) 3 T Rice milk (or alternative) blend in: 2 1/2 cups wheat flour 1 t. baking powder 1/2 t. salt stir in: 1 cup oatmeal Dough will seem very crumbly, use your hands to make a ball. Add a touch more flour or milk if needed. I refrigerated for about an hour, but that's not necessary. If you do, however, it will seem like the dough will not stay together, roll it out, it will.  Roll about 1/4 inch thick. Bake at 375 for about ...

Here's why I do not enjoy shopping... well, probably because I cannot buy whatever I want! Here's another reason... fellow shoppers. I am not talking about the lady at Target who made me laugh by warning me before she knelt down not to worry about her when i heard cracks, it was just her knees, she'd be OK. Ha ha! I replied that she should worry if I cried a little when i stood up (let's not talk about a huge wipe out I had while running with my dogs...). Anyway, we laughed and moved on into the pink and red mess of Valentine stuff that in no way paid homage to Saint Valentine. I heard a little girl (maybe 5) asking for the super fun Valentine's that come with candy and other fun junk. I believe she said something to the effect of 'I want those mom, but we can keep them at home and not give them to anyone else.' Ummm... what?! Be mine? I think not! When her mom replied something to the effect of 'you don't need those and they are expensive', this...

I hope this blog is able to give ideas and help to those of you affected by food allergies! It is difficult at first to figure out how to change a diet. Pretty much all packaged foods have some allergen. You will notice I use mostly "real foods", foods created by nature. I do not always have a perfect diet. I am a completely undecided vegan, meat eater, organic, non organic eater. I prefer not to buy meat but due to Jake's allergies, I am having him eat more chicken (the only meat he will eat) for protein. I also have a husband who, goes with the flow with my food whims, but not without a complaint. Hence my sharp cooking skills! He actually admitted to liking a bean "meatloaf" the other day to other people! If anyone has any requests for a recipie I will do my best to create one. I enjoy working to create healthy and delicious food that people can eat. When I print a recipie, I will also add substitutions if possible. I also would love feedback and comments!