Holidays with Food Allergies

Is it any wonder that holidays and parties are a source of stress for those with food allergies?

July 4, 2005 Head to toe hives and the start of chronic urticaria

May 27, 2012 Home from a friend's birthday, head to toe hives

October 30, 2013 Day before Halloween and first known serious food reaction

June 30, 2014 Day before his birthday, self-administered epi-pen, Urgent Care visit

October 19, 2014 Flushed face and swollen eyes during Halloween party

And these are the only the incidents I remember or thought to record. So how do you get safely through the holidays?

Have a Plan

James always goes to parties (and holidays) now with his own food. He's become more conscious about if nuts are served, wiping his hands frequently when touching things (which is what happened during the Oct. 19th reaction). We let the host of the party know his allergies and that he'll be bringing his own food. He usually brings enough dessert to share. And of course, he always has his epi-pens. But, he never skips an event because of his allergies.

This is what works for us. James is 12 and the high school (and college) years are not far off. For any tween (and teen) kid, learning to navigate the world independently is what these years are about. For us, food allergies add another layer, but do not negate that need. Depending on the age of your children and the severity of their allergies, you may handle these situations differently. But, having a plan in advance so you are prepared and can relax is the key to being able to enjoy yourself.

Create New Traditions (aka It's only Food)

I firmly believe that I can pretty closely replicate any food tradition in an allergy friendly form my family wants. And have spent a lot of time (and calories) doing so. But, it's only food. I think one reason we get attached is we have memories of having the same food, year after year, throughout our childhood. But, you can certainly repeat other traditions, that can grow in complexity as your children age.

Here's a brief list to get you started of non-food ideas for this Easter:

• Cascarones/Confetti filled eggs (use plastic eggs for the egg allergic)
• Tie Dye
• Get a new game and play it (last year we got an outdoor game but this year, video game, of course)
• Grow real grass in their Easter basket (late for this year, but I got my nieces some cute little pots with faces to grow grass from Target, not good for those with environmental allergies)
• Go for a bike ride/hike/geocache

What do you do to create successful holidays for your food allergic child?

Happy Easter!

Safe for Us Homemade Easter Treats

What is Safe for Us?

James is allergic to tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soy. He can eat soy lecithin and soybean oil. He has oral allergy syndrome (OAS) to tomatoes and melon. He avoids legumes.

I avoid dairy, as I've recently discovered it affects my sinuses.

Disclaimer:

When I mention a brand, it is because I am comfortable with the allergen policy and with using that brand for my family. It is not an endorsement or a suggestion that you use the same brand without doing your own research. Everyone's allergies and comfort levels vary. That said, I have no sponsors and all my opinions are flatly my own. 

Molded Chocolate Eggs

Made from Chocoley Bada Bing Bada Boom Modeling Chocolate

Free of: peanuts, tree nuts, wheat/gluten, eggs, sesame, fish, crustaceans

Contains: Soy lecithin and dairy

You can find the allergen statement here.

I have one failed attempt at making a chocolate bunny when James was a toddler (it bloomed). Darren was interested in trying to make chocolates again and, while I was a competent aide, he was definitely the chocolatier.

Since I had a bad experience, we chose the chocolate which required no tempering. We did order samples of the gourmet couverture chocolate (free with order) to sample. Darren followed the directions on their website and, easily enough, we had chocolate eggs.

Sunbutter Eggs

Chocoley Version: Same allergy information as above

Enjoy Life Version: Free from wheat, dairy, tree nuts, peanuts, eggs, fish, and shellfish. 

Cross Contamination: Sunbutter is made on the same equipment as soy.

I love(d) peanut butter cups. And since I avoid dairy, we decided to temper Enjoy Life chocolate chips so I could have my own version. We also made a chocoley version for the dairy eaters.

We used the following method to temper the chips:

1. Heat the chips in a double boiler to 108°, stirring constantly.
2. Remove from heat and add a small handful of chips as seed crystals.
3. Continue to stir until the temperature reaches 88°.

We used the following recipe for the filling:

1/2 c Sunbutter

2 T softened Butter (Spectrum Palm Shortening for dairy free)

1/4 c + 2 T confectionery sugar

1/4 tsp salt

We were actually out of confectionery sugar and ground our own using regular sugar and cornstarch. You may need to adjust the ratios a little to get the right consistency because our sugar was coarser than usual.

We made 20 cups and used 10 ounces of chocolate for the bottom and 15 ounces for the tops. There was leftovers of the Sunbutter filling and I'm already thinking about thinning it out and using it for a chocolate Sunbutter Ice Cream (Yum).

 The Enjoy Life were definitely a darker chocolate (not that I mind at all). Both batches set up really well.

A No Fuss, Easy Treat

Free of: Peanuts, tree nuts, wheat/gluten, fish, shellfish

Cross Contamination: Soy

If you are a baker, than these are for you. I made them for James to take to a party. More confessions, it's Betty Crocker Gluten Free cake mix. The frosting (and reason why we had no confectionery sugar) is a simple buttercream:

1/3 c butter, softened

1 lb confectionery sugar

1 tsp vanilla

You may notice the yellow looks more crisp than the green . They are made with different tips but, I added milk to the green frosting, but it was hot here and so, the frosting was slightly too soft. Since I live in a warm area, I've found it works better to leave the milk out altogether and add it if needed later.

And Peeps are large decorations that cover a variety of frosting woes.