That is what inspired me to do a week focused on cooking with food allergies. Being able to cook, and having an arsenal of safe recipes and finding ways to enjoy your kitchen are a must for anyone managing a food allergy. So, all week on my Facebook page and blog, I will be sharing great information on cooking skills, advice, and recipe resources so we can all Thrive On in the kitchen!
To kick it off, I had the awesome opportunity to interview Colette Martin, The Allergen-Free Baker. She is a food allergy mom, cookbook author and all around great advocate for those with food allergies. She offers all of us some great advice for making cooking simple, fun and safe whether you are new to food allergies or a veteran food allergy family. And best of all, she is partnering with me to give away an autographed copy of her book, The Allergy-Free Pantry! Details about the giveaway are at the end of the post, so take in all of her great advice and then enter to win!
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| Colette Martin, Cookbook author, Allergen-free baker, Food allergy advocate |
New To Food Allergy Cooking
If you have recently been diagnosed with food allergies, there is a lot to learn and do to keep you or your family safe, and cooking safe foods will be at the top of that list. Martin recommends that once you know the foods you need to avoid the first step is to do a sweep of your pantry to ensure you remove all foods that could trigger a reaction. Once the unsafe items are removed, “start simple, get a handle on a few basic recipes and find safe alternatives to replace your basic staples,” she says. For example, if you are dealing with a wheat or gluten issue, try to find a bread replacement that you can buy. Once you have some basics down and a few staple alternatives you will have the building blocks for developing your cooking skills and adding additional items to your safe foods menu.
Cooking Everyday
It happens to the best of us, even if we love to cook, doing it day in and day out can wear on you. You fall into a rut, cook the same things over and over, and generally feel bored, if not annoyed, in the kitchen. Martin suggests, to the extent possible, be adventurous in the kitchen and continually try new things to keep the kitchen, and your menus, interesting. She suggests implementing a “new food night” where you and your family try a new recipe or ingredient. My girls always get a kick out of our attempts at new ingredients, and as a result we have added red quinoa and zucchini noodles to our meal options.
If you have a child with food allergies, another important component to your culinary adventures will be to ensure your child learns how to cook. Someday you won’t be around to prepare all of their meals so start equipping them now with the skills they will need to stay safe. Martin suggests, “get your kids cooking with you and let them lead you into new areas”. If they express interest in cooking a certain food or trying a certain recipe – go for it! It helps to keep it fun in the kitchen, and along the way you can teach cooking skills they will need to know.
Kitchen Tools You “Need”
Cooking is a very personal endeavor and you will find what works best for you. Someone else’s favorite kitchen tool may sit unused in your kitchen. Resist the urge to buy every kitchen gadget and figure out what you will really use, and need, to make your safe foods. Martin says for her, two must haves are her Kitchen Aid Mixer and parchment paper. “If you will be doing a lot of baking, having a good mixer is important,” says Martin. She also loves parchment paper because it helps to create a barrier and prevent cross contact on baking sheets and on surfaces when she is rolling out dough. As my family has developed our cooking style, our must have items include our ice cream maker and lots of cutting boards and colanders.
Getting Some Guidance
Colette has published two books on allergy free cooking and baking that are a great resource for anyone newly diagnosed or seasoned food allergy cooks looking to add new recipes to their menus. You can learn more about her books here. (Don’t forget to check out the details below about how to win a copy of The Allergy-Free Pantry). In addition to her books, Martin recommends checking out Kids With Food Allergies Foundation Recipe Database and Freedible for other great resources, recipes, and advice on keeping your kitchen safe and your menus interesting.
Thanks, Colette, for sharing all of this great information, your book, and helping us Thrive On in the kitchen!
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Follow me all week long on Facebook as I share tips, tricks and tools for cooking with food allergies!!
GIVEAWAY!!!
Win a copy of The Allergy-Free Pantry! Head over to our Facebook Page for a chance to enter and win! The winner will be announced June 2! Good Luck!!!
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Read more about Colette's books! Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram too!
Learning to Bake Allergen-Free: A Crash Course for Busy Parents on Baking without Wheat, Gluten, Dairy, Eggs, Soy or Nuts
Published by The Experiment, June 2012
An essential guide to delicious baking for multiple food allergies—with over dozens of recipes that take the whole family from breakfast through dinner
As more and more parents are discovering, the instant a child is diagnosed with severe or multiple allergies, food can’t be taken for granted anymore. Shopping turns into a frustrating hunt through ingredient lists, and every school lunch and birthday party becomes a potential nightmare. Whether parents love to bake or hate it, with most packaged foods and bakery treats suddenly off-limits, they’ll need to learn. Colette Martin overcame this challenge when her son was diagnosed with wheat, milk, soy, egg, and peanut allergies—and in Learning to Bake Allergen-Free, she gives parents the confidence to embrace new foods that are safe for their children, arming them with:
• Info on how to avoid the top eight food allergens, plus gluten
• Substitutions and techniques to make favorite recipes allergen-free
• Simple tips on how to use new ingredients for the best results
• Over 75 recipes—some from scratch, some from mixes—for Cinnamon Rolls, Spicy Cornbread, Chocolate Chunk Cookies, and more!
With this thorough, accessible manual in hand, parents will be baking allergen-free by the time the oven finishes pre-heating.
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The Allergy-Free Pantry: Make Your Own Staples, Snacks, and More Without Wheat, Gluten, Dairy, Eggs, Soy or Nuts
Published by The Experiment, September 2014
Make your own affordable, delicious, and allergy-free staples, snacks, and meals!
After the cupboards are cleared of problem foods, most people coping with new food allergies (their own or their kids’) are missing staples they have relied on for years. And even though stores are stocking more allergen-free brands, shoppers with severe or multiple allergies can read every label and still strike out—especially if they’re after a particular craving or on a budget.
The good news for the 15 million Americans with food allergies is that classic treats and pantry staples can be made easily and affordably at home. From Colette Martin, the author of Learning to Bake Allergen-Free, comes The Allergy-Free Pantry—with over 100 recipes free of gluten and the top eight allergens (milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, wheat, fish, and shellfish), including:
• Basic staples (flour blends, non-dairy milks, Sandwich Bread, Biscuits, Strawberry Jam, and Sunflower Seed Butter)
• Condiments and salad dressings (Flaxseed Mayonnaise, Ketchup, Ranch Dressing, Barbeque Sauce)
• Breakfast (Pancakes, Honey Blueberry Granola, Apple Oatmeal Scones)
• Crackers and cookies (Flax Crackers, Pita Chips, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Snickerdoodles)
• Pasta, pizza, and freezer meals (Spinach Pasta, Cheesy Sauce, Shepherd’s Pie, Meatloaf)
• Desserts (Brownie Bites, Chocolate Pudding, Raspberry Fruit Roll Ups, Caramel Sauce)
Full-color photographs of every recipe and simple instructions (no advanced kitchen skills required!) make this a must-have guide to allergy-free home cooking. Refill your cupboards, and reclaim peace of mind!
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Disclaimer: I was not paid to write this post, but was provided with products to use for the purpose of the giveaway. The opinions expressed in this post are mine and not influenced by the company.
Learn more about Tami and her company, Thrive On Consulting, which provides food allergy coaching and training. You can also follow her on Facebook for tips to Thrive On with food allergies.
