Recent Posts

Topic: Allergy Support Group / FREE allergy safe recipes and resources

We are in the process of launching a brand new website devoted to providing constantly updated recipes and resources for people with food allergies and intolerances. take a look at www.theallergymenu.com ITS FREE!

Topic: Looking for Recipe / Mustard substitution

I am allergic to mustard seed.

Topic: Website Problems and Requests / Red # 40 food dye and other artificial colors.

It makes me so angry that things are placed in food for no other reason than improving the appearance. My son has problems with caramel coloring, and one of the yellow’s. He loves pickles, but that yellow coloring is in all of them, and sausage casings usualy have the caramel coloring, as do so many other things.

Topic: Website Problems and Requests / Red # 40 food dye and other artificial colors.

My daughter (23yo) has the same problem with ALL colorings. She has sleep apnea. She’s been off colorings for YEARS. While out of the country recently, she ate some and those with her could tell she became hyper, but she didn’t notice. LOL
Have you been to feingold.org?

Topic: Website Problems and Requests / Red # 40 food dye and other artificial colors.

My daughter is highly sensitive/allergic to red #40 food dye. It makes her extremely hyper and causes anxiety. She was diagnosed ADHD until we discovered the red #40 connection. Now she has no hyperactive tendencies unless she accidentally gets red #40. It is in a lot of foods that are not red. It is in some cakes mixes and frostings, things that are green, jellies and preserves, etc.

Topic: Chef Central / Non-Stick Skillet Question

Okay. Maybe I’d be better off to just buy a nonstick skillet if you don’t think a cast-iron will work, Leah. Or, if I feel like eating French fries anytime soon, perhaps I’ll try your idea, AllieK! Thanks for your input, guys.

Topic: Looking for Recipe / Help with jellies and jams!

I have seen a recipe that uses phyllium as the thickener. Look for a fiber supplement that only contains phyllium.

Topic: Allergy Support Group / What's the deal with corn and Xanthan gum?

I know that I am way late with this response, but I wanted to mention that my dds have trouble with Xanthan Gum. Their main allergy is MSG (Mono Sodium Glutamate). They also have trouble with anything that is high in free glutamates, (anything that has a lot of glutamate in it will break down into free glutamates when processed). They can eat fresh corn, but not any processed corn (weird huh?), because corn is high in glutamates. Most of the gums, Xanthan included are high in free glutamates and cause a reaction in my children.

Just thought that I would throw this out there as MSG is a very misunderstood allergen.

Topic: Chef Central / Non-Stick Skillet Question

The Quick Skillet Bread is my recipe. I don’t think it would work in an iron skillet, unless it was like my mother-in-law’s skillet. Her’s is dark and VERY slick from 40 years of use. :-) Even then, I’d use extra oil in it.
A cheap nonstick skillet will work.

Topic: Chef Central / Non-Stick Skillet Question

Most of the time, it happens over time, but you can season it up pretty good by frying french fries, fried okra, or anything else that floats in oil, in it a couple of times. When the hot oil cools, pour it out and then just wipe the pan with paper towel. Do not use soap or water. If something is stuck to the pan, just take a flat metal spatula and scrape it out. Do not scour with anything except the nylon mesh pads.
Cast iron has to be babied and in time, you will have a totally non-stick pan.
Some things mess up the seasoning of your cast iron frying pans. One of them is salty things like bacon, or anything acidic.

Topic: Chef Central / Non-Stick Skillet Question

Thanks for the quick reply, AllieK! My cast-iron skillets aren’t shiny black. How can I season it, or does the seasoning just happen over time?

Topic: Allergy Support Group / For those avoiding gluten: a warning

This is a bit late, but I realized I hadn’t seen a warning about this issue on the board, so I wanted to put it up!

Basically, it’s this: be careful of your gluten free grains and flours. Turns out, the law in the USA allows ‘naturally’ gluten free products, like sorghum and rice, for example, to call themselves gluten free. Automatically.

Because of course they could never be processed and get contaminated, now could they? Ugh. Researchers who had a freaking clue decided that they should test this out and see how a lot of these grains and flours panned out, gluten-wise. They tested 22.

The summation of the results was, of course, that many of these flours and grains ARE actually contaminated with gluten :-( The summation of the study was this:
“The worst offenders included soy flour, which had 2,925 parts per million of gluten, sorghum flour, which was contaminated with 234 parts per million of gluten, and two different brands of millet flour, which contained up to 327 parts per million of gluten. Millet whole grain, buckwheat flour and white rice flour also contained detectable levels of gluten.”

You can find some info. on it, here: http://news.suite101.com/article.cfm/celiac-disease-diet-study-many-gluten-free-grains-contaminated-a243716

Personally, I’m going to be purchasing those ‘test at home’ kits for gluten now and testing some of my GF flours. There have been a few that my family has had on the days I thought the kids got gluten, and now I’m wondering if this has been the reason!

Topic: Chef Central / Non-Stick Skillet Question

Cast iron “can be” non-stick if it is seasoned enough. Proper seasoning takes a long time, often years, to accomplish. If your pan is shiny black, without oiling it, then it should be seasoned enough. Just don’t have the heat too high.

Topic: Looking for Recipe / Help with jellies and jams!

If you are really serious about making jams or jellies, you can try to make your own pectin like they did before packaged pectin was available. I’ve never done this.

http://www.wildflowers-and-weeds.com/The_Forager/pectin.htm

Topic: Looking for Recipe / Help with jellies and jams!

Thanks for the reply, jennalemke! Unfortunately, I’m allergic to beans. Do you know if another kind of starch, like corn or tapioca, will work? If anyone else has other suggestions too, that would be great!

Topic: Chef Central / Non-Stick Skillet Question

Is a cast-iron skillet the same thing as a non-stick, or can it function as one? I really want to try the Quick Skillet Bread recipe but we don’t have the right kind of pan! Will a cast-iron skillet work? Thanks.

Topic: Allergy Support Group / *update* 4 year old and 2 year old with lots of food allergies!

Wow, so many stories! Thansk you all for taking the time to reply. in response to Kellymom, the reason we followed the test reults to a “t” so to speak is so that even if they were actually able to have something on the list, we could detox them of all the things they couldn’t. I’m glad we did, because there are some things that I know for sure they’ll never be able to have again and things that they can eat now!

Topic: Allergy Support Group / Vaccines vs poor immune system

Vaccine is a biological preparation that improves immunity to a particular disease.The immune system recognizes vaccine agents as foreign, destroys them, and “remembers” them.if you have weak immune system vaccines would be useless..it wont respond adequately or at all..i suggest you rather not take vaccines with damaged or weak immune system…

Generic Atarax | Generic Allegra

Topic: Allergy Support Group / Need help avoiding coffee!

you can try these alternatives for coffee:
Teeccino is the number one coffee alternative
green tea contains some caffeine, it is nowhere near as much as coffee.
black tea is also an effective coffee alternative.
Licorice tea contains no caffeine, and offers a sweet flavor
Rooibos tea is very similar to black tea
Chocolate powder may not be the best coffee alternative, but it is an option.
Siberian Ginseng tea contains no caffeine,
Carob powder is similar to cocoa, but does not contain caffeine.

Generic Atarax | Generic Allegra

Topic: Allergy Support Group / Subsitute for Potatoes?

The only treatment for celiac disease is a gluten-free diet.Eating even a small amount of gluten can damage the small intestine.Buy rice, soy, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, or bean flour instead of wheat flour. They can buy gluten-free bread, pasta, and other products from stores that carry organic foods, or order products from special food companies.Plantain is a good substitute for potatoes..

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Topic: Allergy Support Group / Peanut, Corn, & Soy Allergies!?!?

Soy is one of the top 8 food allergens in the world. For those of us who are allergic to soy, reactions can range from mild (hives, canker sores, itching) to moderate (abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, wheezing) to severe (dizziness, drop in blood pressure, loss of consciousness, anaphylaxis and death).Rice milk will be your best bet…the corn allergy is the hardest as it is in everything.

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Topic: Allergy Support Group / Gluten vs Wheat

Gluten is a type of protein found in most grains, cereals, and breads,though it contains wheat but gluten free diet is void of wheat..

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Topic: Allergy Support Group / Allergy Test results

People with Asperger syndrome often display behavior, interests, and activities that are restricted and repetitive and are sometimes abnormally intense or focused. They may stick to inflexible routines, move in stereotyped and repetitive ways, or preoccupy themselves with parts of objects.

Generic Atarax | Generic Allegra

Topic: New Allergy Requests / spices

Can you please add mint? My Mother and I are both allergic to it.

Topic: Allergy Support Group / Breastfeeding mom on elimination diet...HELP

Goats milk to replace cow’s milk, hard AGED cheeses, and yogurt you/he can have, get into the habit of checking the lables for live bacteria cultures (such as Lactobacillus bulgaricus). I have a Cow’s milk/soy protein allergy as well. Word of advice make all of his food, that way you know what is in it and how much. Also avoid Lentails/Legumes as they have a very similair protein make up of Soy beans, at least until he is older. Feed him plenty of broccoli, there is plenty of calcium in them to help replace the calcium he isn’t getting from cow’s milk. Rice Formula is a good one for kids with milk/soy allergies.

My brother has the same allergy as well and it was caught early enough that by the time he was 5 he could have small amounts of milk and soy and now at the age of 17 he can handle it with nothing more of an slight upset stomach.
There may also be a chance of when your son is older that he may not be able to have milk at all due to the fact that he may become allergic to the sugars in the milk.
Mashed Potatoes with sour cream works for me as well. Sherbert has very little cream in it so you can have some not a lot and AVOID ice cream like it was the plague, soy sauce too. and as he grows older make sure he becomes self montoriting, he will need it, you won’t always be there for him.

any other questions please feel free to contact me, my e-mail: shardgirl4u@yahoo.com If i can’t help you then my mother can.