Just in Time for Valentine's Day

Are you near a Whole Foods?

Yes?

Then get yourself over there and buy a box of these heart shaped frosted sugar cookies from Little Rae's bakery. Now THIS is my kind of Valentine's Day treat.

Your family and friends (and especially your peanut or tree nut allergic child) will thank you.

Your hips, not so much.

(photo courtesy of cakespy on flickr).

Premade Mixes from Mall Stores

Halloween JUST came to an end, but not before I received more than one Christmas catalog.

The Crate and Barrel catalog caught my eye, not only for the great gift ideas, but for their allergen warnings in the catalog for their food products, like their Peppermint Bark (which is yummy by the way):

Crate and Barrel Exclusive

The cool flavor and crunch of candy canes mingle with rich dark fudge and sweet white chocolate fudge in this old-fashioned treat.

• Contains dark chocolate, white chocolate and crushed candy canes
• Produced in a facility that processes nuts
• Made in the USA

I think I found one food item in the catalog that didn't carry the warning. Suffice it to say, you'll have a tough time finding something in the Crate & Barrel catalog that you can have (well, that your peanut allergic self or peanut allergic child can have). But at least they list the allergen warning in their catalog (and on their website)!

Can't say the same for Williams-Sonoma. And believe me, NONE of their items are safe for nut allergy sufferers. They all carry a CYA warning.

So be careful if you come across these branded items at a party. Their labels are removable from the pretty tin, so you might not see that warnings they carry. They may look innocent, but might be dangerous for allergy sufferers.