Candy Vending Machines - Beware!

A lovely reader by the name of Anonymous just left a comment on my last post (next time leave your name lovely reader - i love knowing everyone's name who comments!):

"A new concern: my 8 yo daughter went to gymnastics with a friend last night. After class, the friend's mom let the girls each get a handful out Skittles out of the candy machine--the old fashioned kind where you put in a quarter and crank the handle, and a handful of skittles pours out into your hand. They were two miles from home when my daughter somehow realized that she had bitten into a Reece's Pieces!!! She spit it out immediately and we got her Benadryl right away. She is fine. But just a shout out to other moms to be very aware of those machines."

I totally agree!  I am super wary of those machines - we had a close call a few years ago with B and we only do the toy/sticker machines now.  I'm so glad her daughter was safe too - what a scare!

Thanks Anonymous for the heads up and reminder!

Busy Saturday

I've spent the day doing all sorts of chores. Suffice it to say I feel the need to reward myself.

With these.

Vermont Nut Free Skippers.

Like m&m's except a little bigger. So good*.
"leave on the top shelf so high you need a stepladder to get them" good.

Have you guys had any other VNF chocolates? What's your favorite? I think I might need to order some more safe treats for the holidays.

*and no, they didn't send them to me or ask me to review them. i ordered some from peanut free planet a few weeks ago. they are so good.

Divvies

Note: I want to preface this by saying that I have zero affiliation with this company. This is just my personal experience with this product. They have not compensated me or given me free products in exchange for this post.

---------------------------------

So, have you tried Divvies yet?

I was lucky enough to get a few free samples at the Food Allergy Walk in September. I couldn't believe how good they were! I was actually sold after the first bite.

I placed an order for a few items with them not long after and we've decided on two favorite flavors in our household: Molasses Ginger and Oatmeal Raisin.

These cookies are so good that the only way I can describe them is that you would honestly never know they were allergen free if you didn't read the label. Soft, not too sugary, flavorful with a wonderful texture (and I can't say that for Enjoy Life: I know, I know I shouldn't say that, but their cookies are, well, taste challenged and look funny - but I love the Chocoboom, so no nasty comments please).

But the taste of Divvies is amazing. If you go to Whole Foods, you may have seen the Dancing Deer brand, which are delish, but sadly not allergy friendly (they have a " Produced in a bakery that processes peanuts and tree nuts." warning). The Divvies molasses cookies taste just like the DD ginger cookies. They are that good.

I ordered a box of prepackaged cookies called the Divvies Doubles. Twelve packages of two cookies. Perfect with a cup of tea (ok, busted! i've been eating them too) or a glass of cold milk. So good!

The only so-so Divvies product for me? Jelly Beans. They look exactly like Jelly Belly's, but they just don't have the same oomph (something's just missing). But if your child has never had Jelly Belly's they'd never know what they are missing. And they don't come with a flavor guide so you don't know what flavor you are eating until it is in your mouth (which can be blech).

I highly recommend that you try Divvies out. You can order on their website, but I had a nice chat with a woman there when I called in my order. Their site has a bunch of cute sampler baskets (did I mention that in addition to cookies and jelly beans, they have chocolate bars, chips, gumballs, popcorn, and cupcakes?!?) and if you don't think the chocolate snowman on their site isn't the cutest, then something is really wrong with you :)

Now if they would just open a stand in my local mall, I'd be the happiest woman in the world.

Did You Think of This? Cuz I Didn't.

Image Source: Flickr User macprohawaii

I took Bella to Toys R Us after school today to buy a couple of birthday presents for parties this weekend (2 in one day - yikes!). On the way out, I gave Bella $1 in quarters to get some Skittles from the gumball machine. She LOVES gumball machines. And a small handful of Skittles is 50 cents - that's highway robbery!!! Ahem, I digress...

So she gets her Skittles and we walk out past the bank of machines near the exit. We're about 2 steps from the door (and she's jammed most of them in her mouth) and I see peanut m&m's in one of the machines. One that looks exactly like the machine she go the Skittles from.

Oh crap. Big Gulp on my part. What if last week the peanuts were in the Skittles machine? What if those Skittles in my little girl's hands are now covered in peanut dust? Argh!

I lose Peanut Free Mama points this week for that one. Bella didn't have a reaction (oh and you can BET I was watching her like a hawk for 2 hours after), but we've just crossed another treat off of our lists. It just keeps getting shorter, doesn't it?

Luckily, our nearest Fry's (yes the geek heaven) has a bunch of gum ball machines that are filled with rings, tattoos and plastic ninjas so she can get her fix of those money sucking spheres of doom.

How could I have completely missed this? It just really hits home that if you get complacent you let your guard down.

It's back up now.

Blech: Trader Joe's Gluten Free Brownie Mix

So I went into Trader Joe's a few weeks ago and saw their Gluten Free Brownie mix. I was intrigued and decided to buy some. The label not only said that it was gluten free, but that it was tree nut free, peanut free, milk& dairy free, soy free, and corn free.

And as my husband would say "flavor free!"

Turns out he was right. Considering cocoa is one of the 6 ingredients on the label, these things tasted like hockey pucks. Note that the label says 'Delicious' at the top. This, my friends, would be false advertising.

Would it have killed them to add a little vanilla? Cinnamon? More chocolate?

Eesh. Save your money folks.

Anatomy of Peanut Allergic Easter Basket

Update: After the comments (and direct emails I got), I decided to dump the Jelly Bellys. And by dump I mean that I'm bringing them to my office to keep in my desk. Sheesh!

So mommy (aka the Easter Bunny - but don't tell Bella that) went a leeeeetle overboard on the Easter Basket this year. Check it out:

Clockwise from far left. In Basket: Easter card, Hershey's hollow chocolate bunny, sidewalk chalk, a Hershey's egg pack; On couch: Dora coloring book; Peter Rabbit story book, pens and post its; jelly belly's; Cadbury creme eggs; Cadbury mini eggs; peep filled chocolate egg; and a my little pony toy.

Whew! Not sure all that will even fit in her basket. I guess I am a lot like other PA parents, trying to overcompensate for the fact that she can't have most candy - so I overdo it by buying too much of what she CAN have. Oh well.

Ok, ok, I KNOW the jelly belly's aren't technically safe for Bella. But here's the thing. These jelly beans are for the easter eggs outside and she isn't really a fan of jelly beans. So I'm taking my chances since they aren't a 'may contain' food, only a 'made in a facility'. I know, I know - you don't need to scold me! Everything else is safe for her, though.

I figure she'll get through one of the creme eggs and be bored with the candy (just like she did for Valentine's Day and Christmas).

So what's in your kids' basket(s)?

Can't Have Candy with a Peanut Allergy?

Think again.

If you hanker for a Mounds Bar, or Peppermint Bark, never fear.

You can make them at home. Here are a few resources for making your own chocolates at home (and not on equipment used to manufacture products with peanuts, tree nuts, or any of the other top 8 allergens or otherwise).

Mounds Bar
Peppermint Bark
Peanut Butter Cups (substitute Sunbutter for Peanut Butter).
Peeps!
Milky Way
Peppermint Patties

I haven't made any of these, mind you, but it's nice to see the resources online. Can you tell I'm craving chocolate and candy today?!?

And a side note: If you want to recreate some restaurant recipes, check out this site. You have to pay for the recipes (all I believe - but they are only .79 each), but if you really want to recreate something at home (and allergen-free), this looks like the place to start!

Valentine's Treats for Peanut Allergic Kids

So I was browsing around at a chi-chi, upscale grocery store near my office this week, looking for a few peanut-free Valentine Treats for Bella. I figured I could find a little heart shaped box of plain chocolates for her.

Guess what I found?

Nothing.

There's slim pickings for Peanut Allergic Kids for Valentine's Day! Everything is made on equipment that manufactures peanut products, or made in the same facility - both of those no-no's for the vigilant mom.

So how can you fill a Valentine's Basket with safe treats WITHOUT resorting to mail-order?

Here are some options (most of which you can buy at Target or a drugstore near you):

• Sweethearts in 2 oz boxes (in regular, tart, and chocolate flavors)
• Hershey's Kisses (they even have cute, big heart shaped boxes of them without an allergy warning!)
• Hershey's Chocolate Bars (some of the larger ones have a warning though)
• Twizzlers
• Madeleines from Starbucks
• Rice Krispie Treats
• Mike & Ike's
• Gummi Bears
• Oreo Snack Packs
• Whoppers
• Marshmallow Peeps (as long as they don't have chocolate in them)
• Animal crackers
• Hostess Twinkies or Cupcakes (some have warnings i hear, beware)
• Sweet tarts
• Fruitabu
  

At Target, quite a few of these were in Valentine themed cases (i.e. hearts) so it still gets the kids in the spirit. I'll likely get Bella a few of these plus a stuffed animal and some coloring books/pens/stickers.

I must say that not being able to find chocolates and candies is ok with me. I feel a lot better about Bella eating 'real' food like fruit instead of chocolate/sweets for dessert. Is this a bright side of having a peanut allergy? Maybe!

So what would you add to my list?

p.s. Here's a list that details a TON of peanut free/safe foods (note: this list is a year old and originates in Canada, where some products are safe THAT ARE NOT SAFE IN THE USA). NEVER stop reading labels, even if it's a food on this list. Depending on where a product is made (different factory or different country) they could have different manufacturing practices.

Hobee's Coffee Cake

For those of you in the SF Bay Area (and I know you are out there - I look at my stats - so leave a comment people!), here's a recipe for Hobee's Coffee Cake. Hobee's is a Bay Area institution - one of those 'we serve breakfast all day' kinds of places. So Yummy! This recipe is not from their site, but is great! Now that I have it, I don't think my waistline will recover.

And of course, I don't add nuts to mine :)

Warning: This stuff is addicting! Try a slice with a warm pat of butter on top. Yum!

HOBEE'S COFFEE CAKE
Serving Size  : 4
Difficulty:  easy.
Time:  10-15 minutes preparation, 20-30 minutes baking.

-----CAKE INGREDIENTS-----
1 1/2 c Flour (unbleached) -sifted
1 c Sugar, granulated
2 t Baking powder
1/2 t Baking soda
1/4 t Salt
2 Eggs
1 c  Sour cream
1/2 t Vanilla
1/4 c Blueberries, fresh, optional (or other fruit, or nuts such as walnuts)
Vegetable oil (for coating pan)

-----TOPPING-----
5 T Sugar,  granulated
2 T Butter
1/2 t Cinnamon, ground

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a large mixing bowl, resift sift flour
with baking power, baking soda, salt and about 1 cup of sugar.

In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, sour cream and vanilla.
Add egg mixture to flour mixture and beat until smooth.

Oil a 9-inch square baking pan (you can also use an 8 inch square pan,
or anything of similar surface area, if you increase the baking time by
about 5 minutes).

Spread the batter in the pan.  If you are using fruit or nuts, scatter
them over the batter and stir a little bit so that they stay in the top layer.

In a small bowl, mix about 5 T sugar with the butter and cinnamon
with a sturdy fork, until they are blended and resemble cornmeal
(i.e., you should have a mixture of fine crumbs, not a smooth mixture).
Sprinkle topping over batter. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a clean
toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out dry.

Cool slightly; serve warm or at room temperature.

NOTES:  All ingredients and bowls should be a room temperature
before you start; this is particularly true for the butter.

Out with a Bang (and a tip)!

I suppose this will be the last post of 2007 for me (I cannot believe how fast 2007 flew by), so I thought I would leave you with the best discovery I made just a few weeks ago. I think it might just be something that you folks will appreciate.

So, every year since I can remember, my mother has made this thing called simnal cake. It's kind of like fruit cake, and usually served at easter but she makes it for Christmas, except it's lighter than traditional fruitcake and it has gorgeous marzipan in it and dried fruits and it just hits the spot. I used to make it myself every year (well, as an adult) up until the dreaded diagnosis. So what's a girl to do? Well, I for one have been looking for a fruit cake recipe that I can make that I can adapt without nuts. And to be honest, they've all been failures. There's something about the nuttiness that makes the fruit cake a fruit cake.

Right about now you're thinking to yourself, Peanut Free Mama is perhaps the only person in the world who likes fruitcake - that stuff is terrible! Can I send her mine? Ok, now before you click over to another blog, give me a chance.

This Christmas I managed to find a delicious fruitcake (that I served to my 18 guests for Christmas Eve - they loved it!) that I was able to adapt with a suitable and workable replacement for almonds. I don't expect you to go out and make this fruitcake, but when you're reading a recipe that calls for ground almonds, give this a shot.

So here's the recipe I found in Gourmet in the December 2007 issue. It's a gorgeous recipe, all boozy and full of fruits. Maybe since it's called a pound cake with fruit you'll be tempted to try it.

HOLIDAY FRUIT-FILLED POUND CAKE
Gourmet | December 2007

Unlike traditional fruitcakes, which are usually soaked in liquor and can be prepared weeks in advance, this version is best eaten within five days of baking. Makes 12 servings Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez 3/4 cup Cognac or other brandy 2/3 cup golden raisins 2/3 cup currants 2/3 cup dried apricots, finely chopped 2/3 cup dried cranberries 3/4 cup whole blanched almonds plus 1/3 cup for top of cake (6 ouncecs total) 1 cup sugar, divided 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 3/4 teaspoon salt 2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened 4 large eggs 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 tablespoon grated orange zest 3 tablespoons sweet orange marmalade or apricot preserves 1 tablespoon orange-flavored liqueur Equipment: a 9-inch springform pan Heat brandy in a 1-quart saucepan over low heat until warm, then remove from heat and stir in dried fruit. Cover and let stand 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 325°F with rack in middle. Invert bottom of springform pan and lock on side. Generously butter pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess. Finely grind 3/4 cup almonds with 1/4 cup sugar in a food processor, then whisk together with flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Beat butter and remaining 3/4 cup sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well

after each addition (batter will appear curdled), then add vanilla, zest, and fruit with brandy and beat until thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes.

At low speed, mix in flour mixture until incorporated.

Spoon batter into pan, smoothing it, and top with remaining 1/3 cup almonds.

Bake until a long wooden pick inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours.

Run a thin metal spatula around side of cake, then cool in pan on a rack 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt marmalade with liqueur in a small heavy saucepan over medium

heat, stirring, then strain glaze through a sieve into a small bowl, discarding solids.

Loosen side of cake with thin metal spatula again, then remove side of pan and loosen bottom of cake.

Transfer cake from pan to rack and brush glaze over top of cake.

Cool cake completely, about 3 hours.

Cooks' notes:

• Cake improves in flavor if made 1 day ahead.
• Cake keeps, wrapped in parchment paper, then foil, and put in a sealed bag, at room temperature 5 days or frozen 2 weeks (bring to room temperature before serving).

after each addition (batter will appear curdled), then add vanilla, zest, and fruit with brandy and beat until thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes.

At low speed, mix in flour mixture until incorporated.

Spoon batter into pan, smoothing it, and top with remaining 1/3 cup almonds.

Bake until a long wooden pick inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours.

Run a thin metal spatula around side of cake, then cool in pan on a rack 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt marmalade with liqueur in a small heavy saucepan over mediumheat, stirring, then strain glaze through a sieve into a small bowl, discarding solids.

Loosen side of cake with thin metal spatula again, then remove side of pan and loosen bottom of cake.

Transfer cake from pan to rack and brush glaze over top of cake.

Cool cake completely, about 3 hours.

Cooks' notes:

• Cake improves in flavor if made 1 day ahead.
• Cake keeps, wrapped in parchment paper, then foil, and put in a sealed bag, at room temperature 5 days or frozen 2 weeks (bring to room temperature before serving).

And after first reading it, I think, I'm in the clear, no nuts! But then I read it again. Ground almonds in the cake (and whole almonds on top). The almonds on top I can omit, but what about the ground almonds? I emailed Gourmet and (of course) got no response. Was I going to let this recipe get the better of me? There HAD to be a solution (other than omitting them).

And then it came to me.

Coconut.

I'd use coconut and I just KNEW it would work. And it did, it really did! I found a bag of raw coconut (definitely not the sweetened kind) in the hippie section of my supermarket (you know the area - with all the bulk bins of flax seed). I did the exact same measurement of coconut as was called for almonds - 3/4 of a cup, and I omitted the almonds on the top of the cake. When you blitz the coconut with the sugar, the consistency isn't as wet as if it were with almonds, but it is very close. I would suggest using a little more brandy to soak the fruit if you want a moister cake (that's what I did - but don't worry, the smell of booze alone will keep the kids away).

The verdict - this cake tasted like it had almonds in it, but it was the coconut. It was SO good and I was SO pleased. I am thinking that this switcheroo could be used for a variety of recipes that call for almonds in ground form.

I hope this tip helps you in some way. Have any of you ever tried this substitution? The whole time I was making this, I was thinking - wait until I tell everyone online how it turned out!

Happy New Year Everyone. Have a safe and happy entry into 2008 - I'll be back with more regularity next week...

New Safe Snack for Bella: CLIF Kid Organic Twisted Fruit

I just discovered these at our local market.

CLIF Kid Organic Twisted Fruit

Four flavors: Tropical Twist, Sour Apple, Strawberry, and Mixed Berry. We've tried them all and Bella can't get enough of these. And I don't feel too bad if she wants one with her waffles in the morning. No sugar (in fact, less sugar than lots of other healthier things like kids yogurt).

Instead of a PB&J...

I'm thinking if you served your PA child one of these, they wouldn't miss the peanut butter at all.

Oreo Cakester - So Close

I was in Target last night and saw these:



They're like whoopie pies - except like an Oreo! Chocolate cake, soft creamy white filling - oooh baby. Now, I love me an Oreo cookie, as does Bellaboo, so I grabbed a box for my cart. As a passing habit, I read the label and found:

"ALLERGY INFORMATION: MANUFACTURED ON EQUIPMENT THAT PROCESSES PEANUTS AND TREE NUTS."

Damn you Nabisco! Why do you tempt me so, only to pull the rug out from under me? Ah well, at least I still have regular Oreos.