Chocolate Chip Cookie (GF DF SF)

Cookies

This recipe is altered from a previous one (DF, EF) now that Witt cannot have wheat, but can have eggs.  The following recipe is gluten free, dairy free, and soy free.  I made about 24 cookies, 24 mini-muffins, and one 9" cookie cake to see how the recipe handled different forms.

These may not be the most perfect looking desserts, but everyone loved them! Even the non-allergy folks.  YUM!

Mini-Muffins

Ingredients:

2 1/4 c GF flour (I used Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Mix)
1/4 tsp Xanthan gum
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 c coconut oil
3/4 c white sugar
3/4 c brown sugar
1 tsp GF vanilla extract
2 eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 - 2 cups Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips


Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.

To get your eggs to room temperature more quickly, cover them with warm water.

In a bowl, combine flour and xanthan gum, baking soda and salt.

In a mixer, cream the coconut oil and sugars together.  Then add vanilla and eggs.  Mix well.

Slowly add flour blend to the oil blend. Stir until just combined. (Small chunks of coconut oil are fine.)

Fold in the chocolate chips.

Cookie Cake

For cookies:  

Drop SMALL amounts of dough onto cookie sheet. These spread and flatten. Bake 9 - 11 minutes.  Allow to cool on sheet before transferring to a cooling rack. Yield: approximately 60 cookies

(Note to self: Try refrigerating dough before cooking to see if it helps lesson spreading.)


For mini-muffins: 

Fill muffin tin with cup holders. Do not grease. Fill cup 3/4 full.  Bake 9 - 11 minutes.  These sunk in the middle which made a perfect place for frosting! Turned out great! Yield: approximately 60 mini-muffins


For cookie cake:

Use a non-greased 9" round pan. Use 1/4 - 1/5 of the dough per 9" round pan. Bake 10-13 minutes. Yield: 4-5 9" cookie cakes.  Allow to cool in pan.  Recommend serving from the round pan; do not transfer.

(Note to self: I was very pleased with the cookie cake. The sides of the pan helped contain the spreading.  Will try with a pizza pan to see if the recipe can handle a larger size.)

Rice Treats

This is an oldie from back in 2008, but I've updated the ingredients a bit to fit our new needs. These  treats were individually wrapped and labeled for my boys' Fall Festival at school. Now the allergy kids can have a treat, too! :)

 

I made a batch with Earth Balance and another with coconut oil. I, personally, like the coconut oil batch better. Enjoy!

 

Ingredients
10.5 oz GF miniature marshmallows (eg. Kraft)
1/4 cup coconut oil (preferred) or DF/SF margarine (eg. Earth Balance buttery spread)
5-6 cups GF crispy rice cereal (eg. GF Rice Krispies)

Directions
Line a 13x9 pan with wax paper and grease with coconut oil.

Melt coconut oil in a large bowl in the microwave (If you have time, you really should do this over low heat on the stove top to preserve the benefits of coconut oil. But... I was in a hurry and this is what I did.)

Add marshmallows to melted oil and mix to coat.

Microwave marshmallows and coconut oil until melted, stirring after each 1 minute. (Or if using the stove, just stir continuously until everything is melted and well combined.)

Add cereal to melted marshmallows slowly, stirring to combine well. Pour mixture into pan and press down with greased fingers.

Cool in the refrigerator. Cut into squares.

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Side note: I didn't realize until after I had stuck my labels on that I forgot to add soy-free. And to make these Top 8-Free, these are of course fish and shellfish-free, too. ;)

Homemade Almond Flour

This looks absolutely amazing! And what a savings, too! I haven't tried it yet, but can't wait to do so!


~ The Crazy Kitchen ~: Cooking 101: How to make your own high quality almond flour

Ask the Readers: Chocolate Fountain

I received this email from a reader and I don't have any experience with this, so I thought I'd throw the question out there to my readers. Please offer any suggestions in the comment section. Thanks so much!

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Have you ever come across an allergy-friendly recipe for a chocolate fountain or chocolate fondue? I have a 'turning-fifteen" year old daughter who is allergic to dairy, egg, and peanuts who really wants a chocolate something for her birthday party. If you have any ideas, I would really like to hear them.

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Chocolate Cake Brownies

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free, Soy-Free, Peanut-Free

This recipe was adapted from the March edition of Guideposts Magazine.  You could substitute regular flour for the rice and amaranth flour if gluten is not a concern. 

Ingredients:
3/4 cup coconut oil
3/4 cup honey
1 1/4 cup milk substitute
1/4 cup flaxseed meal
2 t vanilla
1 1/2 cups rice flour
1/2 cup amaranth flour
1 cup cocoa powder
1 t baking soda
3/4 t sea salt
2 t baking powder
1 cup organic walnuts
1/2 cup chocolate baking chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease the inside of a 9x13 pan with coconut oil.  Combine oil, honey, milk substitute, flaxseed and vanilla in order, then mix 1 minute on medium.  Gradually add flours and cocoa powder - mix one minute on medium.  Add baking soda, salt and baking powder in order, then mix 1 minute on high.  Add walnuts and chocolate chips - mix well.  Pour into pan and bake 17-20 minutes.  Store in fridge. 

Makes 12 brownies.

Tortilla Soup -- Dairy Free

Finding good soups or a taco soup that is dairy free is a big challenge.  So many have cheese or cream cheese.  Here's a tortilla soup that my daughter really likes.  It also is not very spicy which really appeals to a toddler.

Tortilla Soup (or Taco Soup as my daughter calls it)

(I found this in Everyday Food by Martha Stewart)

1 Tbsp olive oil

4 garlic cloves

1 tsp chili powder

2 cans diced tomatoes

2 cans black beans

1 can chicken broth (boullion would work, too)

10 oz package frozen corn

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup crushed tortilla chips (I used some leftover taco shells)

1 Tbsp fresh lime juice.

1. In large saucepan, heat oil medium.  Cook garlic and chili powder until fragrant about 1 minute.

2. Add tomatoes with juice, beans, broth, corn and 1 cup water.  Season with salt and pepper.

3. Bring soup to boil, reduce to simmer.  Add tortilla chips and cook until softened about 2 minutes.  

4. Remove from heat and stir in lime juice.  Serve with extra tortilla chips.

**This soup freezes really well. The tortilla chips get a little soft, but you could always freeze a portion before adding the tortilla chip. And then add tortilla chips after unthawing.**

Green Bean Casserole

I created this recipe because I was tired of not having any "popular" potluck items to bring to family functions.  Everyone loves green bean casserole, however, it is hard to find a recipe that doesn't call for some type of creamy soup.  I brought this to a family get-together a few years ago and everyone loved it.  In fact, they asked me to bring it back the next year.  No more cream of mushroom casseroles!!

Ingredients:

• 2 c. wild rice
• 4 c. chicken broth
• 1/2 c. chopped celery
• 1 small chopped onion
• 1 t. rosemary
• 1 c. sliced mushrooms
• 1 lb. steamed green beans
• Wheat germ

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350.  Cook rice in broth until done.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.  Top with a layer of wheat germ.  Place in a casserole dish and bake until the wheat germ is toasty (approximately 30 minutes).

To make into a main dish add 2 cups of diced chicken to the casserole before baking.

Buckwheat Pancakes

Pancakes are a weekend favorite in our house - the only problem is that most of the packaged mixes contain at least one of the foods my son is allergic to. And if the mixes don't contain them, the recipe calls for eggs or milk.

I started making my own mixes not too long ago and not only are they allergy-free and easy to make, but they save a TON of money!!

Buckwheat Pancakes

Blend the following ingredients:

• 1 1/2 c. water
• 3 T oil (we prefer coconut oil)
• 1 c. buckwheat flour
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 t. vanilla

You could add 1/2 c. sugar to the mix to sweeten it. We prefer to drizzle our pancakes with maple syrup instead.

This recipe should make 6 large pancakes (8-10 small).

Enjoy!

No Bake Cookie Bars

adapted from Lynn's Kitchen Adventures


Ingredients

1/2 c honey
1/2 c coconut oil
2 Tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/3 c Sunbutter
1 1/2 c oats (I used "old fashioned")
1/2 c dairy free chocolate chips


Directions

Melt honey, coconut oil, and cocoa powder on low stirring well to combine. Whisk at least 1 minute once melted as the honey really likes to settle on the bottom. Remove from heat.

Stir in vanilla and Sunbutter. Add oats and chocolate chips. Stir to combine.

Transfer to a brownie pan and refrigerate until hardened (approximately 1 hour or more).

Homemade Dairy-Free, Nut-Free Chocolate Candy

With Valentine's Day coming up, I struggle with chocolate candy for my dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free daughter. You can buy expensive allergy-free chocolate or you can make your own. Here's what I came up with to make some fun chocolate candies.

Use a mold or silicon ice cube tray. I bought mine at the dollar store, but I've also seen them at the dollar spot at Target. Simply melt dairy-free chocolate chips, such as Enjoy Life chocolate chips, and pour into the mold. Chill and pop out.

Here's another recipe to change it up a little. Yummy!

Chocolate Sunbutter Hearts

1/2 cup dairy-free chocolate chips (I use Enjoy Life)
1/4 cup Sunbutter (or Soybutter)
2 Tbsp daiy-free butter (I use Earth's Balance)

1. Melt in microwave for 30 seconds.

2. Pour in mold

3. Chill in freezer for an hour or longer.

4. Once chilled, pop out and eat!

**Use more or less of the ingredients depending on how many you want to make. You really can't do it wrong.*

(This recipe is featured on Mallergies.)

SunButter GIVEAWAY!

THIS STUFF TASTES GOOD! I PROMISE!

I bought some Sunbutter in bulk and now I've got more than I can use by the SELL BY date of March 2010. Wanna take some off my hands for free? :)

Giveaway: 3 different winners will receive a 16 oz jar of Sunbutter Natural.

Processed in a peanut free and tree nut free facility. Made on equipment that processes soybeans.

Ingredients: Sunflower seed, dehydrated cane juice, salt, and natural mixed tocopherols to preserve freshness.


RULES
1. Leave me a comment about why you'd like to try it... allergy, curious, don't like peanuts?
2. Open to US mailing addresses.
3. One entry per person.
4. Comments close Friday, Feb 5, 2010 at NOON CST and THREE (3) winners will be chosen.
5. Please leave a way for me to contact you or I will choose another winner.
6. You will have 2 days from the time I send you an email notifying you that you won to send me your mailing address.

Good luck!

Pre-Packaged Dairy-free, Egg-free, Peanut-free

Scroll to bottom of this post for the list of DF-EF-PF pre-packaged food.

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(Whew... what a title!)

I admit it... I was a big pre-packaged cooker before Witt's allergies hit us. Yes, allergieS. The dairy allergy was obvious and then the egg allergy was confirmed when he ate something with egg in it... I don't remember what it was, but I do remember him scratching terribly about two hours after ingestion. Poor little guy. I have not tried barley again yet as I just haven't had the time to pay close enough attention. So, at least two confirmed allergies... possibly a third.

Now that Witt starting to eat more table food, I must be more careful now than I was before; so, I want to start a log of pre-packaged foods that he has eaten so I can keep a reference. I hope this list will also help others and verify some of the foods that "appear" to be dairy-free egg-free. By appears to be I mean that there are so many milk derivatives that it is sometimes hard to keep them straight. Also, some things have the same labeling, but might not be milk-derived (ie "caramel color" can come from milk or other places - I have to call the manufacturer to find out). It's a very tedious process of reading labels (many, many times) to keep Witt safe.

Some of these might appear obviously dairy-free, but you just never know... we found dairy products in toddler toothpaste!!!

Although I am do a lot more "from scratch" cooking now, here are the prepackaged foods that Witt has already had without reaction (this will be a living list as I will add as we go and is in no particular order).

Please note that Witt has never had reaction to foods that use the terminology "May contain xyz" or "Processed on lines with xyz". The extent of each person's allergies is different, so be sure to read the labels. This list is not "guaranteed" safe, it is just what worked for us.


UPDATE: Dec 2008 - Witt also tested positive to peanuts this year, so this list will also include peanut free foods he has eaten.

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For Milk Allergy Mom's list of tried foods: click here and here.
I Can't Believe It's Vegan also has a huge list of dairy-free egg-free prepackaged foods.
Go Dairy Free has a wonderful list of not dairy free, possibly dairy free, and surprisingly dairy free ingredients.
For other DF Bloggers, check out my Dairy-Free Blogroll.

Cereal/BreakfastPlain Cheerios
Cinnamon Life
Pop-Tarts: Brown Cinnamon & Sugar with icing
Pop-Tarts: Strawberry (no frosting)
Malt-o-Meal Berry Colossal Crunch
Van’s Wheat Free Mini Waffles
100% Pure Maple Syrup
Lucky Charms
Fiber One Caramel Delight
Kellogg's Frosted MiniWheats (Strawberry Delight)
Kroger Instant Oatmeal Lower-sugar Apples and cinnamon
Malt OMeal Marshmallow Mateys
Bluebird Mini Honey Buns

Cookies/Crackers/Chips

Nabisco Graham Crackers - honey
Cambridge Graham Crackers - honey
Pringles chips- Plain
Best Value Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (Wal*Mart brand)
Kroger Value Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Ritz Original Crackers
Cambridge Ritz style crackers
Clancy's Pretzel Sticks (from Aldi)
Golden OREOs Original
OREOs
Vanilla MoonPies
SuperPretzels (plain)

Canned/Jarred
Bush's Black Eyed Peas
Del Monte Green Beans
Le Sueurs whole carrots
Plain Applesauce
Canned fruits
Fruit bowls (no parfaits, yogurts, ONLY plain)
Mushrooms

DelMonte Greenbeans

Sauces/Condiments

Ragu Sauteed Onion & Garlic Pasta Sauce
Parkay Squeeze "butter"
Fleischman's Unsalted margarine
Willow Run Vegan Margarine
Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
Tofutti Sour Supreme / Better Than Sour Cream
Heinz Ketchup
Kraft Creamy Italian dressing & dip
Kikkoman's soy sauce Red Star Nutritional Yeast
Rachel Ray's Beef Flavored Stock
Heinz Worcestershire Sauce
Kikkoman Soy Sauce
Hormel Real Bacon Bits (50% Less fat)
Chef's Cupboard Onion Soup Mix (from Aldi's)
Private Selection Organic Chicken Broth (Kroger)

"Cheese"
I buy online from The Vegan Store:
Follow Your Heart Vegan Cheese: "Cheddar", "Mozzarella"
Veganaise Mayonaise
Parmazao Imitations Parmesan

Rices/Pasta

Near East Couscous - Wild Mushroom and Herbs
ASIA Specialties Soy Ginger (from Aldi)
Near East Rice Pilaf Mix - Original
Jehling Ramen Noodle Soup - chicken flavor (from Aldi)
10 Minute Success Boil in Bag Rice
Smart Taste Pastas
THAI KITCHEN Spring Onion Instant Rice Noodle Soup

Baby Finger Foods
Gerber Graduates APPLE wagon wheels
Gerber Graduates mini fruits (dried) - banana strawberry
Kroger Brand Little Comforts Puffs – Blueberry, Strawberry Apple
Gerber Graduates Juice Treats

Drinks
Nesquick Chocolate powder
Hershey's Chocolate syrup
100% Juices
Silk Soy Milk
Rice Dream Milk

Meat

Hebrew National Hot Dogs (of course cut up very small with skin removed.)
Great Value fully cooked Homestyle meatballs (frozen at Wal*mart)
Tennessee Pride mild sausage patties
Brookdale Vienna Sausages
Brookdale Potted Meat
Valley Fresh 100% natural while chicken in water
Ian's fish sticks (GF, CF, DF, EF, SF, NF)
Boca Burgers - original vegan
Hormel Real Bacon Bits (50% Less Fat)
Carolina Pride Beef Smoked Sausage
Banquet Chicken Nuggets
Hormel Natural Choice 100% Honey Deli Ham

Bread

Sunbeam King Thin
Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
Publix white
L'Oven Fresh white (Aldi)
Sara Lee Soft & Smooth 100% Honey Wheat - see Aimee's comment

Random

Mt. Olive Kosher Mini Dill Pickles
Ore-Ida Extra Crispy Tater-tots
Old El Paso Taco Dinner Kit

Desserts

Tofutti Cuties (ice cream sandwiches)
Great Value Semi-sweet chocolate chips
Dairy Free Ice “creams” (DREAM, Purely Decedent)
Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Red Velvet (substitute eggs with a little less than 3/4 c unsweetened applesauce)

Fast Food
McDonald's French Fries - see Melissa's comment

Burger King plain hamburger with bun

Burger King french fries

Chicken MeeFun (rice noodles) from our local Chinese restaurant (not at a buffet)
Terriyaki Chicken on a stick from our local Chinese restaurant (not at a buffet)


NOTE: This post has been copied from my personal blog. The original post (from May 2008) and all the comments are still available there, but I thought it would be most handy for those that read here as well.

Healthier Breakfast Cookies

Although we've enjoyed the previous breakfast cookie recipe I've posted, I wanted to make it a little healthier. I had already reduced the sugar amount from the original, but now I've changed a few more things. I may even try to reduce the sugar further the next time I make them.

Here's our current recipe:

1 cup margarine or coconut oil
1 cup sucanat
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup applesauce (not sweetened)
1/2 cup peanut butter substitute
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup dry cereal (your choice)
1/2 cup dairy free chocolate chips

OPTIONAL ADDITIONS
2 Tablespoons wheat germ
2 Tablespoons hemp seed
2 Tablespoons milled flax
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1/2 cup raisins or other dried fruit
1/2 cup nuts


Directions

Melt together the margarine or coconut oil. Add sugars and cream thoroughly.

Mix remaining ingredient and stir in any or all of the optional ingredients.

Drop by rounded Tablespoons onto lightly greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 for 11-13 minutes. Makes 3 dozen.


***Just a few notes:

These cookies do NOT turn a golden brown, but they continue to crisp up after cooking. I have found that I get best results when they are still just a little gooey coming out of the oven and leave them on the cookie sheet to cool for at least 5 minutes. Then I transfer them to a cooling rack.

However, if I do over cook and they are just too crispy to enjoyably eat, they are WONDERFUL broken up into a bowl of almond milk and eaten like cereal in the morning for breakfast! They are practically oatmeal and cereal after all!

For the cereal, we use Lucky charms or Fruit Loops to add some color, but I'm sure something healthier would work, too. :)

For the peanut butter substitute, both almond butter and sunbutter gave good results, but I prefer Sunbutter for it's stronger taste.

When using this much coconut oil, it will be necessary to refrigerate these cookies or they will fall apart easily.

Chewy Non-Peanut Butter Brownies

Have you tried SunButter? Oh my word, it's good. At first it tastes like peanut butter, but then you get the sunflower seed in the aftertaste. Yum.

The original recipe is here, but I've altered it to fit our needs. Also, if you don't want to use whole wheat flour, just use a full cup of all-purpose. (I just like to try and sneak some better flour in where I can! {grin})

I could not tell that these were not peanut butter. So moist and tasty. This will easily become a family favorite!


1/2 cup Sunbutter
1/2 cup dairy free margarine, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C ). Grease a 9x9 inch baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together sun butter and margarine. Gradually blend in the brown sugar, white sugar, applesauce, and vanilla; mix until fluffy. Combine flours, baking powder, and salt; stir into the sun butter mixture until well blended.
3. Bake for 35 minutes in preheated oven, or until the top springs back when touched. Cool, and cut into squares.

(This recipe is featured on Allergy Sense.)

Breakfast Cookies: Dairy-free, Egg-free

Gayle calls these Babysitter Cookies and she's posted them on recipezaar.com. They are fantastic and "healthier" than your basic cookie because you can sneak a few extra things in! :)

Here's the recipe I use:

1/2 cup dairy free margarine or coconut oil
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup white sugar or sucanat
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups AP flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup cereal (we use Lucky charms for the extra colors)
1/2 cup dairy free chocolate chips (Kroger brand semisweet are DF)
1/2 cup peanut butter substitute - (both almond butter and sunbutter gave good results, but I prefer Sunbutter)
2 Tablespoons wheat germ (optional)
2 Tablespoons hemp seed (optional)
2 Tablespoons milled flax (optional)

Other optional suggestions she gives, but I have not tried:
1/2 cup coconut (optional)
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 cup nuts (optional)


Directions

Melt together the margarine (or coconut oil) and shortening. Add sugars and cream thoroughly.

Add applesauce, vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, flour, oatmeal, cereal and mix well. Mix in peanut butter substitute and chocolate chips.

Stir in any or all of the optional ingredients.

Drop by rounded Tablespoons onto lightly greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. Makes 3 dozen.


***Just a note: these cookies do NOT turn a golden brown and continue to crisp up after cooking. I have found that I get best results when they are still just a little gooey coming out of the oven and leave them on the cookie sheet to cool for at least 5 minutes. Then I transfer them to a cooling rack.

However, if I do over cook and they are just too crispy to enjoyably eat, they are WONDERFUL broken up into a bowl of milk and eaten like cereal in the morning for breakfast! They are practically oatmeal and cereal after all! :)

We really enjoy these cookies!