Strawberry-Banana Smoothies {Dairy-free}

Yesterday, I made these for my girls for an after-school snack and I scored big!! Because I don’t make them often, {I don’t know why, thank you for asking} they thought these were the most awesome snack and I was their favorite mom {not to mention, their ONLY mom}. These are super easy and now that I remember that, I will keep them on my list of healthy after-school snacks.

Strawberry-Banana Smoothies

Fresh strawberries, washed and sliced

1 banana, peeled and sliced*

4 oz. soy yogurt, in vanilla or plain {coconut milk yogurt works, too!}

4 oz. almond milk {plain for less sugar content}

crushed ice

*you can substitute a frozen banana instead of using ice.*

Makes 2 or 3 servings – and serve it with a straw! Everything is better with a straw!

Put all ingredients in blender and pulse until you get the consistency you want. I use a Cuisinart handheld Quick Mixer and it is perfect for this job. This is a great one to let the kids help with, too. For added protein, you could add some soy protein powder, but I haven’t personally tried it so I cannot vouch for the taste.

No-Bake Chocolate Cookies {dairy-free, nut-free}

Who doesn’t absolutely go nuts over love a no-bake chocolate cookie? Well, I don’t think I know anyone that doesn’t fit that description. If you don’t, I don’t wanna hear about it. I loved these as a kid, but I absolutely adore these as a mom. They are super easy. Mix a few ingredients, let them chill in the fridge and voila! A little chunk of allergy-free heaven!

Here’s the low-down…

Melt 3T butter (I use Smart Balance Light – it’s dairy-free) in a 2 quart saucepan.

Add 3/4c sugar, 2 heaping T cocoa powder, 1/4 c almond milk. Mix well.

Stir in 1/2 c crunchy soy butter (or almond butter, sun butter, etc.), 1 cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips.

Remove from burner and stir in 1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats. Let sit a couple minutes until it gets a bit stiff.

Drop in rounded tablespoons onto a wax paper lined pan. Chill approximately 30 minutes.

Enjoy!!

Pumpkin Cookies {egg-free, dairy-free}

When I was searching for a dessert that I could make for Thanksgiving, I had to find something that would be allergy-free for my girl and wanted something that everyone else could enjoy, too.  (Of course, there will be plenty of other desserts, too!) Well, it took all of 10 seconds to find this site and this yummy recipe for Pumpkin Cookies. I went through Swagbucks to do a search for allergy-free desserts and came to this site. Scrolled down just a bit to find another that I will definitely be trying in a couple weeks for Christmas – Sugar Cookies!! Yes, the classic sugar cookie that you roll out and cut into shapes. I can’t wait to try that one!

These are a perfect soft cookie. The recipe claims that they are chewy, but mine turned out soft. I’m not sure why, but I like them just fine.  And while they’re still warm, I’m going to let my girl try one out. These might be extra good with a bit of orange frosting and some seasonal sprinkles on them.

Birthday Cake {Dairy-/Egg-Free}

A couple weeks ago, my girl turned 5! She was so excited and as you know, the 5th birthday is quite the milestone. So, I knew I would have to do something special in the cake category. The day before her birthday, I made cupcakes for her K5 class and she would be having cupcakes again for a joint birthday party with her BFF who shares the same birthday. Cupcakes are yummy, but I decided I needed to do a non-cupcake kind of thing for the day of her birthday. So, I went to the store and bought the Duncan Hines Devil’s Food Cake Mix {I use Ener-G Egg Replacer instead of the eggs called for in the directions}. It turns out pretty good, but it is a moist cake and that tends to be a bit of a challenge when it comes to holding together. Without eggs, it really wants to crumble. The cupcakes turn out okay, but a sheet cake or anything else would be difficult to do. I began brainstorming and decided I would try to bake individual cakes {bigger than a cupcake, but smaller than a cake pan} in waffle cone bowls. My local Publix has a store brand of waffle cone bowls that have none of my daughter’s allergens in them, so I bought them. I made the cake according to the directions, only substituting the eggs. Then, I placed 6 waffle cone bowls into a 9×13 pan and filled each bowl 2/3 full with cake batter. I don’t remember how long I baked them, but I know I baked them longer than you would bake a cupcake and possibly as long as a sheet cake, maybe longer. I just baked until I thought they looked right and then inserted a toothpick into one and it came out clean. You’ll just have to eyeball it, if you try this. The bowls will take the shape of the pan they are in and mine turned out kind of square. But I thought it looked cute! Once cool, I frosted them with a chocolate icing (store-bought and dairy-free) and then sprinkled the colorful sprinkles on top.

The most important part was that my 5 year old loved it! I never tasted it, but they all got eaten up pretty quickly.

I think I will be trying a made-from-scratch allergy-free cake recipe soon to see if it holds up better than a cake mix and if it does, I will let you know!

Tips for helping your child live a ‘normal’ life.

I notice the look of hope on my daughter’s face when I am checking the ingredient list on certain foods that look appealing to her.  And, unfortunately, I have seen the look of disappointment when she learns she cannot have that food.  I have seen her eyes light up when I have found a new treat for her and I’ve seen how happy she is when she realizes she can eat something that her older sister gets to eat.  As a mother, I want her to be able to eat everything that her peers are eating, but I know that is not possible.  It breaks my heart to have to tell her that some of these very mouth-watering foods could be very hurtful to her, but I do it because I love her.  And because of this, I have come up with some things to help her feel like she’s ‘normal’.   I hope that these tips will be of benefit to you or at least get your creative juices flowing!  And if you have any great tips, please leave a comment on here.  I welcome your input.

• Desserts – I have come to the point that I just like to have desserts on hand that my daughter enjoys and can eat.  Not only can she eat them, but they are very similar to the desserts the rest of us eat – taste and appearance!  This has been fun for me.  Some are simple, some time-consuming, but they are ALL worth every minute of time and effort!  The smile on my child’s face makes it all worth it.  You’ve got to find what works for you.  One of my favorites:  Cherrybrook Kitchen cake and cookie mixes!  Check them out!  They are free of nuts, dairy, egg, and peanut – even gluten!
• Ready-made snacks – These type of snacks I like to keep on hand for traveling, picnics and carrying in her bag to church or friends’ houses.  Most of the fruit snacks available in grocery stores are fine for my child’s needs, but for variety, I buy other sweets on occasion.  My favorite cookie – Back to Nature!  Try the chocolate creme!  Yummy!  I can get these at Whole Foods and Publix.  Look for the buy one get one free sales on these!
• Peanut Butter – My daughter is allergic to peanuts, so I have found a good alternative to peanut butter.  One is Soy Butter – sold at most grocery stores – It’s more oily, but spreads nice like real peanut butter and my daughter likes it.  If you are allergic to soy, though, try Sun Butter.  I’ve tried Sun Butter – made from sunflower seeds, but it has a big aftertaste that neither I nor my daughter can handle.  If you really like sunflower seeds, you’ll like Sun Butter.  Who doesn’t love a PB&J?  Now we have a good alternative!
• Baked goods – if you’re into making baked goods from scratch, but have an egg allergy, today is your lucky day!  Try Ener-G Egg Replacer (affordable and it works!) for a lot of your recipes.  As with any alternative, you may have to tweak your recipe to see what works for you, but this works well in a lot of baked goods.  Find it at Whole Foods.

A few tips –

• Make a batch of cupcakes out of the allergy-free mix and freeze them individually.  Keep some frosting on hand, as well.  Then, when you need a quick dessert or your child is heading to a birthday party, grab one out of the freezer, thaw it, frost it and you’re on your way.
• Make a batch of cookies and freeze them in pairs to do the same thing.  Or just keep a couple of cookie mixes on hand.  They don’t take long to mix and bake and you’ll always be ready for that last minute invitation to someone’s home or outing where you’ll need a special dessert for your child.
• Experiment and come up with your own quick fixes.  Not only will you be happy that your child has something special to eat like everyone else, but you’ll have the satisfaction that you came up with it on your own!  I’ve come up with a few that my daughter really likes and I love knowing that I’ve made something yummy especially with her in mind…and one that my entire family can enjoy together!