Family Friendly Allergen-Free

[Pat Robinson]

[Guest Blog Post KerryAnn Foster - Cooking Traditional Foods]

• Food allergies and intolerances are on the rise. Every week it seems that there is a new scientific paper or study about some aspect of the cause or a potential cure. There are even vaccines in development to stop food intolerances and other therapies that wouldn't have been considered even twenty years ago.
  
  Yet many people are stepping outside of mainstream medicine to look for answers because they are dissatisfied with the inaccurate, out-of-date testing and diagnostic methods available from conventional doctors. They are unhappy with remaining ill due to bad advice from a doctor or nutritionist, many of whom do not recognize that intolerances exist and can cause symptoms that don't develop for days. People looking for answers are upset that the average span from onset of symptoms until diagnosis of celiac disease now averages 20 years.
  
  I left conventional medicine and diagnosed myself as having celiac disease thanks to some online sources and several knowledgeable friends. I traveled to a metro area to see a gastroenterologist who specialized in celiac in order to get an accurate diagnosis. It wasn't in my head, it was in my gut. I have met many people who have had the same experience for themselves or with their children. Visits to multiple conventional doctors which lead to no diagnosis and no solid information on why they're sick, why they can't heal.
  
  The experience can be particularly frightening and maddening, especially if you're dealing with a sick child who isn't yet talking. I had a toddler with eczema over 75% of her body and the doctors just shrugged and offered prescription steroids to treat the symptoms instead of the root cause. You have to step outside of the paradigm and seek your own answers.
  
  Once you're diagnosed, your relief from finally having an answer quickly turns to yet more frustration. Removing foods from your diet can seem daunting when you first being trying to exclude them from both your food and your surroundings.
  
  Finding solid information on what to do and how to go about it is even more difficult than finding good recipes. When I was diagnosed in 2006, there were few resources for people with intolerances. I created CookingTF.com to address many of the issues people had with learning to cook without allergens yet still make family-friendly, flavorful meals their children wouldn't reject.
  
  Gluten-free foods were often described as flavorless, bland and cardboard-like. I set out to prove that eliminating gluten didn't have to eliminate the flavor or the fun. I was determined to make a healthy re-creation of any food I or my children might want for holidays, birthdays, vacations, house guests and more.
  
  Since 2007, I have produced multiple eBooks, print books, Menu Mailers and video-based classes to teach people how to remove allergens without sacrificing flavor, texture or their wallets. My newest eBook, Family Friendly Allergen-Free, benefits anyone who is struggling to move themselves or their family to a diet free of gluten, dairy, soy, egg or any combination of those four.
  
  
  

• This book covers basic information on how to replace the foods you do not tolerate in your diet, as well as recipes for items such as chia egg replacer, flax egg replacer, coconut milk, almond milk, rice milk and soy sauce substitute, as well as my favorite all-purpose flour blend for gluten-free baking.
  
  So many kids have allergies today. Having recipes that the whole family likes but are safe for everyone is a God-send to cut the amount of time you spend in the kitchen.
  
  

• You can take one of the four Menu Mailers in the book and not have to worry about what to fix for dinner each night. The menus and shopping lists are included, along with three dinners, one breakfast, one snack and one dessert for each of the four weeks. If you need more recipes, information or support, visit my website at CookingTF.com.