Eating in and Eating out

Everyone with a food allergy or the parent of someone with a food allergy knows how completely insane it is to try to eat out. How about eating in? When you are in a hurry, those premade meals and easy things like chicken nuggets can be impossible. My sister and I have a whole list of foods on the quick, eating in or eating out, that we substitute for the good old standbys. Here is a list off the top of my head, I'll update it regularly with the more I think of.

EATING IN:

MAIN DISHES
Corn Dogs - Kroger Brand is egg/milk free!

SIDE DISHES
Quick Rice Sides - Rice-a-Roni Chicken Flavored Rice is Dairy Free

DESSERTS
Apple Pie - Marie Callendars is egg/dairy free
Chocolate Chips - Kroger Brand is milk free

EATING OUT
Click the Restaurant Name to View Allergy Info

FAST FOOD
McDonald's - Hamburger buns are egg/milk free, apple dip contains milk so beware

KFC - Extra Crispy, Grilled and Hot & Spicy don't have milk or egg.

Wendy's - Hamburger buns are milk free, there is no milk/egg wash on the chicken but beware of the breaded chicken (milk) and the sauces (egg/milk).
Wendy's Gluten free menu

Chick-Fil-A - It's so sad, they use a milk wash on all their chicken, even the grilled and non-breaded.

Burger King - Chicken fries are milk free, as well as Tendergrill Chicken Fillet, Spicy Chick'n Crisp and the hamburger buns.

Panda Express - Chow Mien and Steamed rice is a must here, egg/milk free, I also get mandarin chicken for the kids. Beware, the steamed veggies have a sauce with milk in it.

Red Robin -
Red Robin Gluten Free Menu

STILL TO COME...
Noodles and Company
Taco Bell
Many, many, more...

If you have any recommendations or anything to add, let us know by posting a comment below!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies/Bread

I just made some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies with only three ingredients and they turned out really yummy (kid tested and approved!). The trick is to use a spice cake mix without milk ingredients. Here in this region we have a generic brand called Western Family. I have found that the generics are the ones that are most likely to be milk free. Here is the recipe:

PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

1 Spice Cake Mix (I used Western Family Brand)
1 Small Can Pumpkin
1 Bag of Chocolate Chips (dairy free)

Preheat to 375, spray or grease a cookie sheet. Bake for 10-11 minutes. Let cool for 2-3 minutes on cookie sheet and then cool completely. Store in airtight container.

PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP BREAD

* Same as above but bake for 45-55 minutes. Makes 2 loaves.

Allergy Testing, YUCK!

We went to the Allergy Specialist, Dr. Jan Broadbent (really like her!), and had Amaya tested again. We did skin tests for pollen, cats and dogs, and did blood tests for the egg and milk allergy. The phlebotomist was horrible and had to stick my 18 month old TWICE! I was not happy. All this has got me thinking about the whole process of allergy testing and treating. My sister has a good friend who did Allergy Elimination and swears it works. He said he was allergic to milk, soy, and a whole bunch of other things (I can't remember all of them) but doing an allergy elimination technique through a holistic healer he was able to dramatically reduce if not completely eliminate his allergies.

I can't say I'm not weary or skeptical about the whole process. He says there are no needles involved and it is very inexpensive, something like $45 for the consultation and less for each treatment and that some take only one treatment to be effective. My greatest apprehension is that I am making decisions about a whole other being rather than myself. I'd be more than happy to try anything on myself to relieve an allergy like my daughters, but she is my baby. I just can't jump into something that I don't have every last bit of information about and have completely dispelled my fears. Hopefully, it works but for right now I'll be doing a LOT of research before I take that step.

For now, I'm fine waiting for the blood tests and seeing what the next step will be. But I do hope for a miracle to come back in the results. Being able to let my baby have all the things that she hasn't even had a chance to taste and not having to worry about a reaction would be nice. Not having to fear a trace amount of milk protein making her go into anaphalactic shock would be a wonderful freedom. Let's keep our fingers crossed!