My son is allergic to everything. Except fruit, vegetables, meat and rice. He has the protein allergy that causes him to be allergic to all nuts, dairy, eggs, seafood and soy. So he's never had a sandwich. I hadn't found a bread or bread mix that were free of everything until yesterday. After reading all the boxes of bread mixes on the shelf to make sure they were allergen free, I chose one. When we got home, I mixed it using rice milk where the recipe called for cows milk and apple sauce and baking powder where it called for eggs (1 egg= 1/4 cup applesauce + 1/2 tsp baking powder). The bread turned out perfectly. When it cooled, I sliced it and put it in the freezer per the instructions, but I kept a few slices out for my son to eat when he woke up today.
He was so excited to try his new bread--he had been asking for bread and cheese to eat like his friends at school. He and my husband took their first bites and there were happy dances and a mini celebration that Zee could finally eat sandwiches now. My husband asked me if I was sure it was allergen free and I recounted my thorough package-reading at the store while reaching for the box. It was then that I realized I had bought the wrong box. That mix had whey in it--a milk protein.
While I was reading in bold print "Contains Milk", my son had already fallen in love with the slice of bread in his hand and exclaimed, while giggling, "I'm eating my special bread like the big boys at school." *sigh* I had a choice to make. His allergy to milk is second to the bottom of the list in terms of the reaction we could expect. I had to decide if I wanted to send him to school upset and deflated just to save his skin, or allow him to bask in the joy of his new-found big-boy-food-eatingness that he couldn't wait to show to his teacher and friends at lunchtime, and deal with the inevitable eczema flare-up over the weekend. I chose the latter. Then I beelined to Whole Foods after dropping him off at school and he will have a new loaf of "special bread" (and vegan cheese slices that will cause him no harm) when he gets home from school.
He will have a glorious day at school and an itchy weekend, but it will have been worth it. The Applegate hot dog era may be coming to an end soon, as the cheese sandwich will soon rule his lunchbox.
Here's the new bread mix and cheese that I found for him...
The bread mix is by King Authur Flour company and the logo is a picture of a knight holding a flag and wearing a shirt both bearing a cross. If there's one thing he loves more than race cars, it's Jesus. lol So I'm positive I'll point that out to him before the taste test.
The cheese is by Galaxy Foods and is called Rice Vegan and is also soy-free. Both the bread and cheese are at Whole Foods and are free of the the 8 most common allergens. I have no idea what they taste like, but I'll post an update here is he thinks it's the best tasting cheese sandwich he has ever had.
Here's a link to King Authur Flour Bread Mix info page with the recipe.
If you have a kid with allergies, I know you feel my pain.
Update: He loves the bread. He loves the cheese. He eats bother heartily and regularly since his first bite. However, he will not eat them together. So my dream of him taking cheese sandwiches to school for lunch is deferred...not dashed. He loved his first bite. However, he didn't want a second. Hope springs!
Hi there! I did almost the very same thing years ago, after my daughter was first diagnosed anaphylactic (to eggs and nuts with a lesser allergy to shellfish)...but it was a dumpling not bread. She did have the huge eczema flare but in the larger scheme of things, I know it would be OK. She wasn't anaphylactic with the fish, but I knew the allergy was there. Later, I did feel so terrible about it that I have never (knowingly, anyway) given her (or my son who has the same allergies) anything with the off-limits ingredients in it since, but I figured the one-time mom-fail was something I could forgive myself as we are so vigilant all of the time. The multiple allergies your son has must also make it so very difficult. I actually have a full page on my blog where I post all of the different food recalls from manufacturers and distributors in North America from various alerts systems, and although it's been years that I've been getting them, it still floors me just how often (and how under reported it is that) companies ship food to stores to be sold without proper (or with incorrect!) labeling! Happy to have found your blog and all the best with your precious family!
anne
Posted by: Anne @ Zen and Genki | May 11, 2012 at 12:35 PM
Anne, thank you for sharing! You are right, we are vigilant ALL the time, so a slip-up is inevitable. I got so frustrated with labels when my son first started eating solids. I'd buy something allergy-free and learned the hard way to look for factory details on the package. It's crazy how many allery-free foods are manufactured in facilities that also process nuts, wheat, etc. now, I stick to fresh fruit, veggies meat and water. He may have corn tortillas every once in a while, but other than that, he eats fresh food made by me. I will check your blog for that page! Thanks for reading. :-)
Posted by: Quel | May 12, 2012 at 01:56 PM
Oh I feel your pain. I bought Pamela's mix and it had milk in it. We bought the rice cheese too and he didn't like it :-(. I am not sure if my son grew out of his allergies, but dairy was #1. It HAD to go. It had his whole body covered in Eczema. He was pretty much diagnosed with all food allergies except nuts and fish. He eats wheat bread and rice with no problem and he may lick an occasional cupcake with icing or have a slice of pizza (though I cringe). He hasn't flared up in a year I'd say. Wow, it's been that long. I want to start making my own flour and see about raw milk. I truly believe allergies are caused by the processing and crap they put in our foods rather than the actual food itself.
Zack's so cute eating his little sandwich.
Posted by: Sheena | May 27, 2012 at 04:16 PM