Dairy and Egg Free "Marshmallow" Weight Gain Smoothie

  It's no secret that my son Jack has a lot going on medically. Besides the eosinophilic esophagitis and many food allergies, he's also got an extremely rare chromosomal disorder. In many cases, children with chromosomal disorders grow differently than typical children. Most times they are smaller though some conditions can cause them to grow too quickly. Eitherway, it is difficult to judge a genetically different child's growth on a growth chart made for average children, because while they may not be anywhere near the 50th percentile, they may be growing just the way their genes are directing them to. That makes it very hard to tell if a child with chromosomal abnormalities is growing slowly because that's what he/she is made to do, or because they are not getting adequate nutrition.
  The first thing that tipped Jack's doctors off (but not the first thing that tipped his mom off) that something wasn't quite right with him was that, on his birthday, he weighed just 17lbs, despite being born at a normal 8lbs. After birth, he has just seemed to grow r-e-a-l-l-y slowly, and that's ok. However, he has a nutritionist that comes every two weeks to our house to weigh him and talk about any concerns we may have since his diet is so restricted, The last two times she has come (a 4 week period), he's lost weight. He's gone from 29lbs to 28.4lbs to now 27.8lbs. Obviously, his genes may make him grow slowly but they probably aren't making him lose weight, so his calorie intake is not adequate. It's very hard to get enough calories when you take dairy and eggs and tasty things made of wheat like bread, cake, and cookies out of the equation, and when eating is sometimes painful and traumatic.
  ENTER the magical dairy free egg free weight gain smoothie!

  Together with Jack's wonderful nutritionist, Miss Ashley, we have come up with a yummy recipe. It's by no means a recipe that needs to be strictly adhered to to be tasty, you can omitt or add practicaly anything and it'll still probably taste good, but here is our recipe!

Marshmallow Smoothie
We call this a Marshmallow Smoothie because it smells and tastes like marshamllows, despite having an avocado in the recipe!

1 very ripe medium avocado, peeled and pitted
1 large ripe banana (frozen works best but not necessary)
1 can coconut milk
1 cup vanilla non dairy ice cream (such as Rice Dream or SO Delicious coconut ice cream)
1/3-1 cup vanilla almond or soy milk (as much as needed to reach desired consistency)
2 tsp honey or agave nectar, if needed for sweetness

We also add 4 scoops of vanilla Elecare Jr. for extra calories, but it tastes almost the same without it.

Blend all until creamy and smooth. Makes a whole lot, but I make it in the morning, keep the rest in the fridge and give it to him between meals.

You could throw in some berries, but for Jack I wouldn't use berries with lots of seeds and he hates blueberries so, it's sort of out of the question. Dates are high in calories, as are raisins but you might need a food processor instead of a blender to really puree those. Peanut butter and/or cocoa powder would be yummy also. There's really no limit to what you can throw in a blender and turn into a smoothie, lol! Yesterday I added too much soy milk and it was pretty watery so I poured in a bit of baby rice cereal that we still had laying around to thicken it up. Worked like a charm! Only use a little though because the cereal thickens up as it sits and becomes a little like semi-wet cement. ;)

Dairy, Wheat, Gluten, and Egg Free BBQ Chicken Pizza

  There is this delicious chain in California (and they have one location in Washington, apprently) called Sharky's Woodfired Mexican Grill. It's fabulous! One of the things I used to love to eat there but I don't think they have anymore is the Naked BBQ Chicken Pizza. It was n a super thin crispy crust, almost more of a crisp tortilla than pizza crust. It had BBQ sauce, grilled chicken, onions, low fat mozzarella and I think a few shreds of cheddar, and various green things... fresh oregeno, bell pepper, I think scallions also. Can't remember exactly, but I know it was superb and I was totally craving it this afternoon so I decided to see what I could make here at home. The result was obviously not the same, but a really really good substitute that can stand on it's own right as a fabulous pizza! Even the kids loved it, despite the green things! This is going to be something we make often. Omg, so yummy!
  I can't believe I used to feel like we were so limited by these diet restrictions! What I realize now is that we were actually really limited in what we chose to eat before... I never would have dreamed of making many of the dishes I make now, with 'real' ingredients or otherwise. And it's amazing how, well, amazing food tastes when it's fresh, not processed and full of unpronounceable ingredients and beaver butt (see Buffalo Chicken Meatball recipe for clarification), and made with love at home. I love it!
Allergy Free BBQ Chicken Pizza

• Bob's Red Mill gluten free pizza crust mix (calls for 2 Tbs flaxmeal, 6 Tbs plus 1 1/2 cup water, and 2 Tbs olive oil)
• Daiya Mozzarella (3/4 cup) and Cheddar (1/4 cup) shreds
• 2 cans grilled chicken breast, drained (you can use real grilled chicken if you have the time, but I was in a pinch)
• 4 Tbs gluten free BBQ sauce, divided
• 1 Tbs oregeno
• 1 large red onion, sliced
• 1 half green bell pepper, chopped

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Make pizza crust dough according to package directions. Once raw dough is spread onto oiled cookie sheet, bake for 12-13 mins (the directions call for 7-9 but the extra time will help make it crispy crust!). Spread 3 Tbs BBQ sauce onto the crust. Sprinkle on onions and chicken. Then sprinkle on mozzarella and cheddar, bell pepper, and oregeno. Take remaining bbq sauce and drizzle it over toppings. Bake for 17 mins or until cheese is melted and pizza looks done.

 Yummy!

Egg and Wheat/Gluten Free Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

  OMG. These were so easy and good! Probably not something I should have fed to my family as a main dish, but when have I ever cared about what I probably should be doing?? ;)
  I bought a package of ground chicken from Sprout's just because I wanted to try something new, but then I couldn't think of anything to do with it. Enter Rachel Ray, in her infinite bubbliness and 30-minute-meal glory. I didn't even really tweak the meatball part of this, and making my own Buffalo Sauce was just something I did because I'm a control freak and not necessary*

Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

1.5 lbs ground chicken
1/2 smll onion, grated
2 cloves garlic, grated
2 tsp dried parsely (I don't think this part was necessary)
Extra virgin olive oil, for greasing your hands and drizzling
S&P

Vegan Buffalo Sauce

3 Tbs oil (1Tbs olive oil, the other 2 vegetable or other oil)
1/4 cup FRANK'S original hot sauce
1 tsp tomato paste
2 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/2-1 tsp cayenne, depending on your preference for hotness

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground chicken with onion, garlic, and parsely and season season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. I used about 1.5 tsp of salt. Using an ice cream scoop or olive oiled hands, divide meat mixture into 16 balls and arrange them on  nonstick sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil and bake until cooked through and golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix all wet buffalo sauce ingredients and stir until fully mixed. Whisk in spices, holding back on the cayenne if you are worried about it being too hot.

Once meatballs are fully cooked, roll them in the buffalo sauce and let them sit about 3 minutes to soak up all the yummy flavor. Serve with Organicville Non Dairy Ranch Dressing, carrot sticks, and celery.

We also had salad and these totally cool, kid friendly things called Peas of Mind cauliflower and carrot fries with this. They are regular potato and cauliflower or carrot mixed together, then extruded in fry shape. They taste like regular fries, are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside like fries should be, with a healthy dose of veggies! What an awesome product! Plus, hello, the package is super cute! My only suggestion is salt them BEFORE you bake them if salt is your thing, as it won't stick to the fries once they are done. Yum!

*FRANK'S makes a buffalo sauce that is already vegan so you could use that. I didn't because it contains a "Natural butter type flavor", which just makes me think of this time I watched Dirty Jobs and Mike Rowe had to help clip a bearcat's claws and he said it smelled exactly like popcorn... also I read an article recently about how the Great North American Beaver marks its territory with urine and some sort of secretion from it's anal glands that smells sweet, and the anal glands are harvested and sold to food additive companies because, when it's added to vanilla ice cream, it makes it smell better. And that's listed as "NATURAL FLAVOR".... Yuck. So I like to avoid any product that doesn't tell me exactly what I am about to ingest.

Yummy Easy Dairy and Egg Free Chicken Salad

  A long time ago, when we still lived in Northern California and shopped at Raley's, and shortly after we learned of Jack's egg allergy, I came across a product called Vegenaise. We tried it once and it tasted like Miracle Whip... which I find revolting. Jack didn't care for it either.
  However, at Sprout's, they had a whole line of Vegenaise, so we bought a different version to try. This one actually tastes like mayonnaise, the only thing that isn't 100% right about it is that, straight from the fridge it is mayo like gelatenous consistency (um, mmm?) but once it starts to warm just a little, it becomes rather watery. No big deal though.
  Anyway, we made chicken salad for lunch (Chris had it as a sandwhich, my dad had it on crackers, Jack and I just ate it with a spoon and some veggie fries). It was easy and delicious! We will definately add it to our lunch time repertoire.

Chicken Salad

4 cans chicken breast chunks, drained
1/2 cup vegeniase
1 Tbs spicy brown mustard
1 Tbs yellow mustard
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 tsp dill
1/2 tsp parsely flakes
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
Optional: 2 Tbs dill pickle relish, 2 stalks thinly sliced celery, 1/4 cup halved grapes, 1/4 cup sweet onions, chopped

Mix all ingredients together and serve on your favorite GF sandwich bread, with GF crackers, or enjoy it all by itself with a pickle spear and some black olives! YUM!

Balsamic Glazed Chicken

Tonight I made Balsamic Glazed Chicken, also known as "Sticky Chicken". There are several variations of this recipe... the one I settled on, from jbeancuisine.com was a little out of my comfort zone and so I just had to try it! The chicken was very good, in fact I thought the whole thing was good but I think for our family, the chicken might be better served by itself instead of on a bed of thai noodles. However, it was quick, easy, and slightly sweet so Jack ate it up!

Balsamic Glazed Chicken

5 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 Tbs olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 Tbs tomato paste
1/2 cup GFDF chicken stock
2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1 Tbs honey
S&P to taste

Thai salad
4 servings worth of cooked GFEF thai rice noodles
1/2 head of romaine lettuce, chopped
4 Tbs mint, coarsely chopped

In a medium skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add chicken, sprinkle with salt and pepper if desired, and cook about 10 minutes on each side until they are a nice golden brown. Move chicken to a plate. Add garlic to the pan and cook for about a minute. Add tomato paste and chicken stock and stir until well blended, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan well. Add honey and vinegar and boil about 3 minutes, until about half of the liquid has evaporated.
Return cooked chicken to the pan (I cut ours into strips but you don't have to) and continue cooking for another 10 minutes. Season to taste.

Divide the lettuce and noodles into 4 bowls. Cover with chicken and remaining sauce, sprinkle with mint.
Serves 4

Citrus Salmon en Papillote and Dairy Free Stuffed Mushrooms

  Well tonight I decided to try my hand at some more fancy fare. Citrus salmon, stuffed mushrooms, and roasted green beans. It all came out very tasty, but I don't think the stuffed mushrooms were quite worth the trouble. Maybe for a holiday, but not regular weeknight food, for sure.

  Before attempting, you should know the salmon is made en papillote (in parchment). It's a super simple way to make fish that doesn't dry it out, but there's a little bit of technique to folding the paper. I suggest this video to learn how to do it.

Fold and fold and fold some more!

  Otherwise, here are the recipes!

Citrus Salmon en Papillote

4 4oz wild salmon fillets with skin

3 Tbl olive oil

1 orange, lime, and lemon

2 tsp dill weed

S&P to taste

4 12 inch squares of parchment paper

Pre heat oven to 450 degrees. Brush skin side of fillet with olive oil and place slightly off center on parchment paper. Brush the top of the fish with olive oil. If desired, lightly salt and pepper salmon and then sprinkle with dill weed. Place one slice of each citrus across the top of the fish and sprinkle lightly again with dill. Fold the paper into packets. Repeat with other 3 fillets, then arrange packets on a cookie sheet. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until fish flakes apart.

Place the packets on each plate and cut and X in the top of the paper being mindful of the steam and not to cut the food.

Serves 4

Roasted Garlic Greenbeans

We make these as a side dish at least 3 times a week, so easy and great for you!

1lb fresh green beans, trimmed

2 Tbs olive oil

1 Tbs garlic powder

Salt to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spread green beans onto baking sheet and sprinkle salt and garlic powder over green beans, then drizzle on olive oil. Using a spatula, stir the green beans until all are evenly coated with oil, salt and garlic. Bake for 15 minutes, stirring once halfway through for even browning.

Serves 4

Stuffed Mushrooms

I found this on Searchfordelicious.com and adapted it to replace the egg and pork, and made my own 'crumbs'

24 oz white button mushrooms

1/3 lb sweet italian chicken sausage

1/2 medium onion, finely diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup marsala wine

1 whole package Tofutti "Cream Cheese"

1 1/2 tsp EnerG Egg Replacer, plus 2 Tbs water, mixed well

S&P to taste

Gluten free bread crumbs (I used crushed rice chex with salt... it's ok in a pinch but probably not as good as real GF bread crumbs)

Clean mushrooms and dry. Pop stems out and set caps aside. Finely chop stems and set aside also. Brown sausage over medium heat, then remove to a plate to cool. In the same pan used for the sausage, saute onions and garlic over low heat about 2 minutes. Add the wine and allow to evaporate. Add in chopped mushroom stems and cook another 2 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste and set mixture aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, mix Tofutti Cream Cheese with egg replacement mixture until smooth, then slowly stir in both the sausage and the mushroom stem mixture. Place in fridge for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350. Using a spoon, gently carve out center of mushrooms so there is a clean cavity. Spoon cream cheese mixture into mushrooms, then sprinkle with bread crumbs.

Bake for 25 minutes, then broil for 2 minutes to brown the tops.

Serves way more than 4... this recipe could easily be halved and be fine.

It was nice to all sit down to something that felt a little bit gourmet... at least more so than meatloaf and mashed potatoes anyway!



Dairy Free Ground Turkey and Chickpea Curry with "Yogurt"

  I found a recipe on Kalyn's Kitchen for ground turkey curry tonight that, with a little tweaking, was allergy friendly and super yummy!

Apparently this was already adapted from a Rachel Ray recipe, but here is my final product:

Ground Turkey and Chickpea Curry

1 Tbs + 1 tsp olive oil
1lb ground turkey
1 large onion, chopped
3 Tbs curry powder (we used half sweet, half hot)
1 can petite diced tomatoes with juice
1 can chickpeas (garbonzo beans), drained
12oz sour cream substitute (we used Tofutti Sour Supreme)*
S&P to taste

Heat 1 Tbs olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add turkey. Break apart meat and lightly brown, about 7 minutes, drain if necessary. Push the turkey to one side of the pan and in the other side, heat 1 tsp oilive oil. Once hot, add onion and saute about 3-4 minutes. Sprinkle onions wiht curry powder and cook about 2 more minutes (I actually added about 1/2 Tbs of water to the onion-curry mixture as it was just dry powder stuck to onions and I was afraid it would burn). Stir onion and turkey together until well blended. Add tomatoes with juice and chickpeas and bring to a boil, then turn heat to low and simmer about 5 minutes. With heat still on low, stir in sour cream sub and simmer about 3-5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve hot over cooked brown rice or quinoa, or eat it all by itself as a stew! Yum!

It's not the prettiest dish I've ever made, but I take what I can get!

Jack and Ben both really liked this, which is really rare, but so did Chris and my dad which I don't think has ever happened before... Score!

* UPDATED: Now that we are also soy free, we use a soy free (and actually tastier, I think) sour cream substitute that is made with cashews. The recipe can be found here.