Welcome!

Hello everyone! Welcome to "The Allergy Safe Kitchen"!  I'm very excited about sharing my recipes and kitchen tips with you.  I have 5 children, and several of them have food allergies.  So many people in my life, especially with newly diagnosed food allergies, have asked me for recipes, tips on substitutions, hints for getting picky eaters to try new things; so I thought I might be able to help them, and others out there, by starting this blog!  Our home is currently egg-free, peanut-free, tree-nut free, and many of the dishes I make are dairy-free.  We spent several years as a gluten-free family, so this blog will include those recipes and tips here and there too.

My eldest son  is 7 years old; he has life-threatening allergies to peanuts and eggs, along with a host of environmental allergies.  When he was first diagnosed, he also had allergies to wheat, soy, dairy, and tree nuts.  Due to the high potential for cross-contamination between peanuts and tree-nuts, we still do not eat tree nuts.  After blood and skin tests suggested it was safe, we have successfully integrated dairy, wheat and soy into his diet. 

My 6 year old daughter, was recently declared "allergy-free" after spending her life up to this point with a dairy allergy.  While she still prefers organic, soy-based products, we are slowly integrating dairy into her diet. 

My soon-to-be-5 year old son, has no confirmed food allergies, although we notice significant behavioral problems when he eats dairy.  When he does not eat dairy, his tantrums are rare and mild.  When he eats dairy, his tantrums are record breaking in length and...shall we say, stubborness?  We strictly limit his dairy intake and err on the side of giving him a nearly dairy-free diet. His blood tests show no evidence of a dairy allergy, but his behavior suggests otherwise.  It's important to remember that allergies can manifest themselves in different ways.

My 3 year old son, is the only child who appears to be completely allergy-free, praise God!  He is also the only child of ours for whom we delayed vaccines until 6 months.  Just an interesting side note to share... 

My 1 year old son, was diagnosed at 3 months with a dairy allergy.  He has not yet undergone any further allergy testing.

We have a range of adventurous and picky eaters at our table and I do my best to make meals that are safe, tasty, and nutritious.  I'm happy to have a forum to share everything I've learned in the past 7+ years of being a food allergy mom.  I remember how daunting it all seemed when we first heard the diagnosis and cleaned out our pantry, and I hope I can help those of you out there who are just starting your journey.  And for the veteran food allergy moms, I hope you can find new recipes, fresh tips, and the comfort of knowing you aren't alone.  Let's all walk this road together!