Monday, July 11, 2011

Introduction and a dairy free mushroom soup

Hi,
My name is Kat and I am a Stay at Home mother to two simply divine little people. My eldest is 5 and he has multiple food allergies and is intolerant to a range of foods as well (sensitivities). His allergies are: egg, dairy, peanut (anaphylaxis), sesame, dust mite, cat and grasses. I also think he may have a birch pollen allergy but haven't fully explored that yet. He is intolerant to soy, wheat, and foods high in salicylates. It makes life interesting to say the least when it comes to eating, but it is amazing how quickly you get used to it. He also suffers from eczema which is always far worse in the Winter, and asthma.

My youngest has a wheat intolerance, where my eldest reacts to too much wheat via his skin, my daughter reacts via her bowels. She can cope with small amounts, but if she indulges too much it isn't pleasant...for anyone.

I have decided to start a blog for several reasons, the main one being because allergies are now part and parcel of our lives and I would like to pass on what we learn. The second is that I am always looking for advice, tips and good allergy friendly recipes from other allergy parents, so feel free to post. Finally because I know how hard it can be when you first get the allergy diagnosis to find foods that are tasty and the whole family can enjoy.

So to set the ball rolling here is the first of many allergy friendly recipes. Many of these will be adaptations of recipes I have stumbled across and look easy to adapt, or they will be recipes that I have found invaluable. Wherever I have pinched a recipe I will note where I got it from so that you can explore further for yourselves.

I will also list a number of places I have found invaluable in finding allergy free foods. To start with they will be from stores in Auckland, but as we are moving to Oz soon this will definitely change.

I would love you to add your own stories and thoughts along the way as this allergy journey is so much easier with wise words from others who have had similar experiences.

An adaptation of Jamie Oliver's Mushroom soup

We had this for dinner last night and with the wild Auckland weather blowing a gale outside it was just divine!

Rice Bran Oil
750g button mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 red onion, peeled and chopped
salt and pepper
1 litre of vegetable stock (allergy friendly, we use Massel stock powder)
Rice milk

Prepare the mushrooms (wipe with damp cloth and then chop, destalk if you wish) and put in a frypan or saucepan with a good glug of rice bran oil. Stir around very quickly for a minute, then add your garlic, onion, butter and a small amount of seasoning. After about a minute you'll probably notice moisture cooking out of the mushrooms this is what should be happening. Carry on cooking for about 20 minutes until most of the moisture disappears. If you wish tip out excess moisture, I did and it didn't do any harm.

Add your stock and season to taste. Bring to the boil and simmer for around 20 minutes. I then put it in the kitchen whizz and whizzed it to desired consistency, I like it a bit chunky still, but you could have it smooth if you wish. At the very end I added between 50-100mls of rice milk to give it a creamy finish.

Served with fresh rolls or gluten free scones and it was absolutely scrummy. It was a hit with hubby too. Thanks Jamie!!

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