Seeds

I am still confused about what seeds constitute the avoidance of all seeds. I feel like I need a list or need to make a list. A friend of mine avoids all spices in things for her seed allergic son because spices are generally ground up seeds. But Owen has tolerated mustard in things before and I have a hard time justifying pulling items out of his diet he has eaten safely.

So here is my list of seed avoidance so far: sunflower, sesame, poppy. I know mustard should be on that list but for now I am leaving it in. So what about caraway seeds? Cumin? I use cumin in a lot of dishes.

But as I go through my day I think about the seeds in mundane things like a cucumber or a tomato. How much protein do these contain? Is it stupid to wonder if they are a problem?

Am I missing any obvious seeds out there? What is on your seed avoidance list?

(For more seed info check out comments at Blood Test Results. Some good weigh-ins from a few people.)

Awareness

I had pulled the bag of french fries out of the freezer for the main reason of checking the calorie/fat/fiber count to record on my Weight Watchers tracking for the day. I hadn't been able to resist stealing 10 of my kids shoestring fries at dinner (just so you know one serving of Cascasdian Farms Shoestring Fries is only 2 points!)

Owen saw me holding the bag and even though he had eaten them for dinner he asked for the first time, "Safe for me?"

Max had always had great awareness of his allergies and by age two would bring me things and say "Mommy, read label?" But Owen has not shown the same awareness (or restraint) when it come to food. So I was quite proud that he seemed to be exhibiting an awareness of his own food allergies. "Yes" I replied "These are safe for you."

Sunflower Oil

Oh, one other thing. Dr. B. doesn't think we need to avoid sunflower oil as it is highly refined. So watch out! I am going to buy any darn brand of tortilla chip I want!

Wegman's

I treated myself yesterday. I hired a babysitter and went grocery shopping by myself! I have started going to a different store. Tried out a few locations. And yesterday decided I liked it enough I would surrender my name and address to them so they can track my spending and sell my name (don't know if they do that really) and got the shoppers club card.

I have been searching for a store where I can buy Silk Soy Yogurt and Oeros, Applegate Farms Turkey Bologna and Oscar Meyer hot dogs, Follow Your Heart Soy Mozzerella and Minute Maid Frozen Orange Juice. That perfect blend of foods we need for my allergic kiddos and the stuff you find at the regular grocery stores. Wegman's has it all. Almost a perfect balance.

Could still use a little help getting some of my other favorite products there, like Tuffutti Ice Cream! Why is no one selling Tuffuti. Also, Fruit A Bu fruit roll-ups, Fleischman's Unsalted Margarine and Back to Nature Sesame and Ginger Crackers (Owen and I can eat a whole box it one day.) Also not liking the hummus options at Wegmans.

For more opinons on products see Kids Food Allergy Blog.

But in general, Wegmans is it. I have begun a new grocery store relationship. I'm digging it. Even bought myself a latte there while I browsed the great kitchen items they have there.

Soymilk

Due to fairly recent recalls on Silk Soy Chocolate Singles due the presence of cow's milk proteins, the milk allergic might be questioning the safety of their soy milk. I have a solution for you. Make your own! A friend recently mentioned that her mother makes her own. She blogs about it at Soy Simplified. It's inexpensive and you are guaranteeing the safety of your own food.

Now, you might ask, does that mean you are taking up soy milk making? And the answer would be no. It's not that soymilk is inexpensive (it's not at almost $5 for a half gallon). It's not that I'm lazy (which I sort of can be). It's not that I wouldn't know what to do with the mounds of okara that is the by product of making your own soymilk (because I really wouldn't even with the help of my friend's mom's blog). It's that if I went through all the bother of making my own soymilk and my kids hated it and refused to drink it, I would be a little resentful. Max is the super taster you know. A change even in a brand of a product we use and he detects the subtle difference. For heavens sake I bought Red Delicious instead of Gala apples last week and he refuses to eat them.

Lactic Acid Starter Culture

From everything I have read lactic acid starter cultures MAY contain milk proteins if they are derived from milk. However, lactic acid starter cultures may be derived from vegetable sources such as beet and corn. So if you see it on a label and have no way to call the company and get a straight answer (assuming someone at the company is knowledgeable enough to answer your question and/or will actually respond to you) assuming that the product contains dairy is the safest route to go.

Most companies don't indicate on packaging what the source of the lactic acid starter culture is, however, I know of a least one that does. Wellshire Farms does a line of meats including turkey sticks and pepperoni. On the label for their turkey sticks it states that the lactic acid starter culture is derived from corn. I personally think they are tasty though Max thinks they are too spicy. I haven't looked at a package of pepperoni but you can search their products with elimination of your specific allergen and pepperoni does come up as dairy free. If you are in doubt please call the company but (this is mainly for elisha (Hi! Thanks for introducing yourself)) may be worth a shot.

The Food Allergy Labeling and Consumer Protection Act only covers labeling for foods under FDA inspection. It does not cover anything under USDA, hence meat. Which is why companies don't have to disclose the source of their lactic acid starter culture. Here is a good FAQ sheet about FALCPA.

Ice Cream - Take 2

I've been meaning to bring up some of the comments posted recently on a variety of subjects but as I suck at blogging lately I haven't done it. So I'll start today and try to do one a day.

A lot of people commented on the Purely Decadent post. Many of you really like Turtle Mountain products, a few prefer Tufutti. 1AllergyMom brought up that Turtle Mountain does process their product on shared equipment and felt like the labeling was misleading. I read their website and I guess I was heartened that they are at least watching out for cross contamination by batch testing. Here is part of their statement:

"Turtle Mountain applies strict quality control measures in an effort to prevent contamination by undeclared food allergens. To assure our preventative measures are effective, we sample test our product for the presence of gluten, dairy, peanut and almond allergens using state of the art testing methods. "

Mama o' the matrices also brought up that Tufutti does peanut products but does not label their products as such and sites a risk with these products as well. So, research well my friends, and decide what is best for your family. Cross contamination labeling is optional.

Coincidentally a new blogger had recently commented about Ice Cream as well. I had not heard of Temptation Ice Cream. At the end of this post she shares that Whole Foods claimed the company making the ice cream was going out of business and that's why they were no longer carrying the product. Via private email the author has told me that a call to the Chicago based company revealed this to be an untruth and they are still cranking out Temptation Ice Cream. In fact I picked up my first pint today at Wegman's. I'll let you know how the kiddos like it.

PS Also agree with Speedbump Kitchen that trying to clean Tufuttie Cutie Ice Cream Sandwich bits off toddlers fingers is ridiculously hard.

Purely Decadent

Saturday I visited two stores in search of Tuffuti Chocolate Ice Cream. I hate switching brands once I have found something that works for us. But as I whispered "Damn it, damn it, damn it" when I realized that I was not to find Tuffuti Ice Cream on that day, I picked up a pint of Purely Decadent Dairy Free by Turtle Mountain. I read the label. It didn't contain any of our allergens. Underneath the ingredients was the 'Allergen Information'. I started scanning it figuring it had to be cross contaminated with something. This is what it says:

'Turtle Mountain applies strict quality control measures in an effort to prevent contamination by undeclared food allergens. To assure our preventative measures are effective, we sample test our products for the presence of gluten, dairy, peanut and almond allergens using state of the art testing methods. To lean more about our allergen prevention program visit us at www.purelydecadent.com. CONTAINS: SOY'

Wow! You guys are too good to be true! But do you really taste 'Purely Decadent'. Max and I bought a pint to take home for a taste test. Max's conclusion "Delicious!" and I concur. It really is good and it's available at our local Safeway.