Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Favorite cookbook and recipes

My favorite allergy cookbook is "What's To Eat?: The Milk-free, Egg-free, Nut-free Food Allergy Cookbook" by Linda Mariehoff Coss. She also has a little website where you can order the book or its sequel and get other food allergy management information at http://www.foodallergybooks.com/media.htm

I wasted a good bit of money buying various healthy cookbooks and dairy-free recipe cookbooks, before I found "What's To Eat?", the book taylored for my son's dietary needs and my semi-skilled cooking. We love the easy pancake recipe with only six ingredients; five of which almost anyone would have in the pantry and then you only need soy or rice milk.
I also like the Italian-style turkey meatballs because I don't eat pork or beef. All the recipes are fairly simple with practical ingredients. "What's To Eat?" sits out on my kitchen counter all the time like an everyday appliance.

In my opinion, forget cheese substitutes - they are yuck! Since Dal never had cheese he didn't develop a taste for it and he, especially, did not appreciate my one or two fake cheese attempts. With one exception: substituting tofu for ricotta in lasagna or a cheesy pasta dish.

I originally got a recipe from a cookbook published by the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) for a tofu lasagna that was fantastic. I have lost the recipe at present, but have been creating variations on the theme for several years now. The FAAN recipe called for adding several flavorings to firm tofu and using the mixture as a layering ingredient in the lasagna along with the sauce and egg-free noodles. But basically, you can season the tofu a little with some dried Italian spices of your choosing (basil, oregano, and/or parsley), add a little garlic or garlic salt, maybe just a couple of dashes of cumin, and a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to give some richness to it. I used two boxes of firm tofu for a 9X13 lasagna. Make your own sauce or use a dairy-free spaghetti sauce, maybe add some sliced zucchini or eggplant or browned ground turkey or sausage and layer away! It always comes out great for me. My husband doesn't think he likes tofu, but I have made this lasagna and put it into two 8 inch square pans and added some mozzerella over the top of one and he eats it without complaint!

TOFU: fun for the whole family!

If you don't like to wing it, I'm sure you could search for dairy-free lasagna recipes or vegan lasagna recipes and find some outstanding options.

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