Kids Food Allergies Blog

There is a great article that discusses Passover from a food allergy perspective and gives useful reminders for shopping for Passover food. The article, What does Kosher for Passover mean for food allergies?, is posted on the Kids With Food Allergies website.

I want to comment on two items the author raises.

1. The author rightly points out that Jews from different parts of the world follow different food restrictions during Passover.

Ashkenazi Jews (the Jews of Eastern Europe, France, Germany and their descendents) follow a more stringent set of restrictions than Sephardic Jews (the Jews of Spain, Portugal, North Africa, the Middle East and their descendents). In addition to avoiding wheat (except as baked into Matzah), barley, spelt, oats and rye, Ashkenazi Jews also do not eat corn, soybeans, legumes, rice, millet or other grains during Passover. Some communities also prohibit the consumption of dry peas, caraway, fennel seed, mustard, garlic and peanuts – as well as derivatives of any of the forbidden items (such as soybean oil or flavors made from grain alcohol).

Like most American Jewish families, mine is Ashkenazi. But I think I’m going to ask for a waiver to switch teams. For those of us with food allergic children, it seems unfathomable and borderline cruel to add additional food restrictions to our children’s diets for the eight days of Passover. If I am forced to eliminate from my daughter’s diet rice, soy, and corn and legumes –in addition to the foods to which she’s allergic– there is very little that she can eat. Also, in order to meet my daughter’s calcium requirements, I feel it is important to give her rice milk or soy milk.

2. The author advises readers searching for kosher for Passover foods to go shopping at Kosher markets early and often because availability varies in the weeks leading up to Passover. Whether or not you are shopping for Passover foods, I second the author’s recommendation to visit Kosher markets. From my experience, Kosher markets are an incredibly useful place to shop for milk allergic children. First, you don’t have to ask whether they use the same deli slicer for cheese and meat. You know they don’t. Second, their variety of Tofutti products (milk and casein-free cheese and cream cheese) is better than anyone else’s. Third, they often have hard-to-find, crazy delicious pareve ice cream (like Klein’s Kosher Ice Cream). My favorite Kosher market in the Washington area, hands down, is Shalom’s on University Blvd. in Wheaton, Md.

In my recipe search for allergy-free Jewish foods, I came across an excellent article by Sara Atkins, Making Purim Allergy-Free. I found it at Chabad.org’s The Jewish Woman.

I noticed in the comment thread that some of Sara’s readers were looking for allergy-free Passover recipes. That’s great — my kind of people! Wanting to help her community of readers, I wrote the following comment.

I am new to this site, but very familiar with dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free Jewish holiday cooking! I have posted some of my family’s favorite Pesach recipes in my new blog: http://kidsfoodallergiesblog.com/
If you have other vegan and nut-free recipes that you would like to share, please leave a comment on my blog. Happy Passover to all!

Simple, straight-forward, and hardly controversial, right? Boy, was I wrong. Two days later, I got this surprise and aggravating response:

Hi, thank you so much for your comment. As site policy we cannot post comments with blogs listed or any websites for that matter. We will actually be posting some allergy free Pesach recipes as well though that you are more than welcome to give a link to on the blog. Hoping to run that next week! Take care, SE

Sara Esther Crispe

Editor, TheJewishWoman.org

WHAT? I wasn’t spamming sites for Viagra or casino gambling or cheap refinancing opportunities. I was trying to help them, to give timely advice to others who are scrambling to figure out what to serve food allergic kids for Passover.

Will I link to their recipes after they are posted? You bet I will. I believe in information sharing. That’s what this blog is all about. Too bad it’s a one-way street. Am I angry with Chabad? A little hurt, maybe, a bit disappointed. But it’s their loss. I make great food at Shabbat, Rosh Ha’Shana, Purim, and Hanukkah too. If they change their policy, they’re welcome to take notice.

I would like to be a kid again. Search for the afikomen, get a prize.

As a grown-up, I search for allergy-free recipes to complement this traditional holiday. No prize. Just scowls if the matzoh balls don’t look like her cousins’ or fall apart in the soup. Call me a matzochist for even trying.

Passover is one of the toughest holidays for a food allergic family. Almost all recipes have either eggs, nuts, or both. One tip from experience: If your child is allergic to nuts — you have two choices on charoset. Leave out the nuts, or add soy nuts. If you choose the latter — make your charoset the day before and add chopped soy nuts just an hour or so before serving. Otherwise, the soy nuts will get soggy and your charoset will have the wrong consistency.

I am posting a few of my family’s favorite Passover recipes. If you have other dairy-, egg-, nut-free Passover recipes that you would like to share, please leave a comment. Hag Sameach!

TOFU MATZOH BALLS

Veganizing Easter and Passover Celebrations | Vegetarians in Paradise

• 1/2 C. matzoh meal
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/8 t. black pepper
• 1/2 t. onion powder
• 2 T. vegetable oil
• 6 T. water
• 1/3 C. well mashed firm tofu

1. In a medium bowl combine matzoh meal, salt, pepper, and onion powder. Stir dry ingredients to distribute evenly.
2. Add vegetable oil and water and mix well.
3. Add mashed tofu and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate 15 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 F.
4. Form into 1-inch balls and place them on a well-oiled baking sheet. Cover with aluminum foil, dull side up. Bake at 400 F. for 30 minutes. Cool, and refrigerate.
5. Next day, heat the soup, and add the matzoh balls to each soup bowl just before serving. Makes about 14 matzoh balls.

SWEET POTATO TZIMMES KUGEL

adapted from Bubba’s Passover | Zippora & Chana | 1978

• 1 C. grated sweet potato
• 1 C. grated carrots
• 1 C. grated apples
• 1/2 C. chopped raisins
• 1/2 C. chopped dried cranberries
• 1/2 C. sugar
• 1/2 C. matzo meal
• 2 T. lemon juice
• 1/2 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 C. solid shortening or margarine (Earth Balance)

In a large mixing bowl, mix all ingredients together with a spoon. Pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes, or until brown.

***

I like this recipe so much, I double the quantities and bake it in a greased 9×13 dish for about 45 minutes, or until brown.

CARAMEL MATZOH CRUNCH

adapted from A Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking | Marcy Goldman | 1998

• 4-6 unsalted matzoh boards or sheets
• 1 cup Vegan butter (we use Earth Balance)
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed firm
• 3/4 cup vegan chocolate chips or semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 375 Degrees F.

2. Line a cookie sheet completely with foil. Cover bottom of pan with baking parchment - on top of foil. This is very important as mixture becomes sticky during baking. Line bottom of pan evenly with matzoh boards, cutting extra pieces of matzoh, as required, to fit any spaces on the cookie sheet as evenly as possible.

3. Combine margarine or butter and brown sugar in a 3 quart, heavy-bottomed, saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Continue cooking 3 more minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and pour over matzoh.

4. Place in oven and immediately reduce heat to 350 F. Bake 15 minutes, checking every few minutes to make sure mixture is not burning. (If it seems to be browning too quickly, remove from oven, lower heat to 325 F, and replace.)

5. Remove from oven and sprinkle matzoh boards immediately with chopped chocolate or chips. Let stand 5 minutes then spread melted chocolate over matzoh. While still warm cut into squares or odd shapes. Chill in refrigerator until set.