Simple Salsa

This summer was one of many food challenges.  Perhaps the most exciting was the one that showed a tolerance to cooked tomatoes.  WOW.... we had forgotten what we were missing!  Even my angel was thrilled to taste her first tomato sauce, pizza, meatloaf and more.

With school in full swing and football season upon us, this is the perfect time for a quick and healthy snack like Simple Salsa. This recipe is kid-friendly so there are no veggie chunks, easy on the garlic and onion with a touch of sugar to cut the acid.

Simple Salsa

1 box Pomi chopped stewed tomatoes
1/2 onion (may add more to taste)
1/4 red bell pepper
2 t garlic powder (may use 1-2 real garlic pods, if tolerated)
1 T dried chopped cilantro (optional)
2 t salt (add more to taste)
1 t sugar
Juice of one lime (optional)

1. Place all ingredients in a blender.
2. Puree ingredients until smooth.
3. Taste and adjust salt and onion.
4. Place in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes so flavors will blend.
5. Serve with Bolder Olive Oil potato chips, sliced vegetables, hamburgers, or taco salad.

Adventures in Food and Allergies: My return

Three years ago, I began this blog to share with others our life with an allergic child.  As the world

learned more about children with multiple, severe food allergies, I began my journey as the mother and blogger for one very allergic child. I wanted to share with others the day-to-day struggles that we

call normal. I wanted to answer the questions that bombarded us daily. "What is your angel allergic to?" became the most dreaded question.  As I gave a quick and very abbreviated list of my angels allergies, the person's eyes would glaze over and a look of bewilderment would fill their faces. 5-4-3-2-1- I could count down to the next question, "So, what CAN your angel eat?" followed by, "Ohhhh, poor thing. I'm so sorry." These questions exhausted me. The pity. The bewilderment. These were not words that I associated with my angel.  Admiration. Strength.  This is how I viewed my child and how I wanted her to view herself.

Fast forward 3 years... I am now the confident mother of a very confident allergic child.  We still have days of struggle, weeks of struggle. We still get the questions and I still hate the pity-filled responses.  But, I have gotten better at using my words. I have regained my voice and with it have taught my angel to use hers, as well.

Over the past year, I have not written much.  I needed a break, a time to look inward so that I could look outward again. Cooking became routine and mealtimes often boring. There were hospital visits and food challenges, too many to share in one post. In the end, I have new recipes with newly tolerated foods and plenty of suggestions to go along with it. Although our family is still mostly grain-free, meat-eating vegans drawing from limited vegetable sources, there have been a few changes - changes that dramatically affected our meals. They inspired me. Potatoes, peppers and cooked tomatoes are foods that you can expect to see in my newest recipes... we've tried pizza and pasta and so much more.

For those who have been with me, thank you.  For those who awaited my return, an even bigger thank you. I am back and eager to share our newest adventures in food, allergies and allergy-free living. 

Rainbow of a Snack

The month of March is a busy one for recognizing the importance of health.  It holds such holidays as National Health Month, National Dental Month, World Kidney Day, Brain Awareness Week, and the list keeps going.  This makes March a great month to raise awareness of these issues and the benefits of eating healthy.

After school is a perfect time to encourage kids to eat healthy.  Instead of turning on the TV and plopping down with a bag of chips, let kids build fruit sculptures.  Ask kids to gather fruits or vegetables to represent the different colors of the rainbow.  Help the kids clean and prepare them then put each kind of fruit in a separate bowl.  Place silpats or plates, toothpicks, and a ball of Dduk dough (colored with beet juice) on each mat.  Now, ask the kids to use the Dduk, toothpicks, fruits and vegetables to build a sculpture.  Who  can build the most colorful sculpture? The tallest? The strongest? The possibilities are endless. Want to double their fun?  Join them!  Nothing is more exciting than seeing the creations, or mistakes, that parents make while playing with the kids. My angels shaped the dough (which they ate before I ever microwaved it) and used fruits to decorate their edible sculptures, eating as many fruits while working as they used in the sculpture itself!  But, the fun didn't end here.... everyone saved their sculptures to eat at breakfast.  You got it!  Afternoon fun for the kids and, with a little dry cereal on the side, tomorrow's breakfast is in the bag!

So, while kids dream of rainbows and search for green leprechauns, encourage them to eat healthy. Roll out some dough and pile on a rainbow of fun to help your angels recognize the importance of eating good, staying healthy, while having fun. Maintaining a balanced diet that includes all the colors of a rainbow helps kids find the true pot of gold - good health!