The Super Allergy Girl Blog

Gluten-Free & Allergen Free: Winter Warm Up Soup

I invented this soup recipe to use up our CSA winter root vegetables. I was actually taken aback that my children loved the soup! This soup has a unique taste and it simply will not appeal to everyone. It’s the best way that I have come up with to use up those winter root vegetables that are abundant with organic cooperatives. In the last year since I came up with this recipe, we have made it many, many times. My children will ask for it by name, which is interesting since I would not consider this one of my better recipes. If it were not for their insistence on having it again and again, this recipe would have ended up being tossed. Let me know your thoughts.

4 cups or 32 ounces of chicken or vegetable broth

6 cups of pure water

1-1/4 cups of chopped onion or 1 large onion chopped

4 cups parsnips, peeled and chopped

2 cups carrots, peeled and chopped

4 cups potatoes, diced (we leave the skins on)

2/3 cup shredded or grated celeriac (you could use celery instead of celeriac)

1-1/2 cups turnips, diced

4 teaspoons Celtic salt

2-1/2 teaspoons dill

2 teaspoons basil

1 teaspoon thyme

dash of marjoram

Combine all ingredients in a large stockpot and cook over medium heat until the vegetables are cooked through and the flavors well melded. Let the soup cool and then puree. Puree the soup and return to the pot. This makes about 11 cups of soup. If you simmer it for a longer time, you will want to add more water. This does thicken up as it stands, so add water to your desired consistency. We have made this recipe and not pureed it. My strong preference is for the pureed version. This freezes well.

iMosaic: Where you want YOUR Physician to be April 6th -10th and WHY

Let's face it, physicians can be frustrated by educated consumers and patients who ask a lot of questions, do some amount of medical research and want the most natural and safe treatments! It is certainly annoying to patients to ask questions on nutrition, supplements, depression, and diet, which their doctors can't answer! The obvious answer is a medical conference with CME credits on relevant topics! The Integrative Medicine Consortium (IMC) is having their first medical conference, which is definitely going to be a historic medical event for several reasons! Before I get too far into this, in the interest of full disclosure and integrity - I must state that I am the Executive Coordinator of the Integrative Medicine Consortium (IMC). I'll come back to my relationship with the IMC later.

Four of the Eight IMC member organizations have come together to participate in the first IMC conference - the iMosaic. Reasons for physicians to attend include:

• Over 80 sessions to choose from (if including the lead-in workshops)
• Earn up to 25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™
• Hundreds of like-minded attendees to network with
• Clinical workshops to enhance your practice
• Earn Certification in Chelation Therapy
• Dynamic exhibit hall
• Receptions and a Gala for entertainment
• Learn new environmental/integrative/holistic approaches to medicine
• World renowned faculty
• Gourmet nutritious food
• Convenient location, low travel costs

To see more information, visit this link: www.iMosaic.org. The four organizations that are participating include: The American Academy of Environmental Medicine, The American College For Advancement in Medicine, American Holistic Medical Association, and The International College for Integrative Medicine. For your physician, this medical conference offers a plethora of medical topics in a convenient location that is affordable! You want the best medical care for yourself and your family - helping your physician get educated is a win-win for everyone involved!

You will be doing yourself a favor by sharing this information with your health care provider. Now, back to my personal involvement in the IMC. I have been the Executive Coordinator since about November of 2007. This position allows me to fulfill on my passion - transforming health care for the benefit of all. These are the kinds of physicians who saved my daughter's life! They are light years ahead in using the best science and technology to produce superior results and the ones who typically are the most schooled in celiac disease, gluten intolerance, food allergies and food sensitivities. Let me know if you have any questions! I guess this means that you know where I will be from April 6th to the 10th!

Love,

Lisa

 

New Non-Dairy, Milk-Free, Casein-Free "Cheese" that actually Melts

We've been dairy-free ever since my middle child was an infant  - or roughly eleven and a half years now! Non-dairy cheeses have been a problem for that many years. Either the non-dairy cheese doesn't melt or it doesn't taste good or both! Another issue with non-dairy cheeses is that so many of them that stake the claim that they are "non-dairy" actually contain casein - a dairy protein. As a mother of a child with a life-threatening food allergy to milk, which includes casein - this is a real problem. I am so excited that I could just scream!! I am please to say that we found a new completely allergen-free non-dairy "cheese" that tastes great and melts! It has been very exciting around here as I have converted old family recipes that really require a cheese that melts! The cheese is made by Daiya and is listed as dairy, lactose and casein free, gluten free, soy free and cholesterol free. Here is a picture of the two types of cheeses we have found made by Daiya.

 

 

Here is the Mozzarella Style Shreds

Here are the ingredients of the Mozzarella style shreds: Filtered water, tapioca and/or arrowroot flours, non-GMO expeller pressed canola and /or non-GMO expeller pressed safflower oil, coconut oil, pea protein, salt, vegan natural flavors, inactive yeast, vegetable glycerin, xanthan gum, citric acid (for flavor). The packing further states: Made in a facility fr ee of animal products, milk, egg, soy, peanuts and tree nuts (excluding coconut).

Their website address is: www.daiyafoods.com. The "cheese" is manufactured by Daiya Foods in Vancouver, BC, Canada. The phone number to reach Daiya is 1-877-324-9211. We found an 8 ounce package (about 2 cups) cost us $4.99 retail. We are now purchasing this through our organic cooperative and we will receive significant savings on a per package basis.

We found this product, quite by accident, in the refrigerated section of our local Wegmans Natures Market about 3 weeks ago. Since that time, we have purchased many packages - before deciding it was worth ordering through the coop - and made many new and old dishes! I give this product a huge thumbs up and high approval rating! If you have any comments to share on this, by all means, I'd love to hear them! Fire up your ovens for pizza, stromboli, lasagna and all those cheesy dishes! Enjoy!

Love,

Lisa