Category Archives: Recipes

AF Rice and Mung Bean Khichri

Moving forward from my previous post ‘AF Mashed Potatoes with a twist…‘, this rice and mung bean dish tastes particularly good on a cold winter evening. Soul-satisfying, nutritious, packed with flavor and above all AF – Allergy Friendly. ’Khichri’ has been a part of Indian cuisine for over 700 years – whoa! 

Since, I just could not come up with a name for the dish in English that would reflect the true nature of the dish - I threw it out as a question to my Facebook friends.  So, this post is an ode to all the fun names they came up with…Niv, a most creative food blogger of Panfusine came up with ‘Kedgeree’, the British dish that traces its roots back to the India Khichri and uses fish and rice. Mohita, my high school pal, names it ‘Rictle’ – Rice + Lentil, dear Indu called it the ‘Rice Porridge’, my cherished undergrad friend Helen wondered if ‘Rice Polenta’ should be the way to go and Kamy coined a real cool name - the ‘Indypot’ or Indian hot pot :-) Finally, decided to stick with the original name as suggested by the guys. They made school a barrel of fun but stuck to tradition when it came to dish-naming – Navin, a grad school pal and Vivek, an undergrad friend :-)  Thanks all – given the various names, even a first-time taster can hazard a guess as to what the dish is going to taste like…

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Allergy Friendly Mini Savory Bean Pie

Taking off from my previous post on Allergy Friendly Mini Coconut Pie…the inspiration for this savory pie also traces its roots to a Southern Indian dish, modak, traditionally made during the festive season. What I absolutely drool over in this recipe is – it so totally answers my constant search for tasty, nutritious and gourmet alternatives. This pie recipe is free of all the top 8 food allergens including soy and wheat but still packs an energetic vegetarian protein punch.

The making of Allergy Friendly (AF) Mini Savory Bean Pie…

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Allergy Friendly Mini Coconut Pie

 A couple of days back, my friend Bhanu and I were brainstorming over a cup of warm green tea laced with honey. The goal – a unique pie recipe for the vegan pie contest organized by Earth Balance. Now, when a couple of rule-breaking bum-chums think – fun results emerge: and this time it was a new twist on a Southern Indian fav! So, the crust is made from rice flour. It also takes the unique aprroach of steaming the pie as against the traditional baking…go figure ;-)
 
 On the way to Allergy Friendly Mini Coconut Pie…

Thanksgiving Countdown: AF Crispy Diced Potatoes!

Absolutely honored and delighted that Allergy Foodie came in 2nd in the search for the ‘Top 25 Food Allergy Mom Blogs’ organized by ‘Circle of Moms’ (a network of 6 million mothers). A heartfelt ‘Thank You’ to all my supporters who continued to vote over such an extended period – the contest lasted a little over 3 weeks! This event has fuelled my passion further to make the world a safe, fun and empowering one for all those with life-threatening food allergies including my child. A world where no child with food allergies has to fear that some mean kid may put peanut butter in his lunch box and has hope for a better tomorrow in terms of cure and more. Am I envisioning utopia? Maybe, but every big thing starts off with an impossible dream.

The words of Tagore – a poet and Nobel laureate come to mind:

‘Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free…
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action…’

So, this post is by way of my Thanksgiving for the opportunity to get my voice heard and features one of my all-time favorite comfort foods growing up – ‘crispy, diced potatoes’. Yup – potatoes are one my favorite vegetables if you can call it that ;-)

 

Crispy Diced Potatoes

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Thanksgiving Countdown: AF Roasted Cauliflower

Granted, cauliflower is not most people’s first choice for a side dish vegetable but trust me on this one  – it tastes delicious when cooked the right way and will ‘up’ the gourmet quotient of any Thanksgiving spread :-)

Not to sound like a strict nutritionist but seriously cauliflower is  a good source of Protein, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Magnesium and Phosphorus, and an awesome source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Vitamin B6, Folate, Pantothenic Acid, Potassium and Manganese.

So, consider dressing up your festive table with this powerhouse of nutrition – Allergy Friendly (AF) Roasted Cauliflower!

The dish alongside my son's Thanksgiving craft :-)

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Thanksgiving countdown: AF Mung Bean Crepes!

Wanna pack an AF (Allergy Friendly) protein punch before you set out for Black Friday shopping?! Allergy Foodie has just the right solution for you - sharing one of my son’s favorite breakfast items…

So, here is to Allergy Friendly (AF) Mung Bean Crepes :-)

 

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Thanksgiving countdown: AF (Allergy Friendly) Rice Pudding!

October was a month of unprecedented viewership for Allergy Foodie – thanks to so many of my readers and to ‘Circle of Moms’  for nominating Allergy Foodie for a spot in the top 25 food allergy blog list. The nomination has helped a lot more readers benefit from this blog. That in turn has motivated me to get an early start on Thanksgiving and hopefully more caregivers like me can look forward to a safe and delicious meal. So, as my little one says – ‘Turkey, gobble, gobble – here I come!’ But that’s not all…it is going be a month of gourmet, AF (Allergy Friendly) recipes with a slight twist on traditional dishes.

What better way to start off than a delectable dessert…

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Diwali Special: AF Crunchy Rice Sticks – a pictoblog!

This snack brings back memories of a time when my little one could not have wheat. So, I would shape the dough used for this snack in the form of little pretzels and deep fry them. A labor of love – just so that he had a snack that looked like the snack other kids in the class were having :-)

Crunchy Rice Sticks.

This is a slight twist on yet another festival favorite from my mom’s kitchen. So here is to spreading the light of good will and the aroma of Allergy Friendly festivities from our kitchen to yours…

 

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Diwali Special: AF(Allergy Friendly) Coconut Cake!

I have grown up in India and this time of the year the Indian community comes alive all over the world as we celebrate ‘the good and happy light’ within each one of us in the form of a vibrant festival called Diwali - ‘the festival of lights’. This post is dedicated to my mom and dad who made Diwali so special for my bro and me in our growing-up years – complete with new clothes, fireworks and loads of homemade goodies.  

Mom and dad doting on my little one...

 Homes are beautifully decorated  with lamps and traditional artwork. Children and adults alike dress up in their best and brightest and the atmosphere lights up to a million fireworks. Moms slog it out for days in the kitchen to whip up an amazing variety of sweet and savory items alongside a sumptuous festive lunch.

However, little surprise – almost none of the dishes are allergy friendly. But, my little one loves this fun-filled festival so much that over the years, I have slowly tweaked mom’s recipes to make Diwali a joyous and AF (Allergy Friendly) one. Over the next 2 days, leading up to the big day on Oct 26th – I will spread the light of joy and the aroma of yummy dishes from my home to yours…

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AF Oat Pancakes – yummy!

 This post is dedicated to a friend who embraces a healthy lifestyle with a gusto. Naturally, nutritious food is a key element of a healthy lifestyle! Since my dear pal specially loves oats in  its pure glory and all its popular forms – granola, meuseli, oat bread and more – the main ingredient of this recipe is ‘oats’ :-)

This recipe is completely ‘Anu-grown’ - it popped into my head today, amidst my random musings of a happier, healthier world.  And since then, I have been walking around with a goofy, pleased smile all day which became goofier once it passed the ultimate taste test – the taste buds of a 6-year old ;-)

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