Tuesday, February 16, 2010

A happy Valentine's Day thanks to Ener-G

This weekend I wanted to make cupcakes for the boys for Valentine's Day and I didn't have a box of my favorite cake mix from Cherrybrook Kitchen. I also had a bunch of errands to run and didn't have the energy to make an extra stop to pick up a new box.

So, I decided it was time to experiment with a regular cake mix and the Ener-G egg replacer. I picked up a box of mix at Target and headed home.  I think it was Betty Crocker, but I'm not 100% sure. I did look at the ingredients and it said it might contain milk in it. I had no idea how the cake would turn out without real eggs, but I was game to see what would happen.  Great news!  The cupcakes turned out great. They rose up like you would expect and tasted good.

I was online trying to see what other people's experiences are with "regular" cake mixes and found this posting about Duncan Hines mixes that do NOT have dairy in them. So, next time I'll give that mix a try.

I am SO relieved to have other options for making treats for the kids. By they way, here's a tip fo other moms out there: When you make a batch of cupcakes,  keep a couple unfrosted cupcakes aside and throw them in the freezer ... this way you have one to grab the next time your allergy kid is invited to a birthday party.

P.S. Little Guy's school Valentine's Day party was interesting ... had to bring bread and popcorn for the party for him.  Ugh.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Update on Miracle Margarine

One of my original posts on this blog had to do with finding Fleischmann's unsalted margarine -- which has no dairy in it. This post has been one of my most popular with 16 comments on it.

Since I first posted it there have been some questions as to whether UNSALTED Fleischmann's margarine is free of dairy. Some people have posted that there is whey in it and I should "Make sure you know all the facts before you post something like that."

First of all, YES, we all should always check the labels of our kids' food. I posted this in Oct. 2006 -- 3 years ago!!! Things change ... always check your labels. I'm just a mom out here sharing what I have seen and what has worked for my family. And I touched on that in one of my very first posts.

That said, I am looking at the ingredients for the margarine in front of me and it says: Liquid soybean oil, water, hydrogenated soybean oil, contains less than 2% of the following: vegetable mono-and diglycerides and soy lecithin (emulsifiers), potassium sorbate and calcium disodium edta* (to preserve freshness), phosphoric acid (acidulant), natural and artificial flavor, vitamin A palmitate, colored with beta carotene (source of Vitamin A), Vitamin D3. CONTAINS: Soy

So, there you have it. I don't see a reference to whey. At least in the kind I get at my local store. I don't know enough about ConAgra Foods (who produces the product). Perhaps the ingredients differ by geographic location.

I certainly would not want the person who posted the comment to this blog to give it to her daughter who has a severe dairy allergy if the package she is looking at says there is whey in it. It would be terrible for that little girl to get sick. I know, my son can't eat whey either or casein.

This blog was meant as a way to share information and find other people dealing with the same issues. We are all stressed as we try to navigate through this experience .... let's try to support one another.