Mini-Meatloaves with Smashed Potatoes and Carrots

I'm pretty excited that we're getting to the point that Cody can eat some of the meals I make for us. I'm getting used to cooking with the modifications for his allergies and even though we ate healthy before, we're eating even better now. I'm actually noticing those last few pesky pregnancy pounds coming off too. Can't beat that!

I made this for all of us for dinner last night. Cody really liked the meatloaf.

I love that you can bake this meal in one pan. Anything that simplifies makes me happy!

Here's the recipe. Enjoy!

This recipe is egg-free, dairy-free, wheat-free, soy-free, peanut/tree nut-free, fish/shellfish-free (many meatloaf recipes contain Worcestershire sauce which has anchovies in it).

Mini-meatloaves with smashed potatoes and carrots

Meatloaf:

1/2 cup oats

1/4 cup rice or oat milk

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 small onion, diced

1 cup shredded or finely diced carrots

1 cup peas

1 cup chopped green beans

1 clove garlic, minced

1 lb. ground buffalo, beef or turkey

3 tablespoons zucchini sauce* 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Additional zucchini sauce* for brushing tops

Potatoes and carrots:

2 Yukon gold potatoes

1 large sweet potato

8 baby carrots

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

Meatloaf:

Put oats in large mixing bowl. Add milk. 

Let soak while preparing other ingredients

In a large pan, heat olive oil over medium/high heat. 

Add onions and veggies and sauté until just softened, about 8 - 10 minutes. 

Add garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. 

Let cool completely.

Combine the oats, veggies and ground meat, zucchini sauce, salt and pepper and mix by hand.

Form five mini-meatloaves and place on a baking sheet. 

Brush tops with zucchini sauce

Potatoes and carrots:

Peel and slice the potatoes into 1/4 inch slices. 

Cut the carrots in half lengthwise.

In a bowl, toss the potatoes and carrots with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Place them on the baking sheet with the meat loaves.

Bake 35 - 40 min.  

Transfer the potatoes and carrots to a bowl and smash with a fork.

Serve immediately with the meat loaves.

*If you have no problem with tomatoes, you can use ketchup instead of zucchini sauce.

Cranberry or blueberry apple muffins.

It took me a few tries to get these mini muffins just right, but I finally have the right texture and taste.

I usually make these with dried cranberries, but since we have a ton of blueberries, I used those this time around.

I can't seem to keep these around very long because we all love them. Well, Cody usually loves to eat them except when he decides they are a great "throw" (his word for ball) and wants to test his arm. I can tell you that it's pretty good!

These are wheat-free, dairy-free, egg-free, soy-free and vegan.

Enjoy!

Mini apple and dried Cranberry muffins

Makes about 20 muffins

1 1/2 cup oat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup oat or rice milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped, dried cranberries or blueberries

1 small, finely diced apple

Brown sugar for sprinkling on top

Preheat oven to 350 and grease mini muffin pans.

In a large bowl combine the maple syrup, applesauce, milk, oil, cranberries/blueberries and apples.

In another bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Gradually stir in the flour mixture
Spoon the batter into the muffin pan. 

Sprinkle with brown sugar and bake for about 25 - 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Pestolata Pasta. It's not quite pesto, not quite gremolata.

I call this pestolata because it's a little like pesto and a little like gremolata. Either way, it's delicious! 

The problem with pesto is that is has nuts and parmesan cheese. Here's my recipe for nut-free, dairy-free, allergy friendly, vegan pestolata pasta. I often add veggies like asparagus or peas, Cody's favorite. Seriously, this kid just can't get enough peas. He eats them by the handful every day, all day and I buy an astonishing number of bags of peas every week. But I digress.

Enjoy!

1 cup basil
1 cup spinach
1 small garlic clove
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1 lb. rice pasta

Salt and black pepper

Combine the basil, spinach, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice and oil in a food processor. Add a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper. Blend until smooth.
Cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water.
Place the hot pasta in a serving bowl and immediately stir in the pesto. Add pasta water to reach desired consistency. Add more salt and pepper if desired.

 

Summertime Sparkling Sangria

Don't worry, this is NOT for Cody! 

I thought I would share this adults only recipe for sangria. Summertime and sangria just go together especially this refreshing sparkling sangria. 

For 4th of July I used cherries, red grapes and blueberries, but feel free to use any fruit combination you like. Sometimes I use lemon, lime and orange slices and replace the grape juice with orange juice.

Enjoy!

1 bottle chilled champagne or prosecco

1/2 cup white grape juice

1 cup ginger ale

 2 tablespoons brandy

1 cup mixed berries, cherries and red grapes

Mix all ingredients in a pitcher and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Usually I chill sangria overnight, but you don't want this to lose its fizz, so start with cold ingredients and don't make it too far in advance.

Pour over ice and garnish with mint.

Buffalo hummus burgers

I have always loved 4th of July. It was one of my favorite holidays as a child. Then I met my husband at a 4th of July party and we got married three years later on 4th of July weekend, so I enjoy this holiday even more now!
 

Who's grilling for 4th of July weekend? To me, a good 4th of July weekend has to include grilling. I love burgers and I like using buffalo meat instead of beef because it is much leaner than beef. The problem is that because it is lean, it can dry out easily. That's why I like to add hummus to my buffalo burgers. It adds great flavor and moisture.

Use your favorite hummus, or here's the recipe for my Sesame-free hummus. I like to serve the burgers with my Allergy friendly potato salad.

 

I have been trying to make hamburger buns, but I have not perfected it yet, so use your favorite allergy friendly hamburger buns or bread.

Happy 4th of July, happy grilling and enjoy!

 

Grilled buffalo hummus burgers

1 lb. ground buffalo
2 tablespoons finely chopped onions
1/4 cup hummus
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
Vegan rice cheese
Your favorite allergy friendly hamburger buns

In a large mixing bowl combine the buffalo, onions, hummus, salt and pepper.
Shape into 4 burger patties
Grill over medium high heat for about 4 minutes on each side.
Top with cheese and toast the hamburger buns on the grill.
Serve on the buns with your favorite toppings.

Baking soda and baking powder and yeast. Oh my!

I never thought I would ever learn so much about these three things, how they work individually, with each other and with other ingredients.

I decided to work on making a good, allergy friendly bread again. The results were better than my first attempt at allergen free bread. This time I used a combination of potato and oat flour. 

The first loaf, pictured below, didn't rise much, but tasted delicious! I tried another, also pictured below, with some adjustments. As you can see in the second picture it rose a bit better and is larger than the first. In the third picture, after slicing you can see that it's still a bit dense. 

I have work to do to get this right, but I think I know what to do next and I feel like I'm close! And even though the texture isn't quite right yet I am very happy with the taste. My husband and I ate half a loaf that night!

Restaurants and food allergies

Yesterday I went to a new place for lunch and ordered a cookie. I asked if it had nuts in it and I was told it didn't. Well, when I bit into it I discovered it did.

Luckily I am only allergic to some tree nuts, not the walnuts that were in the cookie. Also, I am not anaphylactic to tree nuts the way I am to fish. They just make me violently ill, but I think about what could have happened to someone who is anaphylactic to walnuts. 

Cody has skin tested allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, but we don't know the severity of his allergy. Our house is peanut and tree nut free. I can't help but think, what if he bit into that cookie?

I realize and take full responsibility for the fact that I didn't ask the question in the right way. I didn't mention an allergy to nuts. I will be sure to do that in the future.

Still, it is scary to me that this happened. Especially because I know firsthand that even the tiniest amount of an allergen can cause an anaphylactic reaction. 

I think one of the biggest challenges of food allergies is that people don't realize that a minuscule amount can cause a full-blown, life threatening reaction. I think many restaurants are getting better and I appreciate the effort they are making, but there is still a long way to go.

I have had to use epinepherine and go to the ER three times since we first found out I was severely allergic to fish when I was about three years old. All involved tiny amounts of fish, not even a full bite. One time was from french fries that were cooked with fish. Twice I was given incorrect information about the food I ate.  Another time I had a severe, intense asthma attack from being in a kitchen where someone was cooking fish. There were also a couple other times that I noticed I was starting to have a minor reaction from something I was eating that had obviously come in contact with fish.

I am very careful about where I eat, what I order, the questions I ask and I listen to the way the answer is delivered when it comes to fish. I also look and smell before I eat. If I'm still suspicious I will ask again or put a tiny bit on my tongue and wait before continuing to eat. I'm not allergic to shellfish, but I long ago stopped ordering it for fear of cross contamination with fish (and my husband is allergic to shellfish). 

I can't yet imagine Cody being able to eat in a restaurant with multiple allergies. I'm sure that will change at some point, but right now it seems out of reach.

To give credit where credit is due, here are three of the best experiences I had dining out with a fish allergy. Oddly, two of these I would generally consider completely off-limits because of the type of food served.

Spiaggia Chicago

My husband and I splurged for our 5th anniversary. This place is amazing. Probably the best meal I have ever eaten.

Before we ordered, our server asked if we had any food allergies. They made changes to their regular tasting menu to accommodate us and assured us our food would be prepared safely without us having to ask.

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen

Yes, a seafood restaurant! I first went for a group dinner expecting to eat bread. After mentioning my allergy to our server the manager came to talk to me. We discussed what I wanted to order and she assured me that it would be prepared separately. The manager was so knowledgeable and made me feel so comfortable eating there, it became a favorite place. 

PF Changs

I consider Asian cuisine restaurants off-limits because of the fish sauce and oyster sauce used in so many dishes. But PF Changs will print out a menu listing what foods are safe for your particular allergy and they will prepare it separately. A manager came out to talk to us and was very knowledgeable.

I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences dining out with food allergies.