Summer Lovin'

Is it almost July?! I can't believe how quickly this year has gone! Now is the time of year to enjoy the fresh fruits of summer. A lot of summer fruits- peaches, berries, melons- are BOP free. While I'm allergic to fresh peaches and cherries, I can eat them canned, cooked and dried.

I recently won a Ball Discover You Can party through www.houseparty.com. The kit came with various tools and instructions on how to can. I've never canned before, but I think I might give it a whirl, this summer. I hear that peaches and strawberries are on sale at Aldi's this week... might be worth looking into.

Make the most of these summer fruits and enjoy!

Honey Butter

Balsam of Peru/Sodium Benzoate pops up on the strangest places. I was eating out yesterday and discovered that the honey butter I had just used for my rolls contains Sodium Benzoate!However, I know that regular butter does not. So, be careful to read ingredients- even when you are eating out and eating things you thought did not contain BOP!

Baking without Eggs

Yes, eggs are on the safe list when you are allergic to Balsam of Peru. In fact, I tend to eat at least one omelet a week and I do like to add hard-boiled eggs to tuna or egg salad. However, my daughter has an egg allergy and I've been learning to bake without the use of eggs. So far, I've only tried quick breads/muffins with fair results. If the egg is intended to be used as a binder, then applesauce makes a great, moist substitute (less calories and no cholesterol, too!). However, don't try substituting applesauce for eggs AND oil in the same recipe. I tried it and ended up with flat little lumps. Tasty lumps, according to my one year-old, but lumps nonetheless.

Johnny Rockets

Since my daughter was recently diagnosed with an egg, nut, soy allergy, I've been doing a lot of research into where we can safely go out to eat. The verdict? Mostly nowhere because EVERYTHING seems to contain soy. HOWEVER, in my search, I came across the menu for Johnny Rockets and noticed that they list benzoates in their allergen list. This is a first! Mostly everywhere else just lists wheat, nuts and soy in their allergen alerts.

http://www.johnnyrockets.com/themenu/ingredients.php

Memorial Day Weekend 2011

This past weekend was Memorial Day weekend. We did the typical cook-out fare and I ate. I ate monster cookies with chocolate chips, I had more than my fair share of ice cream and I had BBQ sauce on my sandwich. Pretty much, I threw caution to the wind and ate what I wanted without any regard to avoiding Balsam of Peru in the foods that I ate.

Now, I am paying for it. The rash on my finger is back. It is cracked, dry and irritated. I can tell it's starting to form on the palm of my hand, too. So, lesson learned, avoiding Balsam of Peru really does help control my eczema!