I feel like there is no dessert my whole family can eat, sug

SaraSatin
SaraSatin Posts: 48 Member
edited October 3 in Recipes
Ok, we did a blood test that was a food sensitivity test and are now in the phase of eliminating the severe and moderate reactions to find out what we really need to cut. We are not removing the mild reactions because those lists were too long for us, we all have a lot of sensitivities. I would love to make a dessert other than cut up fruit that we can all have on occasion. Here is our list of items we can't have that are severe or moderate.

Gluten
Cane Sugar
Maple Sugar
Honey
Cinnamon
Vanilla
Cocoa
Carob

It seems impossible to me. We have been letting our daughter have fruit snacks because sugar is a mild for her (there's really very little we have no reaction to and the doctor would have us cut it all out). I've been having sugar free ice cream because I can have vanilla and cocoa and my husband's been eating sugar free pudding.

It's frustrating because our daughter had a severe reaction to sucralose so she can't have our sugar free stuff. I can get gluten free oats and gluten free flours. Any suggestions? This is so frustrating to me and so far I'm the only one who notices a difference in my health. Not that the 3 year old would know to watch for it...

Replies

  • McKayMachina
    McKayMachina Posts: 2,670 Member
    Freeze banana slices on a plate, blend. Ice cream. I add nutmeg and stuff.

    Blend cottage cheese with whatever you want, freeze it til firm.

    Jello with fruit.

    Dates.

    Hope that helps.
  • fateschild
    fateschild Posts: 114 Member
    Wow! I don't know what to suggest, but I appreciate that you are trying so hard to do the right thing.

    Have you tried Larabars? Don't know your allergies to nuts, but they are mostly just fruit and nuts.
  • Cokamo
    Cokamo Posts: 51
    What about other natural sweeteners like stevia root or agave nectar?
  • hsk11270
    hsk11270 Posts: 48
    you could try making something with agave syrup or rice syrup. Both are very sweet and satisfying. They even make chocolate agave syrup for those of you who can do the cocoa. could try using it with non gluten oats in a recipe or with some of the gluten free flours you can get at the whole foods market or health foods store. Bob's red mill makes lots of different gluten free products for baking and also there are many other brands to choose from as well. It is going to be overwhelming for the first couple of weeks till you get your kitchen switched over but after that things will smooth out especially when you have been to the store a few times and have seen your options. There are many good websites devoted to food allergies particularly gluten allergies and these are a great resource for recipes. Then you can just substitute the sweetener for agave or stevia. Go to glutenfreegirl.com and glutenfreeda.com..... I wish you success and support ;)
  • feydruss
    feydruss Posts: 349 Member
    I just did some Googling for "gluten free sugar free dessert" and found a few recipe blogs. Looks like quinoa flour is a good substitute, along with stevia. I use agave nectar sometimes and I like it better than stevia. You could consider something like a modified rice pudding with dried fruit. Or a pavlova with cream and fresh fruit?
  • Espressocycle
    Espressocycle Posts: 2,245 Member
    Was this a real doctor or an "alternative" doctor? In any case, I assume you can order beet sugar online.
  • hsk11270
    hsk11270 Posts: 48
    Also you might be able to use imitation vanilla flavoring. You could ask your doctor about that. Most store bought vanilla is the imitation kind.
  • jo_marnes
    jo_marnes Posts: 1,601 Member
    Pancakes - use a GF flour or buckwheat flour. You can add fruit or you could all have different toppings.

    Bread and butter pudding - with GF bread.. not sure if you can use artificial sweeteners?

    Apple Tarte Tatin - Use a GF pastry and some sweet apples, pretty much no need to add much else!

    Rice pudding

    Baked apples
  • cramernh
    cramernh Posts: 3,335 Member
    Honestly, I think you are so hung up on the "cant haves" you fail to concentrate on the "CAN haves".... thats part of the problem.

    How about.. making a list of what you all CAN have together.. and that will be better... then you might get more suggestions to help you out...
  • cdstadt
    cdstadt Posts: 311 Member
    Can you guys have beet sugar?
  • FabCheeky
    FabCheeky Posts: 311
    Sites to check out:
    Elanaspantry.com
    comfybelly.com
    http://RealSustenance.com
    http://simplysugarandglutenfree.com/
  • SaraSatin
    SaraSatin Posts: 48 Member
    Thank you for the replies! I do try to focus on the can haves but if we remove the mild sensitivities like they wanted us to our can haves don't include much. We don't do a separate meal for each person so we focus on removing the moderate and severes from all of us. I just couldn't handle making a separate menu for each person each week.

    Freezing bananas and blending sounds SOOOO delicious!

    I have a mild reaction to agave so we can use that. I try not to use too many artificial sweeteners for my daughter anyway. No idea on beet sugar, I did try fructose in a cookie because that was an OK for all of us and I got heart burn. No idea why... I will have to look up beet sugar and coconut sugar too.

    We can all have every nut except pecan. I tried making Larabars at home because the store bought ones have a sugar frosting on them from what I was told. It killed my $30 food processor. Literally, it died while I tried to process the dates. If anyone knows if I was supposed to boil them to plump them up or buy fresh I would appreciate that info before I buy another processor.

    I'm going to look up some of the things you mentioned, thank you!
  • SaraSatin
    SaraSatin Posts: 48 Member
    Oh, and in case anyone is curious... here is our list of "nobody had any reaction to it" foods. This is not an all encompassing test because that would be way too much data to process. (Oh, and an MD did the test for us. It's a sensitivity test not an allergy test which is why the elimination diet is needed. I appear to need to keep away from wheat and sugar.)

    artichoke, beet, black-eyes peas, broccoli (must limit due to one of my husband's meds), carrot, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, iceberg lettuce, leek, parsnip, radish, tomato, sweet potato, turnip

    apple, banana, blackberry, cantaloupe, cranberry, nectarine, pineapple, peach, pear, pomegranate, pumpkin, raspberry, strawberry

    beef, haddock, sold, tilapia

    amaranth, millet

    bay leaf, parsley, coriander, thyme

    almond, cashew, coconut, coffee, cottonseed, flaxseed, fructose (HFCS), garlic, hazelnut, peanut, pine nut, pistachio, sunflower, walnut

    As you can see, it's sort of ridiculous. No eggs, no dairy of any kind, most meats would be off limits. There is a reason we are focusing on what we can't have instead of what we can... because we literally wouldn't be able to get through this if we didn't focus on cutting certain things out instead of everything.
  • FabCheeky
    FabCheeky Posts: 311
    There is no sugar on a genuine Lara bar. Promise. Cashew Cookie is cashews and dates. That's it. Coconut sugar (palm sugar) is a wonderful, low glycemic index, high nutrient sugar option that you can buy organic.

    To make dates blendable: soak in hot water for 10 minutes before use.
  • Ilovebeagles
    Ilovebeagles Posts: 96
    I came across a recipe for a vegan parfait, which I have made a few times, and it is delicous. I'm not even vegan and I love it! It's simple to make and delicious. It mimicks those fruit and yogurt parfaits you find at McDonalds but it's vegan and dairy free.

    For the 'cream' part you throw some cashews into the blender. Put in enough water just to cover the cashews. A drop or two of vanilla and some agave nectar to sweeten. Blend it up, for a good minute or two. It will be thick, so if you like it more runny just add more water.

    Then you put some fruit or berries into a dish, scoop on the cashew cream and top with chopped nuts. Between the soft fruit, smooth cashew cream and crunchiness of the nuts this dessert is sooooo goood and satisfying.

    Good luck! =0)
  • 1953Judith
    1953Judith Posts: 325 Member
    Could you stuff dates or pears with some kind of nut paste?

    Make macaroons with egg whites, unsweetened coconut and coconut sugar.

    Not for your children, but what about dried fruit soaked in brandy.

    Sometimes acorn squash and sweet potatoes taste like pudding to me, could you make a crust from ground nuts and put mashed sweet potatoes in the nut crust, top it with a meringue made with agave syrup or coconut sugar. Maybe mix some beets in with the sweet potatoes.
  • cramernh
    cramernh Posts: 3,335 Member
    Oh, and in case anyone is curious... here is our list of "nobody had any reaction to it" foods. This is not an all encompassing test because that would be way too much data to process. (Oh, and an MD did the test for us. It's a sensitivity test not an allergy test which is why the elimination diet is needed. I appear to need to keep away from wheat and sugar.)

    artichoke, beet, black-eyes peas, broccoli (must limit due to one of my husband's meds), carrot, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, iceberg lettuce, leek, parsnip, radish, tomato, sweet potato, turnip

    apple, banana, blackberry, cantaloupe, cranberry, nectarine, pineapple, peach, pear, pomegranate, pumpkin, raspberry, strawberry

    beef, haddock, sold, tilapia

    amaranth, millet

    bay leaf, parsley, coriander, thyme

    almond, cashew, coconut, coffee, cottonseed, flaxseed, fructose (HFCS), garlic, hazelnut, peanut, pine nut, pistachio, sunflower, walnut

    As you can see, it's sort of ridiculous. No eggs, no dairy of any kind, most meats would be off limits. There is a reason we are focusing on what we can't have instead of what we can... because we literally wouldn't be able to get through this if we didn't focus on cutting certain things out instead of everything.

    Sorry for asking for the can-have list... it was a way to help you focus on something positive and work on that....and also a way to think of some ideas for desserts...... Ill move on...
  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,423 Member
    The thing that springs to mind looking at your "can have" list is a variation on an apple crumble.

    Cook some apples and berries (or other fruit that you can have) in a tiny bit of water. It should be sweet enough without any sweetener but you can add apple concentrate or some kinds of dried fruit (I can't remember if dates were on your list, they are very sweet) if you need more sweetness.

    Then make a crunchy topping with some crushed /ground nuts and whatever kind of cereal you can eat - I seem to remember seeing millet flakes in the market, they would probably work. Add a little bit of oil to the cereal and nuts to moisten it and bake it till the top is crunchy.

    And for a real treat you could top it with a little dollop of coconut cream.
  • sleepytexan
    sleepytexan Posts: 3,138 Member
    Check out recipes that include Yacon syrup as a sweetener and almond meal or oat flour as the flour.

    I've had some spectacular zucchini muffins a friend made with Yacon and almond meal.
  • jenkamac
    jenkamac Posts: 61 Member
    mix 1 cup oat flour with one egg and 1 cup milk - use this batter to make crepes. About two tablespoons on a hot pan, shake around a bit and voila! Add some fruit and ricotta cheese in the center. SUPER GOOD!
  • lolainlondon
    lolainlondon Posts: 160 Member
    If you can have beef you should be ok with Gelatine. Stew up some fruits, puree them and add the amount of gelatine on the packet instructions. Freeze them for tasty nutritious jellos.
  • charlite43
    charlite43 Posts: 4 Member
    You could make frozen ice treats with the different fruits you can eat. blend them up with a bit of water or juice and freeze them in a popsicle tray.
  • Bahet
    Bahet Posts: 1,254 Member
    The Most Common Food Allergies continued...

    "My pet peeve is now we have these blood tests and skin tests but without a patient's or a parent's help, they may provide misinformation," Oppenheimer tells WebMD. "So when a reaction occurs, try to figure out what you or your child ate over the last several hours. And then tell the doctor your story. Doing testing blindly can result in more problems than it solves."

    The problem is that tests for food allergy are very sensitive. This means that if you do have a food allergy, the tests are very likely to catch it. But the tests aren't very specific. This means that the tests often are positive when there's no food allergy.

    "People get 100 tests, and many are false positives and they end up chasing their tails," Oppenheimer says.

    The new guidelines help doctors use food allergy tests in the best possible way. And when used properly, Portnoy says, testing works.

    "Don't just assume you have a food allergy. If you suspect one, get it confirmed," Portnoy says. "You have to make sure you really are allergic. I have seen people with nutritional problems due to avoiding foods they're not really allergic to."

    It's very rare for a person to be allergic to more than one or two foods, Oppenheimer and Portnoy say. So if testing is used to confirm or reject suspect foods, it is more likely to give meaningful results.
    From http://www.webmd.com/allergies/guide/food-allergy-testing

    You might want to be retested or find out exactly what is meant by "a sensitivity" to certain foods. If it means you could have severe problems of course avoid it. If it means it might maybe sometimes give you a bit of heartburn pop a Tums and call it good.
  • SaraSatin
    SaraSatin Posts: 48 Member
    Ok, based on some feedback I got I just want to say thank you to everyone who has replied. I know i sound kind of negative about this but it is hard to see that your perfectly healthy 3 year old has all these issues. I can handle myself and my husband, but she's my baby.

    I also do realize that this is just a sensitivity test, just finding out what is bothering our stomachs not something necessarily causing real damage. In my case, after cheating just a bit at a couple of events I have discovered that my real reactions are to sugars and wheat. Unlike my husband and daughter, who had a bit of gassiness and bloating, I have Ulcerative Colitis and those are the foods that trigger an attack.

    However, we are attempting to be better about not slipping up so we can complete the 6 month elimination period and add things in slowly to see if my husband and daughter have real reactions. I will probably continue to go wheat and sugar/honey free because I simply feel good for the first time in years.

    Oh, and thanks for the ideas with actual instructions! I'm a bit of a kitchen klutz but I try hard. Good to know about the Lara bars, someone told me they had a frosting on them so I wasn't buying them.

    ETA: I also wanted to add that my list of severe and moderate reactions that I wrote is not complete. I was just giving the list of things pertaining to desserts. My 3 year old alone has a list of 39 foods that it says she has a mild sensitivity to. We are simply ignoring those right now because my husband already has foods he can't eat due to medication and we keep a kosher home so some of our no reaction foods I didn't list because they don't work in our household. It's all so confusing so we are focusing on the moderate and severe reactions and limiting the mild ones.

    I simply wanted ideas on desserts so I could give some normalcy back to my husband.
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