Learn to make delicious, allergy sensitive party foods

[View in browser]( [Rodale Wellness]( FROM THE DESK OF April Peveteaux Author of [Bake Sales Are My B*tch: Win the Food Allergy Wars with 60+ Recipes to Keep Kids Safe and Parents Sane]( [April Peveteaux] Dear wellness seeker, Whether you have an allergic kid or not, at some point, you will be required (or asked, most likely) to consider leaving out a key ingredient to your world-famous chocolate pecan shortbread. No matter how much you wish that were not so, the fact is 1 out of every 25 children in the United States suffers from food allergies, and those numbers are growing rapidly, with a 50 percent increase between 1997 and 2011. That's a lot of kids with food problems, and since 88 percent of schools report having one or more children with food allergies, it's going to be all up in your kid's lunch box soon enough. Let's talk about how to get through that tough time without making yourself insane trying to create the perfect dairy-free copy of cream cheese ice cream or, the alternative, coming off like the world's biggest asshole when you declare, "In my day, food allergies weeded out the weak!" Unless you're homeschooling your child, there will always be someone next to your kid in the lunchroom, at birthday parties, at classroom celebrations, and even in your own home who cannot tolerate some kind of food something or other. For those of us parents of children with unsullied immune systems (for now—we all know people who develop problems with food well into adulthood), it can be crazy-making to pack a peanut-free, tree-nut-free, dairy-free, gluten-free lunch 5 days a week. As a proud member of the freaked-out parent club, I, too, have had brushes with minor allergies with my daughter. As someone who has celiac disease, I'm also always looking for signs of celiac in my own kids and always forcing them to test my gluten-free cupcakes. But only one of those things is truly stress inducing. To me. While it can certainly appear that there are two distinct sides to the great food allergy debate—those with issues, and those without—the fact is, we are all in this together. Because what we all have in common is that we're just really tired of making kid food, and exhaustion makes us cranky. That's all I'm trying to do here—get us all to imagine life from the other parent's perspective, and that's where my book, [Bake Sales Are My B*tch]( comes in. Practice a little empathy while keeping our kiddos safe. And there's nothing that says we can't keep our own children safe and healthy while also considering other busy moms' limitations. Working together is challenging, sure, but if we can all put ourselves in some other gal's slip-ons, we'll all be happier, less stressed, and much more filled with kindness and light and gluten-free cookies. So, yeah, in [Bake Sales Are My B*tch]( we're going to learn how to make party foods that are the mother scratchin' bomb and serve them up to everyone with a genuine smile—even that lady who believes peanut allergies are all in your head. Let's do this. Join me, April Snickerdoodles Adapted from [Bake Sales Are My B*tch]( [yoga-kids-1000.jpg] This snickerdoodle recipe was originally my mom’s. She used a butter substitute, so it was always dairy-free. I’ve made it gluten-free and egg-free, as well. You can always use butter, regular flour, and 2 eggs, if you’re not entertaining any allergic types. Prep time: 15 minutes Chill time: 3 hours Cook time: 8 minutes Makes: 24 servings Ingredients: 2 tablespoons golden flax meal 1 cup Earth Balance or butter-flavored vegetable shortening 1 3/4 cups sugar 1 3/4 cups all-purpose gluten-free, dairy-free flour 2 teaspoons cream of tartar 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons cinnamon Directions: 1. In a small bowl, whisk together flax meal and 6 tablespoons water. Allow to stand for 10 minutes. 2. Using an electric mixer or stand mixer, cream butter substitute or shortening and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Add flax meal and water mixture and combine well. Add flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt, and mix well. 3. Transfer dough to refrigerator and chill for 3 hours or more. 4. Preheat oven to 400°F and prepare baking sheet by lightly spraying with vegetable oil spray. 5. In a small bowl, combine cinnamon and the remaining 1/4 cup sugar well. 6. Remove chilled dough from refrigerator and roll dough into balls 1 1/2" to 2" in diameter. Roll balls in cinnamon and sugar mixture and place on baking sheet. 7. Bake for 8 minutes, or until edges are golden brown. Find more tips for making allergen-free recipes on our [website.]( Recommended for You: [Breathe Like a Bear]( April Peveteaux’s 60-plus recipes cover the eight major food allergens and everything from school lunches, kids parties, sleepover foods, after-school snacks, and, yes, bake sales. In [Bake Sales Are My B*tch]( she gets into the nitty-gritty of food allergies, from deadly serious reactions to how to deal with those who don’t take your kid’s allergy seriously. Whether you’re a freaked-out parent or not, Peveteaux lends some much-needed guidance―and teaches you to make party foods that will be a surefire hit. [ORDER NOW]( Did a friend forward this e-mail to you? Don't miss a single newsletter. Sign up at [RodaleWellness.com/join](. 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