Holiday Snaps

Ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 egg - replace with 1 Tbsp applesauce if allergic to egg
1/4 cup molasses
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour - replace with 1 1/2 cup oat flour, barley flour, or gluten free baking mix
1 cup old fashioned oats (not instant)
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
Sugar for rolling cookies

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350°F.
2) Combine sugar and shortening, beat until creamy.
3) Stir in egg and molasses.
4) Combine flour,oats, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon and salt.
5) Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture and mix well and chill for 1 hour.
6) Roll dough into 1 inch balls and roll in sugar. Place on greased cookie sheet 2 inches apart.
7) Bake 8 to 10 minutes until lightly browned. Let cool for 5 minutes before removing from cookie sheet to cooling racks.

Makes 4 dozen

Food Allergy Friendly Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
2 cups oat flour
1 cups sugar
6 Tbsps Cocoa Powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup rice milk
1/3 cup canola or cooking oil
1 tsp vinegar
3/4 tsp vanilla

Directions:
1) Heat oven to 350°F.
2) Grease and flour (using oat flour) 9 X 9-inch square pan.
3) In a small mixing bowl combine dry ingredients. In separate bowl mix wet ingredients together.
4)Slowly add wet ingredients to dry and beat until smooth.
5) Pour into prepared pan. Bake 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
6) Cool; cut into squares.
7) Optional: Sprinkle powdered sugar over the top.

Serves 8

Sweet Potato Apple Casserole

Our third of five food-allergy friendly recipes is tasty as a side dish or dessert. And it's nutritious!

Recipe courtesy of Whole Foods Market

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds whole sweet potatoes
3 granny smith apples, peeled, cored & sliced
Juice of 2 oranges
Zest from one orange
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 Tbsps butter - replace with milk free margarine if allergic to milk
2 Tbsps brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped nuts - replace with crushed corn flakes if allergic
to nuts

Directions:
1) In a medium sauce pan cook unpeeled whole sweet potatoes in boiling water for about 20 minutes until fork tender. Drain. Or bake potatoes at 400°F for 45 to 60 minutes until soft to touch.
2) While cooking potatoes, heat apples and orange juice in a skillet with spices and orange zest. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes until apples soften.
3) Peel sweet potatoes and slice. Layer sweet potatoes in microwave safe casserole dish with apple slices. Sprinkle with mixture of brown sugar, butter, and nuts (or substitutes).
4) Microwave on high for 4 to 5 minutes.

Serves 8

Herbed Prime Rib Roast

The second, in a series of five, allergy-free holiday recipes is Herbed Prime Rib Roast. Enjoy!

Recipe courtesy of Whole Foods Market

Ingredients:
4 cloves garlic
3 Tbsps chopped fresh rosemary
3 Tbsps chopped fresh thyme
2 Tbsps expeller-pressed canola oil
2 tsp coarse sea salt
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 3-rib bone-in standing rib roast (about 5 pounds),
trimmed of excess, but not all, fat
1 1/2 cups low-sodium beef broth

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 475°F. In a food processor, pulse garlic until chopped.
2) Add rosemary, thyme, oil, salt and pepper and pulse until you have a chunky paste.
3) Rub the roast all over with the paste and place bone-side down in a roasting pan.
4) Roast in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes.
5) Reduce oven temperature to 375°F and continue roasting about 1 hour longer.
6) Use a meat thermometer inserted into the center of the roast (not touching bone) to check the temperature in several spots and continue roasting meat, checking temperature every 5 or 10 minutes, until about 10 degrees shy of
your preferred level of doneness. The meat will continue cooking while it rests after being removed from the oven and the temperature will rise another 5 or 10 degrees. Target temperatures are 130 to 135°F for medium rare and 135 to
145°F for medium.
7) Transfer roast to a cutting board, bone-side down, and let stand 25 minutes before carving. Meanwhile, carefully spoon off and discard fat from dark juices in roasting pan.
8) Use oven mitts to place pan over medium-high heat and add broth. Simmer, scraping up browned bits from the bottom of pan, until reduced to 1 cup, about 10 minutes.
9) Carve the roast by running a long, sharp knife between the rib bones and meat to separate them.
10) Slice meat into portions, arrange on a platter with the bones (there’s meat left on the bones and some people may want one) and spoon hot pan juices over the top.

Serves 6 to 8

Holiday Berry Sauce

Even if your kids don’t have food allergies, it’s likely that you’ll be cooking for one of your kids’ cousins or friends who is allergic to one of the top eight food allergy triggers (milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy and wheat). This week before Christmas, we’re sharing directions for an entire food-allergy-friendly holiday meal. One recipe every weekday. That way, if you have to make any last minute substitutes, you’ll be able to.

 
Recipe courtesy of Whole Foods Market

Ingredients:
6 cups fresh cranberries, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup orange juice, more if needed
1 (16 ounce) package frozen blueberries
1 (12 ounce) package frozen raspberries
Zest of 1 orange
1 1/2 cups agave nectar or honey
1 cup sugar, or to taste

Directions:
1) Place cranberries in a large saucepan.
2) Add orange juice and cook over medium heat for 7 to 10 minutes or until cranberries start to pop.
3) Add blueberries, raspberries, orange zest, nectar and sugar. You may need to add a little more orange juice at this time if mixture is not slightly wet.
4) Cook an additional 10 minutes, mashing cranberries if desired with a potato masher. Let mixture cool before serving.

Serves 12 as a side condiment