Food allergies are a pain, but they don’t mean you have to live a deprived life.
I have a food allergy, and several people who are close to me have multiple serious food allergies (resulting in anaphylactic shock and EpiPen® usage – NOT fun!). Thankfully many companies today make the effort to list possible allergens on their food, and let you know when a certain food is allergen-free. However, you can’t take their word for it! Depending on how severe the allergy is, you need to read the packaging to see if the food is processed on machines that also process the allergen. When in doubt, cut it out! Your best bet is to stick to fresh foods you prepared yourself. The best brand I’ve found for allergen-free foods is Enjoy Life – they have an incredible variety of foods available that taste absolutely delicious.
You can find a wide variety of delectable edible food that is outside of your food allergy – it just takes a little work. When you’re used to eating prepackaged foods it can be hard work to make the switch to eating fresh. Fresh foods can be irritating because they take time to prepare, go bad fairly quickly, and don’t always taste the same. However once you start preparing food regularly and planning time to do so, it can be fun and rewarding. You can make the food exactly as you like it, and experiment with different proportions and spices to make it even better than before. Fresh food is also more nutritious in general and doesn’t contain preservatives or artificial sweeteners.
A fresh recipe that I love is one that I’ve made with my family: guacamole stuffed peppers with pine nuts.
This is actually a vegan recipe that is both filling and satisfying.
Ingredients:
One bell pepper – orange and yellow are my favorites
Juice from half a lemon
Salt
Garlic or garlic powder
One avocado, peeled with pit removed
Other herbs to taste
Pine nuts
Cut the top off the bell pepper and remove the seeds and stalk. Mash up the avocado and add the lemon juice, salt, garlic, and other herbs; mix well. Scoop the avocado mixture into the hollow pepper and sprinkle the top with pine nuts.
This recipe is simple, quick to make, and surprisingly filling. A good way to find other recipes that are suitable for those who have food allergies is to simply search for “_____-free recipes” on any search engine. There are a lot of websites out there made by people who have the same dietary requirements.
I hope that you can enjoy life and realize how fun eating can be – even with a food allergy!