Meeting my need for dessert
The casual observer of this blog may wonder why a student of nutrition is focused on developing recipes for breads and desserts, but any reader with multiple food allergies or sensitivities will understand immediately: meals for the food-allergic may be simple, repetitive, meat/potatoes/vegetable affairs, but they are doable. Breads and desserts, on the other hand, are hard. And while I believe that good mental and physical health involves eating sweets only on an occasional basis, I also believe that it involves being able to eat sweets!
To meet my need for dessert I started adapting two tasty recipes created by vegan Chef Chloe (chefchloe.com).
The first was her holiday spiced crème brulee, which simply required replacing the cornstarch with arrowroot powder. Making this recipe gave me an excuse to purchase a kitchen torch, which I’ve wanted to do for years – and the result was delicious: so much so that I forgot to take a picture before we gobbled it all up!
The main ingredient in this dessert is coconut milk, which I would like to replace with a better tolerated liquid.
The American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (ACAAI) states that: “Coconut is not a botanical nut; it is classified as a fruit, even though the Food and Drug Administration recognizes coconut as a tree nut. While allergic reactions to coconut have been documented, most people who are allergic to tree nuts can safely eat coconut. If you are allergic to tree nuts, talk to your allergist before adding coconut to your diet."
Even individuals without an allergy to coconut may find that they don’t tolerated the milk well, however.
The second Chef Chloe dessert I made was her vegan cookie dough truffles, a family favorite.
I thought this one would be simple – just replace the flour with gluten-free flour! – but I was wrong. I examined every variety of margarine in my large grocery store, searching for one without any allergens, and I had no luck. Every single formulation contained something on the top-10 list.
For the sake of a first trial I chose one with no dairy, soy, or corn. Like many vegan margarines, however, it contained sunflower lecithin. Chef Ben tested both the gluten-containing and gluten-free versions of this recipe and proclaimed them to be nearly identical and a bit too sweet for his taste. I found the gluten-free results to be rich, delicious, and addictive.
I plan to work on an oil-based version of this recipe to post here…just as soon as I finish eating these!
October 2020 Editor’s note: Recipe links have been removed from this post as the website is no longer active.
