It's been a while... #FewFoodDiet

I've been really slack about updating - but the truth is, this is HARD. Really hard. Not being a stranger to exclusion diets I knew it would be, but nothing prepares you for the reality that is an indignant, stroppy tweenager who understandably wants to be like her friends and is facing a *much* longer term than expected of a very limited diet.

We've made progress, mostly by sensible planned means - but I confess in absolute desperation we tried some BFree rolls before every ingredient had been tested and thankfully, these are ok. This success not only brought a bumper set of accepted foods but a real possibility of a school packed lunch! This is not to be sniffed at, in a school where packed lunches are not permitted, she really will be the *only* child having one, and if it's as near normal as possible that matters. A lot.

We've done well with carbs. Protein - not so much. And she's now completely refusing every possible (sneaky) attempt to get chickpea into her diet as it's now "revolting". This is a stage all parents face on similar exclusion diets, the child is understandably feeling utterly out of control and I completely understand why she needs to do this. She's telling me that whilst she accepts the restrictions imposed by her medical team, she still calls the shots. Her body - her rules.

This, in my opinion, is vitally important to appreciate. We couldn't have embarked on this without her consent. Giving a degree of control, where appropriate really helps though - for example, blood tests really panic her, causing a rapid escalation into anxiety which she can barely cope with. So we've now adopted the policy that she has control, she makes the choices, but she needs to understand why they are necessary. On the whole it works too. She tells the doctor or nurse where they are allowed to put the needle (hand, arm etc) and whether she has cream, spray or nothing. Within reason she has the right to refuse too - although she hasn't yet, because she's in control and is actually pretty sensible for a ten year old.

So we've also followed her list of priorities for food introductions too, which sadly hasn't included much protein! We've made pancakes (above) using a pot of pear puree instead of egg, my fruit, cashew and seed bites  with a few alterations and she's done a fair bit of experimenting too. She enjoys the BFree pittas with lettuce, sweetcorn and carrot chopped inside, with some Violife cheese in. I just wish there was some protein in it!

On the (hugely) positive side, when she's not reacting to new foods, I have a daughter who barely refluxes. Seriously. Hardly at ALL. After 10 1/2 years of moderate to severe reflux this is life changing - and if the unpleasant bowel and urinary symptoms are indeed delayed and related, we could be looking at one seriously healthy and happy young girl.

Which makes it all worthwhile.

Necessity is the Mother of Invention - Pancakes and Puddings

We are now well into our second week of our #fewfood journey, I'm delighted to say that my daughter's symptoms are very much improved. They are far from gone - but given the she has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome as well as food allergies it was never going to be a complete cure, but it's really significant progress and she's delighted - as am I!

She is, however getting a little bored of her six foods, and has almost completely rejected chickpeas other than as gram flour which a bit of a blow. It means protein will be high on the agenda for trials. I promised I would try and make some new desserts, other than just pears.

I've bought some rice porridge flakes from Marks and Spencer which have been a fantastic success mixed with pear puree. I also tried my own rice pudding, with pudding rice and rice milk. I loved it - K prefers the porridge!

I also decided to experiment making "pancakes'. I figured that I could use olive oil instead of the margarine I would normally use, brown rice flour, and some pear puree instead of an egg since fruit does have some impact as a raising agent. It was actually pretty successful! 

I made the "pancakes" like drop scones, or scotch pancakes. I followed the quantities for the fat and flour and then added a tablespoon of puree instead of the egg and whisked with a hand balloon whisk. Some people have had good luck with sparkling water and flour alone, this recipe here uses millet flour and  sparkling water with good success.

The key to living with only a handful of foods we've discovered, is to keep an open mind. These won't taste like the best Shrove Tuesday pancakes you've ever tasted, or the best stack of scotch pancakes your grandma makes.... but they DID taste good and by experimenting we've added another meal to the list and staved off the boredom of life with six foods.

Scotch Pancakes - Gluten, Wheat, Dairy, Soya and could be free

My daughter was keen to make pancakes this weekend, and wanted to try something slightly different from our buckwheat pancake recipe here. She wanted something she could take to school in her packed lunch and smaller scotch pancakes (sometimes called "griddle cakes") seemed an ideal choice!

Ingredients

• 200g flour (we use Dove's Farm gluten free blended flour)
• 1 tbsp baking powder (not teaspoon)
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
• 1 large egg (egg replacer should work)
• 300mls your choice of milk (we used rice milk)

Method

• Add dry ingredients to the mixing bowl
• Beat egg and milk into the mixture, using a hand balloon whisk. If using egg replacer mix as instructed and add gradually to the dry ingredients. READ LABEL as instructions vary.
• Heat frying pan to medium and add safe oil
• Fry small spoonfuls of batter to make pancakes approx 3" across

TIP This batter is a LOT thicker than your regular pancake batter - this is intentional to prevent the batter spreading too much.

And here's my chef - she made the pancakes above all by herself!

Millet Pancakes

This is one from a Recipe Resource Facebook Group Member. Her son only has three safe foods and one of them is Millet.

Ingredients

• This is a single ingredient recipe - well, two if you count the fizzy water! 

Method

• Mix some millet flour with sufficient sparkling water to make a thick, spoonable "dough".
• Fry in a non stick pan/on a griddle, if oil is tolerated you could use a little to stop it sticking.

The finished result:-

You can practice with it to get a more evenly cooked pancake, make different shapes and even add some fat if tolerated. But it's great to be able to achieve something for a toddler unable to eat more than one food.

Pancakes on Holiday!

NB This is not a paid review, I discovered this product on holiday in Norfolk and tried it out - and was so impressed I decided to Blog about it.

On holiday in Norfolk we were running short of the usual "freefrom" breakfast cereal and my twelve year old suddenly announce he "needed" pancakes. Of course he did. But it got me thinking!

We holiday in Stiffkey - I cannot recommend it enough! What was *such* a wonderful discovery though was "Stiffkey Stores" a veritable treasure trove of lovely things, retro and classic novelties and the most wonderful selection of original books for children and adults.
And coffee. Did I mention the coffee?! And best of all for us, they stock quite an impressive selection of #freefrom foods. (Please bring back Nak'd Bars for next year though!)

So that was naturally our first port of call. But in fact it was in Holt on a day riding the Poppy Line that I discovered the Larners of Holt Foodhall.  What a wonderful place! Again, a refreshingly impressive selection of freefrom foods. So I stocked up! (slightly regretted that on the train journey home...) 

Obviously, with a child "needing" pancakes this was a priority. I had tried several before and had heard of the Hale and Hearty mix but had not previously managed to obtain it.

I bought the twin pack - perfect for experimenting and feeding several hungry children! First I tried it with rice milk - worked well (top) but needed about 50ml more than the suggested 200ml of milk.

Second I tried with coconut milk - and did not need to add the extra liquid. (bottom)

The Verdict

The kids loved both, but preferred the rice milk option. These worked as savoury or sweet pancakes, there is no sugar  unless you add your own. By FAR the best mix we have tried, but it contains egg - and I didn't try without/with replacer as we had limited resources on holiday.

I would love to hear your views on mixes you have tried - visit our Facebook Page or join our chat group and share your stories!

Buckwheat Pancakes

Serves - 4-5 pancakes

Free from - Wheat, gluten, milk, soya, nut, peanut
Contains - Egg

Buckwheat is actually related to the rhubarb plant and is naturally gluten free. You can read more here. Despite its name, buckwheat is a grain-like seed that's unrelated to wheat and gluten-free. It provides plenty of antioxidants, including high amounts of two specific types — rutin and quercetin. It has a lovely texture and an almost nutty flavour. It makes an airy pancake which is great for soaking up maple or golden syrup!

Ingredients

• 30g (1 oz) buckwheat flour 
• 15g (½ oz) rice flour 
• ½ tsp gluten free baking powder 
• 125ml (4 floz) milk alternative (Rice Milk was tested)
• 1 egg - can add egg replacer sunflower oil for frying

Method

• Sift flour and baking powder into a mixing bowl. 
• Separate egg. 
• Whisk egg white with hand blender until it forms soft peaks. 
• Add egg yolk & rice milk to flour. 
• Mix with hand blender. 
• Fold in egg white. 
• Heat half tablespoon oil in frying pan & add from a ladle enough of the mixture to cover the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes or until firm enough to be turned over, repeat until all the mixture has been used.  

Cooks tip - Makes lovely fluffy pancakes which are not as elastic as normal pancakes so top with fillings rather than wrapping them.

Serving suggestions - Lettuce & smoked salmon , Tuna paste [lemon juice, pinch of pepper & oregano, mashed] , Raspberry jam thinly spread topped with fresh raspberries or other berries.

Buckwheat Pancakes - photo courtesy of Arah Bahn, Flickr Creative Commons