Sure Foods Living - for celiac disease, gluten intolerance, and food allergies

Getting ready for a gluten-free 4th of July? Need to be allergy-free this Independence Day? Here are the answers to your questions about avoiding gluten, dairy or other allergens this holiday…

Does barbecue sauce contain gluten?

Barbecue sauce may contain gluten, which is why it is so important to check the label or the recipe before eating it. Here are some ingredients to watch out for:

• Some barbecue sauces contain gluten from barley in the form of beer or malt.
• Some barbecue sauces contain soy sauce, which contains wheat.
• Many barbecue sauces contain Worcestershire Sauce, which could contain gluten. Lea and Perrins brand Worcestershire Sauce is gluten-free, while Annie’s Naturals Worcestershire Sauce is not.
• Some sauces contain mustard, which could contain gluten. Some mustards contain beer or wheat flour, so be sure to check the brand of mustard being used. (Mustard flour is gluten-free.)
• Most sauces contain ketchup, which should not be a problem because the major brands of ketchup are gluten-free.

Which brands of barbecue sauce are gluten-free (dairy-free, soy-free)?

The number of barbecue sauces on the shelves is overwhelming but here is some information to guide you:

• Daddy Sam’s is gluten-free and free of all top allergens. It is spicy and delicious!
• Bone Suckin’ Sauce is gluten-free and free of all top allergens. It’s got a sweetness along with a spiciness that is so good.
• Sweet Baby Ray’s Barbecue Sauces are both gluten-free and dairy-free. I haven’t tried them yet, but I have read good things!
• Annie’s Naturals barbecue sauces are gluten-free and dairy-free. Sweet & Spicy Barbecue Sauce is also soy-free.
• Any Kraft and Nabisco products will list ingredients that contain gluten (in addition to the required top 8 allergens) on the ingredient statement. These items will be listed using commonly known terms such as Wheat, Barley, Oats or Rye. This includes Bull’s Eye Barbecue Sauce and Kraft brand barbecue sauces.
• Avoid KC Masterpiece Barbecue Sauces unless you can be sure from the ingredient list that they are gluten-free. They must legally list wheat on the label but they do not have a policy about listing other gluten-containing ingredients.

Can I make my own barbecue sauce?

Yes, of course! It’s really pretty easy. Go ahead and search the web for barbecue sauce recipes and you will find a whole bunch. Or, you can try Elana’s recipe for gluten-free dairy-free bbq sauce.

Do hot dogs contain gluten and/or dairy?

Hot dogs and sausages could contain gluten and dairy. See my list of gluten-free and dairy-free hot dogs and sausages!

What do I do about buns?

Some specialty gluten-free bakeries like Mariposa Baking Company, The Sensitive Baker, and The Grainless Baker make buns, but generally gluten-free hot dog buns and hamburger buns aren’t easy to find. Some stores are now carrying Kinnikinnick brand hamburger and hot dog buns, which are gluten-free and dairy-free. But my favorite buns are the ones I make myself… and you can too!

You can use any gluten-free bread mix to make hamburger or hot dog buns. You just need molds to shape them. For hamburger buns, English Muffin rings work really well and are easy to use. If you don’t have them, you can form your own molds out of aluminum foil. I did this using Pamela’s Gluten-Free Bread Mix. You can see exactly how to do this and the results in my article: A gluten-free hamburger bun = happiness.

I have made hot dog bun molds out of aluminum foil and they also turn out great. My advice is to make the molds skinny — mine turned out a little too big. I followed the bread directions, filled my molds and let them rise. I sprinkled sesame seeds on before baking and baked until they were done (normally the bread I was using takes 60 minutes, so I think I baked them for 30 or 40, but it depends on the size of the buns). The result was a soft, not crumbly, bread-y bun.

Can I eat potato salad?

Potato salad is usually safe for gluten-free people and even dairy-free people, but if you are allergic to eggs or soy, avoid traditional potato salads as they are made with mayonnaise containing eggs and soybean oil. (Mayonnaise does not usually contain dairy even though it is white and creamy!)

If you need a potato salad recipe, Kalyn of the blog Kalyn’s Kitchen, posted a nice summary of potato salad recipes, including ones that don’t contain mayonnaise!

What about dessert??

Here’s the easiest red, white and blue dessert ever: vanilla ice cream (can use non-dairy), topped with strawberries and blueberries.

If you are looking for something a little more creative, make a delicious Peach Crisp or an Apple Pie. Or how about an Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich?

Need easy treats for the kids (or yourself)? Check out the Allergen-Free Summer Treats Guide.

Wishing you a safe holiday!

Do you love or hate the tinny tune of that ice cream truck cruising through your neighborhood or past the local park? At some point you are going to give in to your crying, begging children. It is best to learn which treats are okay for those everybody-else-gets-to-have-one-so-why-can’t-we-have-one-too ice cream truck moments. After all, you don’t want to be the Mean Mom — at least not in public!

Every ice cream truck is going to pack different treats, but fortunately there are always some that are just basically sugar, color and water. Not that I am a big fan of corn syrup or Red Dye #40, but once in a while I let my kids have a snow cone or frozen pop. If your child has an allergy to either of these ingredients, steer clear of commercial popsicles. Hopefully in that case, they can opt for an ice cream bar (be careful of nuts!)

In my fantasy world, an ice cream truck stocks real fruit juice popsicles, organic non-dairy ice cream bars and shaved ice with natural flavorings and colorings. Don’t think that’s going to happen anytime soon, but at least you can buy some healthier options at the store, or make your own.

TREATS YOU CAN BUY

• Popsicles
  Many commercial frozen pops are gluten-free and free of the top 8 allergens. (They do however contain corn syrup, which is a problem for individuals allergic to corn, and food coloring, to which some kids are sensitive.) A page of Popsicle brand treats that are free of the top 8 allergens can be found here: Popsicle (always check the ingredients before consuming).
• Fruit Bars
  For a healthier option, look for bars made with fruit juice that contain no corn syrup, like Breyer’s Pure Fruit bars.
• Snowcones
  Most snowcones that you find at fairs and amusement parks are gluten-free and free of the top allergens. Usually they are made with crushed ice and a flavoring syrup (corn syrup). Same with packaged snow-cones.
• Dairy-free ice cream treats
  Most ice cream treats, including Fudgesicles, are off-limits for kids with dairy allergies, but there are some dairy-free options:
  • Soy Dream ice cream sandwich (not gluten-free)
  • Rice Dream ice cream pies and bars (not gluten-free)
  • Rice Divine ice cream bars and sundae cups (gluten-free, contain soy).
  • Turtle Mountain soy ice cream bars and fudge bar and soy ice-cream sandwiches (not gluten-free),  dairy-free and soy-free fudge bar (gluten-free), coconut milk ice cream bars. For a complete list of Turtle Mountain allergens, see Gluten-Free Frozen Products & Allergen Identification Table.
  • Smooze Fruit Ice push-up bars are made with coconut milk and real fruit. My kids love them! Flavors: Mango, Passion Fruit, Guava, Pineapple. I find them in Whole Foods.
• Gluten-free ice cream cones
  Use your favorite ice cream or sorbet to make ice cream cones at home, or take your own gluten-free cones into your local ice cream shop. There are lots of cones to choose from (click to see ingredients):
  • Let’s Do… Gluten-Free Ice Cream Cones
  • Barkat Gluten-Free Ice Cream Cones
  • Barkat Waffle Gluten-Free Ice Cream Cones
  • Goldbaum’s Natural Foods Gluten-Free Ice Cream Cones
  • Goldbaum’s Natural Foods Gluten-Free Sugar Ice Cream Cones

TREATS YOU CAN MAKE

• Frozen juice pops
  Put any kind of fruit juice into fun pop molds - use white grape juice or apple juice if you don’t want to stain their shirts! Mix juices to create a new flavor. This is a great option for kids who can’t have corn syrup or food dyes.
• Frozen fruit pops
  If you want a chunkier, thicker pop, put frozen fruit in your blender, add liquid and freeze. The liquid could be juice, milk, coconut or other non-dairy milk.
• Smoothie pops
  Make a fruit and spinach smoothie and put it into the pop molds. Yes, your kids will eat frozen spinach!
• Snowcones and slushes
  Make your own snow cones with snow cone supplies! Otherwise, you can make a “slush” or “slushie” in your blender by blending ice with juice. Serve it in a fun cup with a straw or spoon.
• Dairy-free ice cream treats
  • Take your favorite non-dairy ice cream, let it soften a little, put it in a mold and refreeze to make an ice cream bar
  • Try this recipe for Strawberry-Vanilla Swirled Frozen Pops - could be made with any fruit and a non-dairy ice cream
  • Make an ice cream sandwich using your favorite gluten-free cookies or try this gluten-free dairy-free egg-free ice cream cookie sandwich.

Any more summer treat ideas or products? Let me know!

One of the foods you have to watch out for when on a gluten-free diet is cereal. Most are made of a gluten-containing grain, like wheat, barley, or oats (oats themselves are gluten-free, but the oats used in most cereals are contaminated with wheat). Even if the cereal is made from a gluten-free grain like rice, corn or buckwheat, barley in the form of malt is often added for flavor — this is the case with Rice Krispies, for example.

Not to worry, for Erewhon (pronounced Air-whon) gluten-free cereals are here! Their Gluten-Free Crispy Brown Rice Cereal goes snap, crackle, pop and is perfect for making rice crispy treats. They are a staple cereal in my house, along with a few other Erewhon flavors.

Now they have 2 new flavors of gluten-free cereal to choose from: Cocoa Crispy Brown Rice and Strawberry Crisp. Both are sweet and delicious!! I have been snacking on the Strawberry Crisp for days and my daughters love it. I haven’t let them try the Cocoa Crispy Brown Rice yet because I know that I will never hear the end of their begging for more. I’m saving that one for a special treat… maybe even for chocolate rice crispy treats! Yum!

YOU CAN WIN!

What’s that you say? You would like to try them too? Well, here’s your chance to win, courtesy of Erewhon:

• 3 boxes of gluten-free cereal of your choice:
  - Gluten Free Crispy Brown Rice
  - Crispy Brown Rice with Mixed Berries
  - Cocoa Crispy Brown Rice
  - Rice Twice
  - Strawberry Crisp Flakes
  - Corn Flakes
  - Aztec Crunchy Corn & Amaranth
• a Patagonia T-Shirt (available in Adult L, XL & Kids L)
• an Erewhon Coupon Keeper with coupons for $1 off next purchases

HOW DO YOU WIN?

In  the comments section of this post, let me know the 3 flavors of gluten-free cereal you would like to win and your favorite way to eat cereal or use cereal (maybe it’s just in a bowl with milk, but I know some of you will share some creative ideas!)

Make a comment by this Thursday, June 4 at noon PST, and I will randomly pick a winner (please only comment once!) I will announce the winner on Friday.

More about Erewhon:

Erewhon cereals are available wherever natural foods are sold including the natural food section of many supermarkets, and on Amazon!  For more information visit www.ErewhonGlutenFree.com.

As promised, here is your list of gluten-free and dairy-free hot dogs and sausages. Fire up your grills and enjoy!

Note: This post was written on 5/14/09. Ingredients can change, so always read the label.

Aidells Sausages

Aidells Sausages has many sausages that are gluten-free and dairy-free. They also make a line of organic sausages. Gluten-free products are clearly labeled.

All products are gluten-free EXCEPT: Spicy Mango & Jalapeno Sausage, Teriyaki Meatballs, Spicy Bacon & Bleu Cheese Char-Broilers and Bacon & Cheddar Char-Broilers (these contain soy sauce).

All products are dairy-free EXCEPT: Pesto Sausage, Sun-Dried Tomato & Mozzarella Sausage, Spinach & Feta Sausage, Sun-Dried Tomato & Parmesan Cheese Meatballs, Spicy Bacon & Bleu Cheese Char-Broilers and Bacon & Cheddar Char-Broilers.

Applegate Farms

All of Applegate Farms beef, chicken and turkey hot dogs are gluten-free and dairy-free. All sausages are gluten-free, all are dairy-free except Spinach & Feta flavor.

Ball Park

No statement from Ball Park’s parent company, Sara Lee. You have to read the label. I did notice that they use soy protein, corn starch and MSG in a lot of their franks. Also, if you think you are getting  a turkey dog, watch out — there is beef in it! Basically, stay away from these hot dogs and go for a more natural brand!

Casper’s

This brand of hot dog can be found in northern California. The parent company’s website, Spar Sausage Co., says of their dogs, “SPAR Sausage Company® does not add MSG (monosodium glutamate), fillers, or artificial colors, flavors or ingredients. Our products are also gluten-free.” On the phone they told me that Casper’s hot dogs do contain dairy.

Coleman Natural

Coleman Natural Beef Hot Dogs, Beef-Pork Franks and Bratwurst are gluten-free, dairy-free and soy-free

Diestel

All sausage from the Diestel Turkey Ranch are gluten-free and dairy-free except Spinach and Feta with Pine Nuts flavor.

Dietz and Watson

Dietz and Watson’s New York Brand Deli Beef Franks, Regular Franks and Regular Weiners and Bratwurst are gluten-free. Fat Free Beef Franks, Gourmet Lite Franks, and Gourmet Lite Beef Franks are NOT gluten-free — one contains hydrolyzed oat flour (weird!) Regular Franks do contain nonfat dry milk and isolated soy protein.

Freybe

A couple of readers let me know that they love Freybe, located in Canada with some products available in the U.S. According to the Freybe website, “With the exception of our British Bangers, all Freybe meat products are free of glutens.” Regarding dairy: “Cheese Smokies and Parmesano Salami aside, all Freybe products are made without any milk ingredients, making them perfectly suitable for those allergic to milk or milk products.”

Hans

Hans All Natural Sausages have many gluten-free and dairy-free varieties of sausage: Chipotle Pepper Chicken Sausage, Mild Italian Chicken Sausage, Organic Breakfast Links Chicken Sausage, Skinless Chicken Breakfast Links, Spicy Andouille Chicken Sausage, Spicy Chorizo Chicken Sausage, Sun-dried Tomato and Basil Chicken Sausage, and Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage. There are some varieties that contain dairy.

Hebrew National

Hebrew National franks are gluten-free and dairy-free except for Franks in a Blanket. They all contain hydrolyzed soy protein.

Hillshire Farms

Just like Ball Park, no statement from Hillshire Farms‘ parent company, Sara Lee. You have to read the label. These use soy protein, corn syrup and MSG in their products.

Jennie-O

Jennie-O Turkey Franks and Jumbo Turkey Franks are gluten-free.

Jones Dairy Farm

All of the sausage at Jones Dairy Farm is gluten-free EXCEPT for Scrapple. And even though there is “Dairy” in the company’s name, their products do not contain dairy! More information: Jones Dairy Farms list of gluten-free products.

For the corn-allergic: Some of the packages are coated with a grain-based talc (corn) as a processing aid.

Niman Ranch

Niman Ranch franks and sausages are gluten-free. (confirmed via phone) Hot dogs contain dairy.

Oscar Mayer

Oscar Mayer’s parent company is Kraft, which has a “policy for all Kraft and Nabisco products to list ingredients that contain gluten on the ingredient statement. These items will be listed using commonly known terms such as Wheat, Barley, Oats or Rye. For other ingredients that contain gluten, the grain source will be declared in parenthesis after the ingredient name. For example, if the ingredient “natural flavor” contains a gluten source, the label would read: natural flavor (contains rye). Other ingredients that contain gluten are: Triticale, Spelt, Kamut, Mir or Farina (also known as Far or Farro).”

So, you need to read the labels. Judging from the ingredient lists of the Oscar Mayer hot dogs I looked at, they are gluten-free and dairy-free with the exception of the ones that are filled with cheese. Of course, be sure to always check.

For the corn-allergic: All of their products contain either corn syrup or corn starch.

Rocky Dogs

Rocky Dogs are chicken hot dogs that are gluten-free, dairy-free and soy-free.

Sabrett

Sabrett Frankfurters are gluten-free. From the label it looks as though they are dairy-free also.

Thumann’s

Thumann’s All Natural products, which includes All Natural Pork and Beef Frankfurters, are gluten-free and casein-free. They also state that they have no nitrates or nitrites, no artificial, flavors, colors or preservatives, no fillers, and no MSG.

Trader Joe’s

On Trader Joe’s gluten-free product list, all sausage is listed as gluten-free. Some flavors do contain dairy because they contain cheese.

Wellshire Farms

Wellshire Farms products display a Smart Chart so you can easily see if it is gluten-free and dairy free. The Chicken Franks, Turkey Franks and Beef Franks are all gluten and dairy-free. You can do a search for all products by allergy, including gluten, casein/dairy, lactose, nuts, corn, soy, pepper, garlic, and mustard.

Related article:
Lunch meat: gluten-free and dairy-free list

She’s done it again! Pamela’s new gluten-free mix, the Cornbread and Muffin Mix, has lived up to my expectations (which are higher for Pamela than the normal population at this point!) She even uses organic corn, which is a big plus in my book.

So far I have only made the regular sweet cornbread recipe on the package. I was a little worried that it would be too sweet and considered cutting the sugar as the recipe suggested as an alternative, but I decided to make the recipe exactly as written (there is no sugar in the mix itself). I am so glad I did because the level of sweetness in the cornbread was PERFECT. The texture and flavor was to me exactly as cornbread should be. My husband agreed, eating way more than he should have!

The recipe calls for butter, but you could easily use a dairy-free margarine like Earth Balance, or substitute oil as the recipe states. There is not an egg-free recipe on this mix (as there is with the Bread Mix and Chocolate Cake Mix) because Pamela said she wasn’t happy with how it turned out without eggs (she’s a perfectionist, that one). I am going to try it dairy-free and egg-free anyway and will give an update on how it turns out.

Something that I really like about Pamela’s mixes is that there are so many recipes on each package. The Cornbread & Muffin Mix has suggestions for cornbread variations, including Buttermilk, Cheddar Cheese, Green Chili Cheese, Green Onion and Sour Cream, Corn Kernel and Sweet Pepper Cornbreads. Other recipes include Southern Skillet Cornbread, Southern Cornbread Dressing, Cranberry Orange Corn Muffins, and a Tart Crust, either savory or sweet. I am looking forward to trying the tart crust — anyone have ideas of what to put inside?

My opinion overall is that this is how cornbread should taste, gluten-free or not. Be sure to try it — you won’t be disappointed!

Where to find the Cornbread & Muffin Mix:
It should be available soon wherever you normally find Pamela’s Products, and here on Amazon.com.

Ingredients of Cornbread & Muffin Mix:
Organic Degermed Corn Meal; Brown Rice Flour; White Rice Flour; Tapioca Starch; Sweet Rice Flour; Potato Starch; Organic Degermed Corn Flour; Grainless & Aluminum Free Baking Powder (Sodium Bicarbonate, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Potato Starch); Sea Salt; Xanthan Gum.

If you are a fan of Nana’s No Gluten Cookies, Cookie Bars and Cookie Bites, or you are looking to add a new gluten-free snack to your pantry, now’s your chance to win some Nana’s!

Nana’s Cookie Company has set up a contest for Sure Foods Living readers to win a Nana’s Cookie Company Lunchbox filled with Nana’s No Gluten Cookies, Cookie Bites and Cookie Bars — an approximate retail value of $30.00. You have until noon PST on May 31, 2009 to enter. There will be four winners selected by random drawing on June 5, 2009.

How to enter:
Click here: Sure Foods Living page on the Nana’s website and fill out the form. That’s it! Good luck!

What I think about Nana’s…
My daughters are fans of the Nana Banana and Berry Vanilla flavor No Gluten Cookie Bars, and I feel good about giving them this treat with all natural ingredients and no refined sugar (although they are sweet!). Plus, they are dairy-free, egg-free and soy-free which works with my daughter’s other food allergies. The texture is very soft and moist and kind of reminds me of cookie dough — which is a good thing!

Looking for a lunch meat you can eat? Here is a list of lunch meats by brand and their gluten-free and dairy-free (casein-free) information. Info about other processed meats — hot dogs, sausages, etc. — is coming in another post.

Note: This post was written on 4/7/09. Ingredients can change, so always read the label.

Applegate Farms

All Applegate Farms cold cuts and deli counter bulk meats are gluten-free and dairy-free. The lactic acid starter culture is not derived from dairy sources and is therefore safe for people with milk allergies. (confirmed via website)

Boar’s Head

Boar’s Head is saying loud and clear that all their meats are gluten-free (click to see!) All of their meats are also dairy-free EXCEPT these 4: Mortadella Bologna, Chorizo Sausage, Pesto Parmesan Ham and Italian Style Seasoned Roast Beef. (confirmed via phone)

Columbus

All Columbus salame and deli meats are gluten-free. All deli meats are dairy-free, but there are some salame items that contain dairy. (confirmed via email)

Diestel

Diestel deli meats are gluten-free and dairy-free and contain no artificial ingredients, no phosphates, no nitrites, no MSG. (confirmed via website and phone)

Dietz and Watson

Nearly all Dietz & Watson Meats are gluten free EXCEPT: Rotisserie Style Chicken, Scrapple, Bockwurst, Fat Free Beef Franks, Gourmet Lite Franks, Gourmet Lite Beef Franks, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Chicken Florentine and Chicken Portabella. Many of the lunch meats contain nonfat dry milk. (confirmed via website)

Hormel Natural Choice

I was pleased to find in my research that Hormel is now making a line called Natural Choice products that have no nitrites or nitrates added, and no artificial colors or flavors. Hormel Natural Choice Pre-sliced deli sandwich meats and Deli meats are gluten-free and dairy-free. (confirmed via website and phone)

Hormel also provides a list of gluten-free products on their website.

Jennie-O

They do not mask any gluten ingredients under “flavoring.” Check labels for dairy. Not all are dairy-free and no list was provided on the website.
Jennie-O Turkey Store Deli items that are gluten-free (via website) are:

• Deli chicken breast: buffalo style, oven roasted, mesquite smoked
• Smoked turkey breast: mesquite, hickory, honey cured
• Oven roasted turkey breast
• Hickory smoked turkey breast: cracked pepper, sun dried tomato, garlic pesto, honey cured
• NATURAL CHOICE® turkey breast: oven roasted, peppered, tender browned, applewood smoked, honey roasted
• GRAND CHAMPION® turkey breast: oven roasted, tender browned, mesquite smoked, home style pan roasted, hickory smoked, honey cured, Cajun style fried
• Turkey breast: oven roasted, peppered, smoked, tender browned, Italian style, honey mesquite, sun dried tomato, mesquite smoked, garlic peppered, hot red peppered, smoked peppered
• Turkey pastrami
• Turkey ham

Jones Dairy Farm

The people at Jones Dairy Farm have made a great effort to let everyone know that all of their products are gluten-free EXCEPT for Scrapple, and have even become a sponsor of the Celiac Disease Foundation. They were also kind enough to send me their products to taste! Everything I tasted — the Canadian Bacon, the Ham Slices, the Ham Steak — were delicious. I couldn’t bring myself to try the Braunschweiger (Liverwurst), but my 96 year old grandmother and my husband’s 93 year old grandfather loved it! And even though there is “Dairy” in the company’s name, their lunch meat does not contain dairy! More information: Jones Dairy Farms list of gluten-free products

Niman Ranch

All Niman Ranch meats are gluten-free. (confirmed via phone) Meats are dairy-free except for hot dogs (more specifics on hot dogs in future article).

Wellshire Farms

Wellshire Farms products display a Smart Chart so you can easily see if it is gluten-free and dairy free. Also, you can do a search for products by allergy, including gluten, casein/dairy, lactose, nuts, corn, soy, pepper, garlic, and mustard.

Related articles:
6 gluten-free lunch ideas for work
4 more gluten-free lunch ideas
Eating gluten-free, allergen-free at fast food chains

Looking for gluten-free Matzoh? Want to make gluten-free Matzoh Ball Soup?
Here are some resources to help you with a gluten-free Passover!

MATZOH

Gluten-Free Oat Matzohs can be ordered from:

• Lakewood Matzoh
  located in New Jersey
  Phone: 732-364-8757
  Email: sales@lakewoodmatzoh.com
  
• Gluten Free Oat Matzohs
  located in London
  Phone: (44) 020 8455 9476
  Email: sula@waitrose.com

Or, make your own gluten-free matzo with help from Ellen at I Am Gluten Free:

• 18 Minute Gluten Free Matzo Recipe

MATZOH BALL SOUP RECIPES:

• Elana’s Pantry Matzoh Ball Soup
• Gluten-Free Bay’s Matzoh Balls Recipe #1
• Gluten-Free Bay’s Matzoh Ball Recipe #2
• I Am Gluten Free’s Matzoh Balls

More suggestions? Let us know in the comments.

People often come to my website to read the article about dairy-free soy-free margarine. The bottom line was that palm shortening works well for baking and making frosting, but there wasn’t any dairy-free and soy-free spreadable butter or margarine — until now! I have very exciting news for the food allergy community…

Earth Balance, known for their dairy-free vegan butter substitutes, has created a soy-free version of their buttery spread. Yes, people, there is a dairy-free soy-free “butter” that can be spread on toast and used for baking!

Recognizing that soy is one of the top 8 allergens, Earth Balance took the soybean oil out for their Soy-Free Spread, using a natural oil blend of palm fruit oil, safflower, canola and olive oils. Rickard Werner, vice president and general manager of Earth Balance® states in a press release:

“We feel that there is a great demand for alternatives to traditional spreads that contain food allergens such as soy - one of the top eight most common food allergens according to the FDA*. At Earth Balance®, we pride ourselves on providing innovative and great tasting products for people who are vegan, suffer from food allergies or those simply seeking healthy alternatives. We feel confident that our new Soy Free Spread will be a hit with all.”

I’m pretty sure it will be a hit in my house. Thank you Earth Balance!

Here is what I am looking forward to:

• Making a piece of gluten-free toast for my daughter with cinnamon, sugar and… “butter“!
• Baking gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, nut-free, egg-free cookies for my daughter with… “butter“!

Here is the full ingredient list of the Soy-Free Buttery Spread:

Expeller-pressed natural oil blend (palm fruit, canola, safflower and olive), water, contains less than 2% salt, sunflower lecithin, pea protein, natural flavor (derived from corn: no msg, no alcohol, no gluten), lactic acid (non-dairy source), naturally extracted annatto for color.

Whole Foods has picked up this product nationally! Can’t find it in a store near you? Request it!

UPDATE 3/30/09: Reader Chris has let me know in the comments that Earth Balance told him that the product will be coming out in May.

It was almost one year ago that I reported that Rice Chex was re-formulated to be gluten-free. Now it looks like some more gluten-free Chex cereals are coming to stores near you. Some people have found them already.

I spoke with General Mills customer service today to confirm that Corn Chex, Cinnamon Chex, Strawberry Chex, and Honey Nut Chex have also been re-formulated to be gluten-free. The General Mills representative said that if any of their cereals are gluten-free it will be clearly marked on the front and side of the box and that some cereals may be rolled out in only some parts of the country at first. UPDATE: Gluten-free versions of Chex will officially be available on June 1st. Thanks to The Gluten-Free Homemaker for this detail!

While these new cereal options are great for the gluten-free crowd, people with other food allergies beware! Strawberry Chex and Cinnamon Chex list soy, milk and peanut on their labels. Back in October of 2008 when Allergy Moms’ Gina Clowes wrote about General Mills putting peanut flour in their cereals, the Director of Consumer Affairs for General Mills responded with:

“Each variety of cereal (or any product in the grocery) should be looked at as unique. Rice Chex cereal is made in a facility that does not process peanut ingredients and is, therefore, not labeled as containing peanuts. It is also gluten-free. The Strawberry Chex cereal, while containing Rce Chex cereal as a component, is blended in a facility that also processes products that contain peanut flour. Even though we don’t use peanut as ingredient in Strawberry Chex, we include it on the ingredient list due to the possibility of cross contamination and the severity of peanut allergies. We then highlight peanut as an allergen in bold print at the end of the ingredient information on the package.

My point was, you can confidently continue to enjoy Chex cereal varieties, and others, that do not list peanuts as an allergen on the package. If there is any chance of peanut ingredients being in the package, we will label it accordingly. With all food products, we urge people with food allergies to always read the ingredient label to check for the presence of ingredients that should be avoided.”