As Oktoberfest comes to a close, did you get a chance to eat some good German food? Or was it only about the beer? We understand if it’s all about the beer since after all, Oktoberfest is the world’s largest beer celebration.

The good thing is that German food keeps on coming, before and after Oktoberfest. We absolutely love German red cabbage, or if you want to call it braised red cabbage. We make it for football games, at holiday gatherings, and whenever we want it!

It’s perfect with your favorite brats or sausage, or our favorite, Beyond Sausage!

In Germany, you’ll find that German red cabbage goes by several names, such as Rotkohl, Rotkraut, and Blaukraut, depending on what region in the country you’re in.

Ingredients and spices vary and may include juniper berries, caraway seeds, fennel, nutmeg, bay leaves, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, dill, red currant jelly or cherry preserves, bacon, whole grain mustard, apple cider or unsweetened apple juice.

mise en place

We’re sharing our favorite German red cabbage. Writing down this recipe took some doing. You see, Joel cooks without recipes. He just starts cooking. I get it. Cooking does not have to be exact. It’s carefree and creative.

When I ask how much of an ingredient he is using, he gives a guesstimate. To take out the guesswork, I hung out and measured all of the ingredients while Joel was making this dish.

How to Braise Red Cabbage

• Cut the cabbage in half and then quarters, removing the white core. Then cut in equal thin shreds for even cooking, about 1/4″ wide. This can also be done on a mandolin.

• Cook in a large Dutch oven.
• If using bacon, dice and cook 4 ounces of thick bacon until it has rendered most of its fat. Add onions and cook until golden. We prefer sweet onions, but red onions will work just as well.
• Add cabbage, apples, vegetable broth, sugar, fennel, thyme, and salt. Cover and simmer until cabbage is wilted, about 40 minutes, stirring often.
• Add apple cider vinegar, a little more sugar, and raisins. Cover and continue to cook for another 20 minutes, or until desired texture is reached.
• Be sure to stay close and stir occasionally to make sure the liquid doesn’t completely evaporate. Add water or additional vegetable broth if needed.
• Some like their braised cabbage very soft, and some like a bit more of a bite. Make sure to taste test after 50 minutes of cooking and then every 5 minutes or so.

For a holiday side, add 1/4 cup fresh cranberries with the onions to sauté.

German red cabbage is a must-have with any German dish.

Guten Appetit!

2 votes

Print

German Red Cabbage

Author Your Allergy Chefs

Yield 6-8 Servings

Free of: gluten and top 8 allergens.

A must-have with any German dish!

 

Ingredients

1 medium red cabbage, about 2 pounds (10 cups shredded)

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 cup diced yellow or white onions

1/8 tsp plus 1/2 tsp salt, divided

1 1/2 cups diced granny smith apple (1 large apple)

1 1/2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth

4 tbsp light brown sugar, divided (2 tbsp + 2 tbsp)

1 1/2 tsp fennel seeds, toasted

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

3/4 cup dark raisins

Instructions

1. Rinse the cabbage and remove the tough outer leaves so only clean, compact leaves remain. Cut the very bottom of the stem off to flatten the bottom of the cabbage. Turn the cabbage so the stem is flat against the cutting board. Cut the cabbage in half from top to bottom. Cut the halves in half to yield quarters. Remove the stem and touch core from each wedge by cutting on a diagonal to remove the solid parts.
2. Laying the cabbage quarter on a flat side, use a knife or mandolin to cut into 1/4-inch shreds. Place the shreds in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Drain and spin dry in a salad spinner. Set aside.
3. Heat a large Dutch oven, such as Le Creuset, over medium heat. Add onions and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Cook for 8-10 minutes until softened and lightly caramelized, stirring occasionally.
4. Add drained cabbage, apples, vegetable broth, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, fennel, thyme, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cover and simmer until wilted, about 40 minutes, stirring often. The cabbage will shrink as it cooks.
5. Add vinegar, remaining 2 tablespoons brown sugar, and raisins. Cover and continue to cook for another 20 minutes, or until desired texture is reached. Some like their braised cabbage very soft, and some like a bit more of a bite. Make sure to taste test after 50 minutes and then every 5 minutes or so.
6. Make it a meal with your favorite brats or sausage!

Notes

• Using thick bacon is optional. Dice and cook 4 ounces of bacon until it has rendered most of its fat. Add onions and cook until golden. We prefer sweet onions, but red onions will work just as well.

Courses Veggies & Sides

The post German Red Cabbage appeared first on Your Allergy Chefs.

This past weekend we dined our way around Las Vegas seeking out the most allergy-friendly restaurants. We were very excited about the awareness all the restaurants we visited had around food allergies.

It wasn’t that long ago, while working at Walt Disney World and on a benchmarking trip to Las Vegas, most restaurants plain and simply said they could not accommodate food allergies. We visited some of those same restaurants again and were excited to see that they now acknowledge guests with food allergies.

Eating out with food allergies can be all too stressful. Check out our Vegas adventure and our one “outstanding” find, as we save the best for last…

Our first step was to compile a list of questions to ask each restaurant. Check out our post, “7 Questions To Ask That Could Save Your Life When Dining Out”.

Before the trip we contacted many restaurants by phone and email. We like talking to someone on the phone so we can ask specific questions and get a feeling of their knowledge and understanding of food allergies. Once we got to Las Vegas, we also stopped by dozens of restaurants in person.

Let’s get eating, or not!

• Thailicious

A trip to Vegas would not be complete without dining off the strip at Thailicious Authentic Thai & Vegan with our good friends from Hawaii, Dave and Beth who now live in Las Vegas. They are regulars and Beth is extremely allergic to shrimp and has other intolerances. Thailicious serves many guests with food allergies, using clean and sanitized pans for their dishes. Along with their regular menu, they also have a large vegan menu. Their vegan option of the green papaya salad rocks and is better than any non-vegan green papaya salad I can remember, and there are options for the peanuts if they are an issue. I had 2 orders of their veggie fresh rolls…I could eat them all day long! The soups, curries, and appetizers flowed.

Yes, we trust this restaurant to keep us safe!

• Carmine’s in the Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace

We were impressed by the fact that Carmine’s has 4 dietary menus; Dairy & Egg Free, Wheat & Gluten, Vegetarian & Vegan, and Garlic. So impressed, we decided to have lunch. I ordered the Country Style Pasta, gluten-free and without sausage. When I asked the server if a meat stock was used, she said, “We’ll since you don’t want sausage, I would think they wouldn’t put in any stock”. Really??? Joel ordered gluten-free pasta with marinara. When his dish arrived, it was with linguine that was not gluten-free. Can you believe that our server got an attitude about the mix up? Well, besides the bad service, the fact that we were served wheat when it was made clear we had a wheat allergy, and the restaurant’s disclaimer that their “busy” kitchen is not allergen-free is a good reason not to dine here.

• Trevi in the Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace

After dining at Carmine’s, we came across Trevi, a Landry restaurant. Landry’s Inc. has been a leader in the food allergy industry. We were sorry we didn’t find this spot first. We’ll definitely check them out on our next trip. They have a great gluten-sensitive and vegan menu and will work with your food allergies.

• Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill at Caesar’s Palace

They work with guests with food allergies and have a gluten-free menu. Their Kale Salad with butternut squash, dried cranberries, and honey mustard vinaigrette was calling. We’ll be back to try it.

• Mesa Grill by Bobby Flay at Caesar’s Palace

The host was just as friendly as she could be. She spent a good 15 minutes going through every menu item to let us know the ingredients in each. There really weren’t any safe options for us here.

• Eataly

There’s a lot of talk about Eataly at Park MGM. I suggest if you have food allergies ignore the hype. We dined at La Pizza & La Pasta. Our server was very attentive and asked about our food allergies. Options were limited with only 2 being gluten-free, low-gluten pizza crust (baked in the same oven as all the pizzas) and gluten-free casarecca pasta. As attentive as he seemed, we ordered Barbabietola (roasted beets & ricotta with a citrus vinaigrette) without the ricotta cheese as we again mentioned our milk allergy. Can you believe that it was delivered to the table with the ricotta cheese? Really??? 

Eataly is a no-go!

• Julian Serrano at Aria

Joel was craving tapas, so we checked out Julian Serrano at Aria. The host assured us that the servers are trained, and they talk to the chef. They did provide a verbal disclaimer saying they can’t guarantee there is no cross contact. Our allergies were documented. They modified the patatas bravas, which were just okay. If you’re craving patatas bravas, check out our recipe…much better!

Padron Peppers with a Spicy Orange Glaze

• Herringbone at Aria

The host said they accommodate guests with food allergies most of the time. She shared with us their “Allergy Alert Card”. The card was magenta in color. The 8 allergens listed on their card were gluten, fish, nuts, oats, dairy, eggs, soybean, and shellfish. They have no gluten-free pasta or bread and are limited on soy-free options. We opted not to dine here.

• Border Grill at Mandalay Bay

The dining operator for Mandalay Bay said that allergies require a 24-hour notice to the restaurant. She gave us the direct number for Border Grill. We spoke to the General Manager, Yancy who said they could certainly accommodate us. They will fry chips or fried items in a separate pot with new oil. They change gloves for allergies and use clean and sanitized boards and utensils. He shared that they recently fed 16 kids with food allergies and appeared in their magazine. We give Border Grill a thumbs up!

• Aureole at Mandalay Bay

The host said they absolutely accommodate guests as long as the chef knows. We have dined here before, but on this trip our evening plans were already booked, however we will give Aureole’s another try.

• II Fornaio at the Venetian

The host had to ask the server if they can accommodate food allergies. She was able to find out that servers are required to take training on food allergies. Since the host had no idea if they serve guests with food allergies. We’ll skip it.

• Yardbird Southern Table & Bar at the Venetian

Host advised that the servers and bussers have had training, but they don’t train locally.??? We’ll pass.

• Bouchon at the Venetian

The host said they accommodate guests with any food allergies. The server will let the host know who will let the kitchen and manager know. Reservations made in advance will be notated of the allergy/allergies. Bouchon has always been a favorite of ours.

• Burger Bar at Mandalay Bay

Burger Bar accommodates guests with food allergies and the host said they “tend” to be very careful about them. She shared that there is no specific training for the staff on food allergies.??? Our gut quickly said no!

• Robert Irvine’s Public House at Tropicana Las Vegas

The host said they don’t prepare food for guests with food allergies often. She also said that there is no food allergy training in place. We love that Robert Irvine works out and is into health and wellness, however, we’ll pass.

Saving the Best for Last!

Our Number 1 Choice for dining in Las Vegas with Food Allergies:

• South Point Hotel Casino & Spa

The safest place we found in Las Vegas was South Point Hotel Casino & Spa, thanks to Asst. Executive Chef Keith Norman. Chef Keith is committed to serving guests with food allergies and provides ongoing training to all staff members in every food establishment on property.

Stay at South Point and you need not worry about dining out. Your options are In-Room Dining, Baja Miguel’s, Garden Buffet, Del Mar Deli, Steak ‘n Shake, Don Vito’s, Zenshin Asian Restaurant, Big Sur Oyster Bar, Primarily Prime Rib, Silverado Steak House, Coronado Café, Kate’s Korner Ice Cream Parlor, and Michael’s Gourmet Room. Oh, the movie theatre and bowling alley on property are also onboard to assist guests with food allergies.

You will find this Allergy Awareness card on every podium of every restaurant at South Point. The hosts know just as much about food allergies and the menus as do the servers, bussers, managers, cooks, and chef.

Servers in all restaurants fill out an Allergen Alert slip when taking your order. The allergens are input in their POS (point of sale) system and are printed on the ticket. Your bill also notates your allergies. Not to mention, everyone is notified of your allergies from the host to manager and chef, to the busser and server.

• Big Sur Oyster Bar at South Point

When we ordered our salads, out came the purple cutting board and tools used for food allergies. The cook changed his gloves to new purple gloves. He didn’t grab a bowl from the stack, but had bowls set aside for guests with food allergies that were individually wrapped in plastic.

the purple cutting board, gloves, and utensils

• Baja Miguel’s at South Point

Without even asking, Lose (the host) brought us avocado slices to make our own guacamole since their guacamole comes in prepared and contains gluten. They brought special tortilla chips for Joel that were gluten-free. Since the gluten-free chips were fried in soybean oil, they brought me wedges of warm corn tortillas. Lose also said she had the kitchen making special beans for me without the pork lard. Now, we didn’t even ask for any of this.

Our server, Alex gave us several blank “Allergen Alert” cards. He told us we could fill them out and give them to other places we wanted to dine at. Going above and beyond, it is clear that Alex, Lose and the entire culinary team at South Point care about the safety of their guests.

• Garden Buffet at South Point

Oh, yes! We had to check out the buffet. We arrived 40 minutes before the buffet opened to be first in line. The host immediately contacted the chef, who greeted us and walked us through the entire buffet, letting us know about each item and what was safe to eat. The chef also said they can prepare some items safely in the back.

Have you gone to Walt Disney World or Disney Land because you know it’s a safe place for guests with food allergies? Well, plan a trip to Las Vegas and know that South Point has joined the ranks of Disney for food allergen safety!

Chef Joel’s Tips

• When dining out, choose a dish that is prepared to order, with a clean and sanitized pan and cooking utensils. Batch foods like soups or stews that have been cooking for a while have a greater chance of being contaminated by cross contact.
• If your allergy is severe, do not eat at buffets. There’s just too much of a chance for cross contact. However, if you want to dine at South Point’s Garden Buffet, be the first in line when the buffet opens. After walking the line with the chef, be one of the first to get your food. It won’t take long for cross contact issues to occur. A guest drips blue cheese salad dressing into the balsamic vinegar. Another guest uses the spoon for crab salad, and then gets some plain beets with the same spoon, leaving the spoon with crab in the beets. You get the idea, right?
• Even if you’ve done your due diligence and make dining plans, but all of a sudden have a gut feeling of uncertainty, that’s okay. Always listen to your gut.
• Carrying a “chef card” that outlines the foods you must avoid is a great way to communicate your food allergies to a chef or manager at restaurants. FARE provides an interactive PDF of chef card templates in English and a number of foreign languages to use while dining out and traveling.
• It’s always stressed to ask for the manager or chef. That is very important and you need to do that. However, we like to first talk to the host. If the host has no knowledge of the establishment’s allergy policy, we avoid that restaurant. As first point of contact for the guests, we believe the hosts should know the policies.
• The best time to dine at any restaurant is during the first hour of a service period. The staff is more alert and attentive and the kitchen is much cleaner.

The post Dining in Las Vegas with Food Allergies appeared first on Your Allergy Chefs.

vegan and free from gluten and top 8 allergens

Whether you have a milk allergy, follow a plant-based lifestyle, or you happen to be in the 65 percentile of the population that experience lactose intolerance, the thing you most likely miss is cheese. Oh, the power of cheese.

Over the past few years, with allergies rising and veganism growing, some pretty awesome food manufacturers have committed to making plant-based cheese.

We’ve road-tested our favorites and are here to share the winners.

There are various dairy-free types of cheese available today, but not all of them are equal. Some dairy-free cheeses taste great, and some don’t taste like cheese at all. Some melt but don’t stretch, and some wouldn’t even melt if a blow torch was put to them.

Our top picks come from Daiya, Follow Your Heart, and Violife:

Daiya

• Cheddar Style Shreds
• Mozzarella Style Shreds
• Pepperjack Style Shreds
• Classic Blend Shreds
• Medium Cheddar Style Farmhouse Block
• Mozzarella Style Deluxe Cheeze Sticks

Follow Your Heart

• American Style Slices
• Provolone Style Slices
• Smoked Gouda Style Slices
• Mozzarella Style Slices
• Pepperjack Style Slices
• Cream Cheese Alternative
• Dairy-Free Feta Crumbles

Violife

• just like Parmesan
• just like Feta
• just like Mature Cheddar Slices
• just like Smoked Provolone Slices
• just like Cheddar Shreds
• just like Mozzarella Shreds
• Epic Mature Cheddar flavor Block

DAIYA

Daiya has a complete line of cheese products. All of their dairy substitutes are vegan and free of gluten and the top 8 allergens.

Not all of their products fared well. We found that their sliced cheese takes way too long to melt, making it not a good choice for grilled cheese sandwiches.

Mozzarella Style Shreds

For pizzas, quesadillas, and baked pasta dishes, these shreds do the job well! They melt, stretch, and bubble.

Cheddar Style Shreds

These shreds are great for making sauces, topping bowls, tacos, nachos and so much more.

Mozzarella Style Deluxe Cheeze Sticks

These cheeze sticks are fun and a perfect addition to the lunch box. They make a delicious snack.

Medium Style Cheddar Farmhouse Block

Cut this block up in cubes for a cheese tray, or slice for crackers. This block is also fabulous grated over bowls and tacos.

FOLLOW YOUR HEART

We love buying local! Follow Your Heart is here in Southern California. We find their products at Sprouts, Whole Foods Market, and of course, Follow Your Heart’s health food store in Canoga Park. If you have trouble finding their products in your area, check out their website.

They have so many great allergy-friendly products, from eggs to breads to salad dressings. They also have Soy-Free Vegenaise, which we agree is better than mayo!

Oh, we can’t forget to mention their allergy-friendly flour tortillas. Yes, that’s right! Their tortillas rock! I miss not being able to make and eat flour tortillas. But everything’s okay, because Follow Your Heart’s flour tortillas are here and they are unbeatable!

They recently came out with a cream cheese alternative, which is amazing on allergy-friendly bagels from Rising Hearts Bakery.

Okay, so their cheese alternatives that top our list are their slices. However, their cheese shreds aren’t are favorite.

American Style Slices, Smoked Gouda Style Slices, Provolone Style Slices, and Pepper Jack Style Slices

For the easiest and best-ever grilled cheese sandwiches, Follow Your Heart Slices are the key. These slices also make a great snack. They’re our first pick for slices.

How about slapping them on your favorite burger? A winner!

VIOLIFE

From Greece comes Violife, and we are so happy!

To date, we have only found Violife at Whole Foods Market. Check out their website for availability in your area.

Their website shows products that our local market does not carry, such as just like Cream Cheese Original and just like Cream Cheese Chilli Peppers. Hopefully they’ll be in our area soon.

just like Parmesan

What’s pasta or caesar salad without grated parmesan cheese? You won’t have to ask this question again. The answer is, Violife just like Parmesan! It’s our go to parmesan for pasta and our plant-based caesar salad.

just like Feta

It’s not exactly just like feta, however when paired with watermelon or added to a greek salad, you’ll start believing.

just like Cheddar Slices, just like Mature Cheddar Slices, and just like Smoked Provolone Slices

These slices are great as a snack and of course, a great cheese for a grilled sandwich. They have the best meltability of sliced cheeses that we have found.

Violife also has just like Cheddar Shreds and just like Mozzarella Shreds. While they have great meltability, their stretchability is not as good as the Daiya shreds. However, you can still enjoy these tasty shreds on tacos, salads, and baked potatoes.

Their coconut oil based cheese alternatives are all vegan, allergy-friendly, and GMO-free.

One of Violife’s newest editions is their Epic Mature Cheddar flavor Block. This is our favorite cheddar block! It’s great on salads and cheese trays, for snacking, shredded on tacos, and with crackers.

The Best of the Best…Our Favorites!

Daiya

• shreds
• mozzarella style cheeze sticks

Follow Your Heart

• slices
• cream cheese alternative
• feta crumbles

Violife

• just like Parmesan
• just like Feta
• Epic Mature Cheddar flavor Block

Wait, there’s more!

There are other amazing plant-based cheeses out there that we didn’t talk about because they contain nuts and some contain soy. If nuts or soy are not an issue, check out these other fantastic picks:

• Treeline Aged Artisanal Nut Cheese
• Fresh VeganMozz by Miyoko’s Creamery
• Miyoko’s Cheese Wheels (Smoked English Farmhouse, Classic Chive, Garlic Herb, Sundried Tomato Garlic)
• Kite Hill Cream Cheese Style Spreads
• Heido Ho plant-based cheeze (Portland, Oregon)
• Vtopian dairy-free, vegan and handmade cheeses (Eugene, Oregon)
• Vegan Chao Cheese Slices by Field Roast

Cheesy recipes you might enjoy:

Creamy Macaroni and Cheese

Cheezy Grilled Cheese

Mexican Fiesta Dip

Pimiento Cheese

Watermelon, Feta & Summer Fruit Salad

The power of cheese is here to stay.

Hooray…Cheese for everyone!

The post Vegan Cheeses You Should Really Taste appeared first on Your Allergy Chefs.

free of gluten and top 8 allergens

With it’s roots in the Japanese bento, the plate lunch is a staple in Hawaii.

So what is a plate lunch? Similar to the South’s meat-and-three, there are a variety of proteins to choose from. However, what’s always on the plate is macaroni salad and two scoops rice.

Our teriyaki sauce is great with anything teriyaki, including our veggie option…

The origin of the plate lunch dates back to the 1800s, where it became a popular lunch for plantation workers on the booming pineapple and sugar plantations.

Many of these plantation workers were immigrants from other countries such as Japan, China, the Philippines, Korea, and Portugal. With them, they brought various dishes from their homeland.

Along with many Hawaiian dishes on the plate lunch menu, there are a diverse number of others, including chicken or pork katsu, char sui chicken, teriyaki salmon (chicken or beef), and pork adobo.

We’re recreating one of the most popular, chicken teriyaki.

Replacing Soy Sauce

Of course when we think of teriyaki sauce, we automatically relate it to shoyu or soy sauce.

Coconut aminos is the perfect replacement for soy sauce, containing just 2 ingredients, organic coconut tree sap and organic sea salt.

Although naturally sweet, coconut aminos is low on the glycemic index scale, so it won’t spike your blood sugar. It’s also contains 73% less sodium than soy sauce. If that’s not enough, it’s organic, gluten-free, non-GMO, contains no MSG, and it’s vegan!

Coconut Aminos makes this teriyaki sauce a no-brainer.

mise en place

Making the Teriyaki Sauce

In a small saucepan, combine coconut aminos, orange juice, rice vinegar, honey, minced ginger, and minced garlic. Reserve 1/2 cup for marinating chicken thighs.

Place chicken thighs and reserved sauce in a large zip lock bag. Seal and marinate in the fridge for 8 hours.

While the chicken is marinating, bring the ingredients in saucepan to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes.

Combine cornstarch and water, stirring to form a smooth paste. Whisk the cornstarch slurry into the simmering sauce, whisking constantly for 2 minutes.

Strain the teriyaki sauce into a bowl. Allow to cool and refrigerate until needed. This will yield about 1-1/2 cups of sauce, with enough leftover to enjoy later in the week on your favorite burger or in a stir-fry.

The Chicken

Take marinated chicken out of the fridge 20 minutes before cooking, to let it warm up a bit. Drain well.

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken thighs, smooth side down and sear for about 1 minute, until golden brown. Flip over for another minute to brown the other side.

Transfer chicken to a parchment or foil lined baking sheet. Bake until internal temperature reaches 165-degrees F, about 10 minutes. To test for doneness, use an instant read meat thermometer inserted into the center of the thickest part of the thigh.

Remove chicken from oven. Cover loosely with foil and allow chicken to rest for 5-10 minutes.

Chef Joel’s Tip

Resting meat ensures it is moist, tender and juicy. When meat is cooked, the proteins push the meat’s juices to the center of the meat. Resting allows the juices to redistribute throughout the meat and be reabsorbed so when you eat the meat it will be juicier and tastier.

The Rice

Plate lunch or sushi = calrose rice.

Calrose rice is known for its short pearly white grains and sticky texture. If you must, you can certainly replace calrose with brown rice. However, any local would tell you da rice gotta be sticky, brah.

The Macaroni Salad

In Hawaii, macaroni salad is king. You won’t find a plate lunch without it.

We’ve chosen a mac salad variation with potatoes. Click here for our potato-mac salad recipe.

Let’s Eat!

On each plate, place two scoops rice, one scoop potato-mac salad, and chicken. Serve with warm teriyaki sauce on the side.

Make Mine Veggie

Make mine veggie with teriyaki portobello mushrooms! Following this recipe for teriyaki chicken, simply replace the chicken thighs with 4 portobello mushrooms and omit the marinating.

Cut the stems off the mushrooms and scrape out the gills. Pour 1/2 cup teriyaki sauce, or more as needed, into a small bowl. Slide a portobello into the sauce with the underside facing up. Spoon sauce over the mushroom, coating the entire mushroom. Place the mushroom on a parchment lined baking sheet, underside facing up. Repeat with remaining mushrooms.

Bake at 375-degrees F for about 15 minutes or until mushrooms reach desired tenderness. Slice and serve with rice and potato-mac salad.

Now it’s time fo grind!

Print

Teriyaki Chicken Plate Lunch

Author Your Allergy Chefs

Yield 4 Servings

Free of: gluten and top 8 allergens.

There’s no better way to indulge than with a teriyaki chicken plate lunch.

Ingredients

1 cup fresh orange juice or pineapple juice, or a combination of

3/4 cup coconut aminos

1/4 cup mirin or rice vinegar

1/4 cup honey or organic cane sugar

1 tbsp minced ginger

1 tbsp minced garlic

1-1/2 tbsp cornstarch

1/4 cup water

4 large boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1 pound)

8 scoops calrose rice, cooked according to package directions

4 scoops Potato-mac salad

Instructions

1. In a small saucepan, combine orange juice, coconut aminos, mirin, honey, ginger, and garlic. Reserve 1/2 cup for marinating chicken thighs.
2. Place chicken and reserved sauce in a large zip lock bag. Seal and marinate in the fridge for 8 hours.
3. While the chicken is marinating, bring the ingredients in saucepan to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Combine cornstarch and water in a small bowl; stir until smooth paste forms. Whisk the cornstarch slurry into the simmering sauce, whisking constantly for 2 minutes.
5. Strain the teriyaki sauce into a bowl. Allow to cool and refrigerate until needed. This will yield about one and a half cups of sauce. Warm up right before serving.
6. Take marinated chicken out of the fridge 20 minutes before cooking, to let it warm up. Drain well.
7. Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken thighs, smooth side down and sear for about 1 minute, until golden brown. Flip over for another minute to brown the other side.
8. Transfer chicken to a parchment or foil lined baking sheet. Bake until internal temperature reaches 165-degrees F, about 8-10 minutes. To test for doneness, use an instant read meat thermometer inserted into the center of the thickest part of the thigh.
9. Remove chicken from oven. Cover loosely with foil and allow chicken to rest for 5-10 minutes.
10. To serve: on each plate, place 2 scoops rice, one scoop potato-mac salad, and chicken. Serve with warm teriyaki sauce on the side.

Notes

Make Mine Veggie!

Make mine veggie with teriyaki portobello mushrooms! Following this recipe for teriyaki chicken, simply replace the chicken thighs with 4 portobello mushrooms and omit the marinating.

Cut the stems off the mushrooms and scrape out the gills. Pour 1/2 cup teriyaki sauce into a small bowl. Slide a portobello into the sauce with the underside facing up. Spoon sauce over the mushroom, coating the entire mushroom. Place the mushroom on a parchment lined baking sheet, underside facing up. Repeat with remaining mushrooms.

Bake at 375-degrees F for about 15 minutes or until mushrooms reach desired tenderness. Slice and serve with rice and potato-mac salad.

Courses Mains

The post Teriyaki Chicken Plate Lunch appeared first on Your Allergy Chefs.

free from gluten and the top 8 food allergens

Hawaiian style potato-mac salad is the perfect side dish that adds aloha to any plate.

With potato-mac salad all you need is 2 scoops white rice and your favorite protein for the perfect plate lunch.

We first developed this recipe for the Spring 2017 issue of Allergic Living, so not to worry, we’ve skipped the dairy, eggs, and wheat…

Hungry? 

It is estimated that a million pounds of dried macaroni noodles are shipped to the Hawaiian Islands each year to support the macaroni salad habit. Now that’s some serious mac salad!

Reminiscing of our time in Hawaii, a plate lunch without mac salad was unthinkable.

mise en place

For the Dressing

In a medium bowl, mix together mayonnaise, mustard, pickle relish, celery seed, salt, and pepper. Set aside in the refrigerator while you cook the pasta and potatoes.

For the Best Potatoes

After washing, peeling and trimming red skin or Yukon gold potatoes, cut into uniform-sized pieces to promote even cooking. If the pieces are too small they will absorb a large amount of water as they cook, making the final product soggy. A good rule of thumb is to cut larger potatoes into quarters or 1 to 2-inch cubes for smaller potatoes.

Add the potatoes to a saucepan and add enough cold water to cover them by several inches. Starting potatoes in cold water allows for more even cooking and heat penetration from outside to inside. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Boiling potatoes rapidly will cause the potatoes to break apart, making for mushy spuds. Finally, potatoes should not be cooled in or under cold water, unlike most vegetables, as this can make them soggy.

Cut cooked potatoes into 1/2-inch chunks and place in a large bowl.

Finally, let’s put this salad together.

Add cooked macaroni, shredded carrots, and peas to potatoes. Add dressing to mixture and stir gently to combine. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

A Bit About Pasta

There are lots more allergy-friendly pastas on the market today than ever before. Awesome!

You probably have your favorites. We used Andean Dream Fusilli, which is made from quinoa. We love how it holds up after cooking. It’s also one of the few pastas we have found that works great for cold salads, where you can keep refrigerated and eat for several days without the pasta getting hard.

It’s important to follow the manufacturer’s instructions on the package for cooking. Most pasta is boiled throughout the cooking process. However, Andean Dream suggests that once the pasta comes to a boil, the temperature is lowered so it’s simmering.

This salad is positively addicting! I’ll take 2 scoops!

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Potato-Mac Salad

Author Your Allergy Chefs

Yield 2 quarts

free of: gluten and top 8 allergens.

Hawaiian style potato-mac salad is the perfect side dish that adds aloha to any plate.

Ingredients

Dressing

1 1/2 cups vegan mayonnaise, such as Follow Your Heart Soy-Free Vegenaise

2 tbsp yellow mustard

2 tbsp pickle relish

1 tsp celery seed

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Salad

20 ounces peeled red skin potatoes (or Yukon golds), quartered

8 ounces dry gluten-free macaroni, such as Andean Dream Quinoa organic macaroni (about 2 cups)

1 cup shredded carrots

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

Instructions

1. For the dressing, in a medium bowl, mix together mayonnaise, mustard, pickle relish, celery seed, salt, and pepper. Set aside in refrigerator.
2. For the salad, cook pasta according to package directions. To prevent overcooking, start checking pasta for doneness several minutes before package directions specify. You may need to test the pasta 2 or 3 times before it’s just right. Stoves and temperatures may vary, causing differences in cooking times. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold water, draining again well. Set aside.
3. Place potatoes in a large saucepan. Fill with cold water until it comes 2-inches above the potatoes. Bring to a boil over high heat. Lower heat to a simmer, and cook until potatoes are fork tender, about 13-15 minutes. The cooking time will vary depending on the size of the potato cubes. Drain, but don’t rinse. Spread on a baking sheet to cool. Chop into 1/2-inch cubes. You should have about 4 cups cubed potatoes.
4. Place potatoes in a large bowl. Add cooked macaroni, shredded carrots, and peas.
5. Add dressing to mixture and stir gently to combine. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes

We developed this recipe for the 2017 Spring issue of Allergic Living.

Potato-mac salad is best served the same day, as some gluten-free pastas firm up when chilled overnight. However, Andean Dream allergy-friendly pasta is a great choice for cold salads.

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free from gluten and the top 8 food allergens

At the 2018 FARECon Featuring Teen Summit, we had the opportunity to meet many individuals and families living with food allergies. We got to hear and talk about their successes and challenges.

Meet the amazing and inspiring, Catherine Walker…

Catherine has allergies to milk, egg, peanut, and tree nuts. Cooking at home while growing up, she was inspired to take her recipes and write a cookbook.

At 14 years of age, Catherine just published “Cook it Up! Delicious Recipes for Healthy Cooking.” All her dishes are free of milk, egg, peanut, and tree nuts and were created so that her whole family can enjoy great food together.

Not only did Catherine create the recipes, she also took all of the amazing photos, including the cover.

We had the pleasure to attend her awesome presentation at the conference called “Cook it Up!” Here she shared with the teens real life insights and her journey. Everyone left her session knowing and believing that having food allergies does not have to hold you back from doing something you love!

Catherine was at the conference with her mom and dad, her younger brother (who also shares her same allergies) and her grandparents. Support and love emanated from the entire family. It was such a pleasure meeting them!

Chef Joel and Catherine

Let’s get cooking with one of Catherine’s delicious creations, Creamy Potato Fennel Soup!

Her recipe is super simple and super delicious!

Start by sautéing onions and fennel in olive oil. At the last two minutes of cooking, add minced garlic. Dice potatoes with the skins on, place in a medium saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer until tender. Drain and let the potatoes cool before removing the skins.

Return potatoes to the saucepan and add the onions and fennel. Pour in the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. When all vegetables are tender, remove from heat and blend soup with a hand held blender until smooth, or process in batches in a blender or food processor.

Season with salt and pepper. Portion into soup bowls. Drizzle with a little olive oil and garnish with chives, croutons, and bacon crumbles.

Enjoy Catherine’s Creamy Potato Fennel Soup. We sure did!

To get your copy of Catherine’s cookbook, visit www.cook-it-up.com.

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Creamy Potato Fennel Soup

Author Catherine Walker

Yield 4 (1 1/2 cup) Servings

Free of: gluten and top 8 allergens.

Light, delicious and naturally creamy from potatoes, this soup is a winner! 

 

Ingredients

1 pound of Yukon gold potatoes, quartered

1/2 fennel bulb roughly chopped

2 yellow onions roughly chopped

4 cups of chicken stock

Olive oil (as needed)

Salt and pepper

1 garlic clove roughly chopped OR 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 tbsp chopped chives (for garnish)

Croutons (for garnish)

Bacon crumbles (for garnish)

Instructions

Saute the onions and fennel in olive oil until soft.

Meanwhile chop the potatoes (skins on) and boil them separately in a large pot until cooked through and skins fall off. Remove from heat and drain. Remove skins. Put onion mixture into the pot with the potatoes.

Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Depending on the size of the vegetable cuts, it may be necessary to simmer until vegetables are tender. Turn off heat and blend soup with a hand held blender until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Portion into individual soup bowls.

Drizzle with a little olive oil and garnish with chives, bacon, and croutons.

Notes

To make the soup vegan, replace the chicken stock with vegetable stock or broth.

 

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free from gluten and the top 8 food allergens

The holidays just aren’t the same without a good pumpkin dessert. Whether you’re in pie burnout or you’re creating an elaborate dessert spread, combine pumpkin and cranberries to make this ultimate upside-down cake.

I developed a variety of baked items using a creme cake base while pastry chef at Walt Disney World. One of those desserts was a cranberry upside-down cake, perfect for the holidays.

Here is the allergy-friendly version, which is as delicious as the original!

We’re using a 9-inch non stick cake pan. A springform pan is not a good choice for this dessert since the juices from the cranberries are destined to leak like a sieve. Springforms are really meant for thick heavy batters, like cheesecake or extremely thick cake batters.

mise en place

Start by whisking the margarine and the brown sugar together over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes until the mixture emulsifies. Pour the mixture into a greased cake pan lined with parchment paper.

Sprinkle 1 1/2 cups of cranberries over the brown sugar mixture. If tree nut allergy is not an issue, you can sprinkle with 1/2 cup of coarsely chopped toasted pecans, if desired.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flax eggs, oil and pumpkin puree. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet. Carefully spread the batter over the cranberries and bake at 350-degrees F for about 35 – 40 minutes, until done.

Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Place a serving plate on top of the cake. Carefully flip over and invert the cake onto the plate, slowly lifting off the cake pan. Peel off the parchment paper.

You can call it quits at this step and dig in when the cake cools. However, we like the cake completely covered in cranberries.

You may wonder, why not start with more cranberries in the first place?

Since the cranberries release a lot of moisture when cooking, adding too many at the beginning will cause the juices to bubble up the sides and overflow long before the cake is done baking, creating an oven disaster.

We came up with a quick and easy solution. With the remaining cranberries, we cook them with a little sugar and water just for about 4-6 minutes, until the cranberries begin to burst. We then spread them over the cake.

It’s that easy, and we think this extra step creates a real show-stopper!

Yum…your dessert world is about to be turned upside-down!

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Cranberry Pumpkin Upside-Down Cake

Author Your Allergy Chefs

Yield 1 (9-inch) cake

Free of: gluten and top 8 allergens.

Whether you’re in pie burnout or you’re creating an elaborate dessert spread, combine pumpkin and cranberries to make this ultimate upside-down cake.

 

 

 

Ingredients

4 tbsp dairy-free margarine, such as Earth Balance Soy Free Buttery Sticks

1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 (12-ounce) package fresh cranberries, divided (1 1/2 cups + 2 cups)

2 tbsp flaxseed meal (see recipe notes)

6 tbsp water

1 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour blend

1 1/3 cups organic cane sugar, divided (1 cup + 1/3 cup)

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup pure pumpkin puree

6 tbsp canola or grapeseed oil

1/3 cup water

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees F.
2. Lightly grease a 9-inch cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
3. In a small saucepan, melt the margarine over medium heat. Add brown sugar and whisk until smooth and mixture emulsifies, about 2 minutes.
4. Pour the brown sugar mixture into the prepared cake pan and evenly coat the bottom. In a single layer, sprinkle 1 1/2 cups cranberries over the brown sugar mixture. Set pan aside.
5. In a small bowl, vigorously whisk together the flaxseed meal and 6 tbsp water. Set aside for 5 minutes.
6. Place the flour and 1 cup sugar in a medium bowl. Sift in the baking powder. Add cinnamon and salt. Whisk to combine well. Set aside.
7. Return to the flaxseed mixture and whisk again. The consistency will be gelatinous. Transfer to a large bowl.
8. Whisk the pumpkin and oil into the flaxseed mixture. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet and mix until combined.
9. Evenly spread the batter over the cranberry topping. Place in oven and bake for approximately 35 to 40 minutes, until done. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack. Place a serving plate on top of the cake. Carefully flip over and invert the cake onto the plate, slowly lifting off the cake pan. Carefully peel off the parchment paper. Do not let the cake cool too long or it will be hard to turn out of the pan.
10. You can call it quits at this step and dig in when the cake cools. However, we like the cake completely covered in cranberries. Since cranberries release a lot of moisture when cooking, adding too many at the beginning will cause the juices to bubble up the sides and overflow before the cake is done baking, creating a mess. Here’s our quick and easy solution…
11. Place remaining 2 cups of cranberries in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add final 1/3 cup sugar and 1/3 cup water. Stir to combine. Cook until sugar is entirely dissolved and cranberries begin to burst, about 4-6 minutes.
12. Remove from heat and spread over cake. 
13. Let cake cool completely before serving. Enjoy. 

Notes

If egg allergy is not an issue, 2 large eggs may be substituted for the flaxseed meal and water.

 

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What a privilege it was to present at the FARECon Featuring Teen Summit earlier this month in Washington, D.C. We had an incredible time talking with parents and teens living with food allergies.

During the adult session, “Behind the Scenes, Tips for Safe Dining,” I asked participants to share their biggest frustrations about dining out and any questions they had. We got some great responses which may resonate with you.

Here’s our best advice in answering your questions and frustrations in the following Q&A with Chef Joel, former Manager of Product Development and Special Diets at Walt Disney World…

7 Questions

Q: Saying I have food allergies doesn’t sound strong enough for exactly what will happen if I eat food I’m allergic to. What else can be said to get my point of severity across to the servers and chefs who don’t even understand the term “anaphylaxis?”

A: An excellent question! To make your point crystal clear, you need to say that you could die if you eat even a trace particle of the allergen.

Q: Can you explain filtration again? Also, are there really any designated fryers in restaurants?

A: Filtration is the act of filtering cooking oil to remove food particles, so the oil lasts longer. The problem with filtration is that the protein molecules that are in the oil are not removed during the process, thus the allergen proteins remain in the oil. Cooking and the high temperatures of the fryer do not destroy the proteins.

Yes, some restaurants can have a designated fryer. However, they have to filter the oil from the designated fryer separately and put it back into the designated fryer without commingling with the common fryer oil. A mistake is made when an establishment has 2 fryers that share the same oil. They may designate one side for frying foods that are allergen free, but cross contact occurs because of the shared oil.

Q: A restaurant lists gluten free items with a red “GF” symbol and the asterisk on the menu says, “gluten friendly.” What does that mean?

A: Gluten friendly can mean 2 things. (1) A dish that is naturally gluten free, such as chicken or rice. (2) No gluten was added to the dish. By saying gluten friendly, the establishment is not guaranteeing the item is gluten free and free from cross contact. In a nutshell, the establishment is not taking any liability for cross contact, which happens when an allergen is accidentally transferred from one food to another.

Q: How do you deal with objections of restaurant owners in setting up allergy safe processes?

A: No deal. Don’t eat there. Appreciate their honesty. It’s better to know that they are unwilling to help than to half-ass try to accommodate you and make a mistake.

Q: Why can Disney manage food allergies so well and other food service operations cannot?

A: The culture of Disney is to make magic for every guest. It’s a huge commitment that they have made. It’s about training, processes, menus, and ingredients. They start with training, which is ongoing. They follow processes, modify menus, and source special products to make serving people with food allergies easy.

Q: What national chains have the best food allergy procedures?

A: The leading guide to allergy friendly restaurants nationwide is AllergyEats. Check out their website to find the restaurants in your area that are ready and willing to accommodate your allergies…and find those that aren’t.

Q: When we buy food at a grocery store, we don’t buy foods that say, “made on shared equipment.” When we call a restaurant and they say “we don’t serve anything with peanuts, how likely is that true and do you think they are looking for or are even aware of cross contact in products?

A: It is likely the restaurant doesn’t serve anything containing peanuts. However, there is always the possibility of cross contact. It is very likely they don’t understand cross contact. After advising the chef or manager of your allergy, you need to make sure you are able to see all ingredient labels to ensure the ingredients they use are not made on shared equipment.

It may be hard to see all of the ingredient labels. Many items are received in boxes where the ingredient label is on the outside of the box which gets broken down and recycled. But, if the establishment is committed to serving people with food allergies, this label would have been removed from the outer box and put in a recipe ingredient binder or other such practice. It’s also important to know if the binder is updated when there are ingredient changes from the manufacturer.

7 Frustrations

1. When different people at the restaurant give different answers for the same questions.
2. When the restaurant staff think an allergy means gluten free.
3. When restaurant staff are not being trained on food allergies.
4. Apathy from restaurant staff about food allergies, i.e. eyes rolling, lack of action, not letting kitchen staff know of my allergy.
5. Servers not knowing what ingredients are in their restaurant’s food.
6. When our family eats out, the waitstaff respond to our allergy ingredient questions with “that should be fine” or “I don’t think those ingredients are in that.”
7. Restaurant staff not taking our food allergy requests seriously, i.e. taking a burger off the bun that my son is allergic to and giving the same burger back to him.

Chef Joel’s Advice

These 7 frustrations are all too familiar. They are all signs of restaurants not committed to serving guests with food allergies.

Only eat at restaurants that are 100% committed!

Most important, don’t be afraid to ask questions. After all, no question is a bad question for those living with food allergies.

Check out our post, 7 Questions To Ask That Could Save Your Life When Dining Out for additional tips.

Stay tuned for more of the questions from the FARECon Featuring Teen Summit in the upcoming section of the website, “Ask Chef Joel.”

The post Food Allergy Questions Left Unanswered Could Kill appeared first on Your Allergy Chefs.

A delicious Mexican green salsa, roasted tomatillo salsa is made with roasted tomatillos, chile peppers, onions, cilantro and lime juice.

Tasty not only with tortilla chips, but on grilled meats or your favorite Mexican dishes, like enchiladas, tacos, or tamales.

A must-have in your refrigerator, this roasted tomatillo salsa recipe is so easy and delicious! Once you make your own, you won’t want to go back to the store-bought versions!

A tomatillo is a tangy lime-green fruit, also known as a Mexican husk tomato. Because they are wrapped in a papery husk, it can be hard to tell the quality.

When purchasing tomatillos, ripe ones are firm, juicy and tangy, and bright green in color. The husks should be light green and moist. As the tomatillos age, their husks turn brown and dry out. By the way, smaller tomatillos tend to be sweeter than larger ones.

We usually buy a few more tomatillos than we need in case we run across a bad one and also to account for the weight of the husks.

It’s best not to peel the husks from the tomatillos until you’re ready to use them.

We’re ready!

Four Easy Steps

1. Place tomatillos in a bowl and cover with warm water. Letting them sit for about 20 minutes in water is not necessary, but makes removing the husks easier. Go ahead and peel the husks, rinsing off the sticky residue from the tomatillos.
2. Toss tomatillos, anaheim pepper, jalapeno, onion, and garlic with a little olive oil. Spread out on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast in oven until charred, about 15-20 minutes, turning peppers halfway through.
3. Place peppers in a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap and let cool for 10-15 minutes. This process helps to loosen their skins. Remove the stem, seeds, and outer skin from the peppers.
4. Transfer the cooled vegetables, peppers, and their juices to a food processor. Add cilantro, lime juice, and a bit of sugar. Pulse until mixture is as smooth or as chunky as you want it with no super big chunks of tomatillos remaining.

roasted tomatillo salsa and tamales – what a pair!

A bit of sugar?

Sugar is optional. However, we use a tablespoon of organic cane sugar to balance the acidity of the tomatillos.

Transfer your roasted tomatillo salsa to a sealed contained and store in the fridge for up to four days, if it lasts that long.

Enjoy this roasted tomatillo salsa on game day with chips, or as a condiment to almost any Mexican dish!

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Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Author Your Allergy Chefs

Yield 2 Cups

Free of: gluten and top 8 allergens.

Tasty not only with chips, roasted tomatillo salsa is great on grilled meats or your favorite Mexican dishes, like enchiladas, tacos, or tamales.

Ingredients

1 pound tomatillos

1 anaheim chili pepper

1 jalapeno pepper

1 cup onions, cut in chunks

1 garlic clove, peeled

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup packed cilantro

2 tbsp fresh lime juice

1 tbsp granulated sugar

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, cover the tomatillos with warm water. Set aside for 20 minutes. This is not necessary, but makes removing the husks easier.
2. Preheat oven to 400-degrees F.
3. Peel the husks from tomatillos and rinse off the sticky residue from their skins, discarding the husks.
4. Toss tomatillos, anaheim pepper, jalapeño, onion, and garlic with olive oil. Spread out on a rimmed baking sheet, lined with foil or parchment paper.
5. Place in oven and roast until soft and a bit charred, about 15-20 minutes, turning peppers halfway through.
6. Remove from oven. Place the anaheim and jalapeño pepper in a small bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. This process will help to loosen their skins, making them easier to remove.
7. Remove the stem, seeds, and outer skin from the peppers.
8. Transfer the cooled vegetables, peppers, and their juices to a food processor. Add cilantro, lime juice, and sugar. Pulse until mixture is as smooth or as chunky as you want with no big chunks of tomatillos remaining, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

Notes

• The salsa will be a bit thinner at first, but will thicken as it sits for a few hours in the refrigerator, due to the natural pectin in the tomatillos.

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free from gluten and top 8 allergens

The Waldorf salad was created in 1896 by the dining room manager at New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. This light and refreshing salad became an instant success.

The original version of the Waldorf salad contained only apples, celery and mayonnaise, tossed together and placed on a bed of lettuce. As often happens, many variations evolved – some with raisins, some with chopped nuts. This one has raisins and grapes and is topped with…granola.

We adapted this recipe from Chef Ron Russell’s Waldorf salad. Ron is chef and co-owner of SunCafe Organic Restaurant. The restaurant is amazing and has twice been rated one of the best 10 restaurants in Los Angeles by Open Table (out of a total of 9,000 restaurants).

One of the key ingredients that makes Chef Ron’s Waldorf salad so special is his amazing sunflower mayo!

For this allergy-friendly mayo, start by soaking raw sunflower seeds for 4-6 hours. Drain the seeds and place in a high speed blender with water, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, garlic and salt. Process until smooth; set aside in fridge.

This makes more than you will need for this recipe. It’s hard to make a smaller batch because the ingredients just don’t catch in the blender to blend smoothly. However, the leftover mayo can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days, or it can be frozen. Enjoy it on sandwiches and burgers!

mise en place

Here are the yummy ingredients. We like to have everything prepped and ready to assemble before we cut the apples, to prevent apples from browning.

Is There a Best Way to Cut an Apple?

We don’t claim there’s a right way or a wrong way to cut apples. In fact, we use different techniques, depending on what we’re making. Here’s an easy way we’d like to share for making this incredible Waldorf salad.

Slice a small portion off the bottom of the apple so it sits flat on your cutting board. Slice one side off the apple, staying about 1/4 of an inch away from the center, so that you miss the core.

Put the cut side down and again slice one side off the apple, staying about 1/4 of an inch away from the center. Rotate the apple again and repeat this step until you’ve cut all 4 sides of the apple from the core. Do this with all of the apples.

Lay the apple slabs, cut side down on the cutting board, and cut into 1/2 to 3/4-inch slices, then cut crosswise into 1/2 to 3/4-inch cubes.

Now for assembly, whisk together 1/2 cup mayo and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add celery, grapes, raisins and apples. Toss to coat ingredients evenly.

Serve on a bed of lettuce and garnish with our toasted coconut and pumpkin seed granola, if desired.

What’s fun about this salad, you can replace and vary the ingredients to your liking. How about adding pineapple or coconut? Oh, or mini marshmallows?

If tree nut allergy is not an issue, try walnuts, pecans or pistachios.

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Waldorf Salad

Author Your Allergy Chefs

Yield 4 Servings

Free of: gluten and top 8 allergens.

This simple apple salad is so delicious, and you can vary the ingredients to your liking.

 

Ingredients

Sunflower Mayo

1 1/2 cups sunflower seeds, soaked 4-6 hours, then drained

1/2 – 3/4 cup water, as needed

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp sea salt

Salad

1/2 cup sunflower mayo (above)

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 cup celery, sliced crosswise into 1/4-inch slices

1 cup red seedless grapes, halved

1/2 cup raisins

3 cups chopped apples, 1/2 to 3/4-inch cubes (see recipe notes)

1 cup allergy-friendly granola, optional

Instructions

1. For the mayo, combine sunflower seeds, water (starting with 1/2 cup), lemon juice, vinegar, garlic, and salt in a high speed blender. Process until smooth, gradually adding remaining 1/4 cup of water as needed. This makes 2 cups of mayo, more than you need for this recipe. A smaller batch is difficult to blend properly. Measure 1/2 cup and set aside for salad. Remaining mayo can be held in fridge for up to 3 days.
2. For the salad, in a large bowl whisk together 1/2 cup mayo and cinnamon. Add celery, grapes, raisins, and apples. Toss gently to coat ingredients. To prevent apples from turning brown, cut right before adding to mayo. 
3. Serve on a bed of lettuce and garnish with granola, if desired.

Notes

• Fuji, Gala, Pink Lady, Granny Smith, or a combination of, are good apples choices for Waldorf salad.
• We adapted this recipe from Chef Ron Russell’s Waldorf salad. Ron is chef and co-owner of SunCafe Organic Restaurant. This restaurant is amazing and has twice been rated one of the 10 best restaurants in Los Angeles by Open Table (out of a total of 9,000 restaurants).

 

Courses Soups & Salads

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