The Cooking Substitution Curve

 

When my kid got diagnosed with egg allergies, one of the sheets they gave us had ideas for egg substitutions- to bind things together, to help baked things rise, to glaze, to make an emulsion, or to coat foods. One, wow eggs do a lot of things. Two, while they gave lots of ideas for substitutions, I was skeptical that the end product would turn out as good as the original.

But, the real problem? When you start to add more and more allergies, the more and more substitutions you have to make. Egg and milk allergies really mess with baking. You can get away with taking a normal muffin recipe and use a flax seed egg and it’ll turn out ok. Or you can use some dairy free milk and it’ll still be pretty tasty. But replacing both the egg and milk? You are going to have some problems. And it’s not a one-to-one situation. If you replace two things it’s not twice as different as the just making one change. No, we’ve got an exponential curve going on. Instead of a muffin, you have a “muffin”. Replace the wheat, too, and now you’ve got something that’s potentially edible, but definitely won’t respond to the name muffin.

This is why I just haven’t tried to make pesto. Our CSA kept sending us basil this year and making pesto is so easy. It’s really just a couple of ingredients:

• Basil- fine, no problem
• Oil- yeah, good
• Garlic- nope, she can’t have that. Hmm… maybe green onions?
• Pine nuts- oh nope, that’s not a tree nut she can have. Sunflower seeds? Pecans?
• Parmesan cheese- oiy. Nutritional yeast……????

Blend it all up and I would have something green. Made from basil. But it’s not going to taste like pesto. And nobody from Italy is going to want to have anything to do with it.

This got me thinking. What’s the most Top 9 allergens one food can have? Is there something that you just can’t make allergen free??

Seafood was my first thought. Some kind of creamy clam chowder- you got dairy to make it creamy, shellfish of course, and maybe some wheat flour to thicken it. Okay, 3 Top 9 allergens, that’s a third of them. Not too bad.

My next thought was baking. You automatically get eggs, milk, and wheat. And if you add peanuts, in say, a delicious peanut butter cake, you are up to 4/9. Now we are getting somewhere.

Alright, so what about an extravagant breakfast bagel? If it’s an everything bagel you got sesame and wheat. Then you can put some cream cheese on there. An egg. You could also go a different direction with lox and get some fish on there. Depending on how extravagant you make it you could really start to add on the allergens.

I think, though, the most is Pad Thai. Egg and shrimp are pilled on top, that’s two of the top 9 right off the bat. But the real killer is the sauce- peanut butter, soy sauce, and fish sauce. Add them all up and you have at least 5 of the top 9. And you better hope they used rice noodles without any wheat!

 

Are there any things you crave that you just can’t eat anymore because there are too many substitutions?

Going to the Beach and Bringing Along Some Food Allergies

 

We’ve been living with food allergies for over a year now, but we haven’t done much traveling (thanks COVID!). After two summer beach trips, here's my run down on going to the beach with food allergies.

Road tripping with food allergies

What we were prepared for- we had already planned to eat at rest stops, bringing our own lunch and snacks. That way, we know all the food is safe and we are eating in the clean, fresh air blowing off the interstate (oh, the soothing sounds of cars traveling at 70 mph). We still haven’t figured out if there’s anything at any restaurant that our kid can eat and this way we don’t have to worry about it.

What we were NOT prepared for- how sad it would be to buy snacks at the gas station. One of the best parts of road trips? Browsing gas stations to get a deliciously different snack from what we normally eat. I’m talking Combos (where else are you going to eat pizza flavored stuffed pretzels?), candy (milk chocolate covered peanuts and tree nuts, obviously), and checking out what random hot food they have (you’re telling me that chili dog isn’t calling your name?). When we went into the gas station to look for snacks, do you know what the safe options were? Oh. The same crackers we had in the car. The same cookies we have at home. Oh! We can get a smaller bag of the same pretzels. Plain chips. Lame. Lame. Lame.

Beach snacks with food allergies

What we were prepared for- before leaving, we asked everybody going on the trip to only bring safe foods on the beach. You know, where you can't easily wash your hands before accidentally contaminating all of the shovels and buckets and beach toys that my kid is playing with. This was met with some resistance, but generally the family stopped eating the peanut butter cheese sandwich crackers while sitting on the beach (at least when we were around).

What we were NOT prepared for- the amount of peanuts washing up on the beach. I had no idea it was a thing to eat peanuts at the beach and then just toss the peanut shells in the sand. Baseball game? Yes. Beach? Never done it. It happened not once, but twice this year! We were playing in the sand when a batch of peanut shells just washed up into our area. Logically, I know that these peanut shells are harmless. She’s allergic to the peanut protein, right? And, whatever peanut protein dust happened to be left on the shell was definitely washed away by the ocean water. But still. I snatched that baby up and eased on down the beach.

Group eating with food allergies

What we were prepared for- we knew the rest of the family was going to eat things that my kid is allergic to. When we presented the idea of limiting allergens at the share beach house, we were told we were asking for way too much. I get it. She’s got a lot of allergies. But for 7 days? You can’t try to adjust your diet? That was a hard pass. So, we knew would have to prepare separate food for her. Wipe down the table a lot. Remind everybody to wash their hands.

What we were NOT prepared for- trashcans with missing trash can lids. The worst part? It was eye level for my kid. She was drawn to that trashcan like a moth to a flame. When I was trying to cook in the kitchen, every time I turned around she had her head in there, trying to grab whatever was the shiniest. Things that had been tossed into the uncovered, completely accessible, kitchen trashcan:

• Egg shells
• Cracker packets with peanut butter still on them
• Aluminum foil cover for casseroles covered in cheese
• Butterfinger wrapper with melted chocolate and crumbs spilling out

I changed that trash bag so much we ran out of them by the weeks end. I kept putting the trashcan on top of the counter only to find it back on the floor. Guys. At the very least, keep your poison out of reach.

I guess this is all to say, while you may feel like a crazy food allergy person at home, you will definitely be a crazier food allergy person at the beach.

The Best (Top 9 Allergen Free) Toddler Snacks

 

If you do a quick google search for the best toddler snacks, there are a lot of suggestions out there. Unfortunately, a lot of the suggests are a no go if you have food allergies.

• Cheese? Yogurt? Milk. Milk. Milk.
• Hummus? Sesame seeds
• Crackers? Bread? Muffins? Wheat. And maybe some eggs.
• Peanut butter? Nut butters? Womp. Womp.

You’re mostly left with fruit (which can have its own problems) and vegetables (Ha. Ha. Ha. Toddlers eating snap peas? Not when they gain control of their hands and can chuck it across the room.)

Having healthy, filling snacks is extremely important to my family because my two kids are skinny little guys. When I see a big, chunky baby, it’s hard for me not to envy those cute little rolls; their parents probably never get comments on how small their kids are. When people feel the need to point out my kids are small, I always respond with a “I feed them!” as I huff away.

To stop the “wow, she’s a lot smaller than my 20-month-old Michelin tire baby” comments, I try to pack some high calorie foods every time they eat and that means finding some protein and fat to add to the carbs. For my toddler, this includes having high calorie things to dip into because that kid loves to dip. And, whether she digs in with the other food on her plate or goes straight for the sunbutter with a spoon, I don’t care. I’m just happy she’s getting those calories.

My favorite allergen* friendly dips:

• Vegan cream cheese – it’s creamy, it doesn’t taste that different from the real thing, and the best ones don’t have soy or nuts!
• Coconut butter- guys. This stuff is so delicious. It’s just coconut meat that they blended up until it became a cream. It’s a fatty. It’s sweet. It tastes like dessert.
• Sunbutter- it’s not peanut butter but it’s close. I guess.
• Avocado/guacamole- my little one calls it “cado” and we always have to have it around
• Black bean dip- really any kind of pureed vegetable spread is a good hummus substitute. I guess you could just make homemade hummus and leave out the tahini paste, but making homemade hummus always sounds like a great idea but never works out. How do restaurants get it so creamy? I’ve tried cooking dried chickpeas, boiling in baking soda, more oil, blender instead of food processor…. It’s just not the same. Black bean dip, carrot dip, lentil dip on the other hand, all are winners. Just pick a vegetable. Cook it until it’s falling apart. Blend it up with some oil, lemon juice, salt, and leave the tahini paste in the pantry.
• Smoothies- they’re cold and refreshing and a good way to hide some spinach. My favorite? Frozen banana, nondairy milk, sunbutter, spinach. You can add some flaxseed if you are feeling yuppie. It’s a healthy milkshake.
• Vegan yogurt- a lot of the vegan yogurts don’t have a lot of calories… which is why I make my own. But if some of the coconut ones have some good fat in them.

Honesty, our dippers are usually fruit or crackers. Since wheat is out for some people, I did some brainstorming to think of some delicious cracker alternatives.

Dippers:

• Cheerios- cheerios are just the best. There’s a reason they are classically a kid’s first cereal. No wheat. Easy to chew. Great for dipping.
• Rice/corn squares- the cereal aisle is just a good place to go for wheat free snacks.
• Rice cakes- these seem a little harder for younger toddlers, but once they get those teeth in, it’s a crunchy snack
• Tortilla chips- it seems weird to put chips as a healthy snack idea, but tortilla chips are a little bit better for you than their potato cousins? Maybe?
• Veggie straws- again, I’m not sure these are that different than chips and they definitely don’t deserve to have “veggie” in their name, but when wheat is out, you gotta go looking for other things.
• Corn tortillas- corn tortillas mostly make me want a taco, but dipped in some black bean dip would be ok, too.
• Fruit- my family loves some fruit
• Veggies- I guess??? How do people get their kids to eat vegetables? The smug look on my friend’s faces when their kid dives in to a beet salad drives my blood pressure through the roof. I get it. Your kid will eat beets. You’re clearly the superior parent.

 

Have fun snacking!

*I’m not including coconut as one of the Top 9 allergens. The FDA qualifies coconut as a tree nut (so it has to be clearly labeled), but allergies to coconut are very rare and usually occur in people who are not allergic to other tree nuts.

Taste Test: Vegan Cream Cheese

Once we were faced with trying to find allergen friendly snacks that didn’t involve milk, vegan cream cheese became a staple in our house. Either dipping cereal in it or spreading it on crackers, it’s a good way to add some fat to our kid’s diet. Our grocery store only has one brand, but when Wegman’s opened up nearby, we had to taste some alternatives. Here’s the run down:

WayFare- easily spreads, but with a sweeter taste

The consistency was closer to a whipped cream cheese and it was good spread on graham crackers, but way too sweet for an everything bagel breakfast sandwich. I think it would be perfect for dessert applications, like a vegan cream cheese icing, but not great with anything savory.

Daiya- it has an after taste of popcorn and once you notice it, you can’t not notice it

The first time I tried it, I didn’t not like it… it just had a weird taste that I couldn’t put my finger on. It was familiar… but unexpected in cream cheese. Not bad, but a little off putting. After my wife said “popcorn,” it hit me. Yes. Popcorn. Not movie theater buttered popcorn, just like normal popcorn. Who doesn’t like the classic combo of creamy tart cream cheese with a popcorn sprinkle? My kid. I think this tub is still in our fridge because nobody wants to eat it.

GoVeggie- strangely soft

It’s very soft and just.. kind of… neutral? Plus, it also has soy in it which isn't great for avoiding allergens. Not a winner.

Follow Your Heart- our first, our only, our one true vegan-cream-cheese love

I’m not sure if this one is actually the best one, or if it was just our first one and toddlers love what the know, but it’s definitely our favorite. It’s less spreadable (my youngest actually enjoys just eating it by the chunk off her plate), but you can dip into it with pretzels and crackers, and with a little work you can spread it on a bagel. It has a very neutral flavor, just kind of creamy, with a hint of tartness, but really, I’d take it over bland or popcorn. Because it’s soy free, it is safe from the top 9 allergens! It’s almost all coconut oil, flavored with fava bean extract (which gives it a light cheese flavor). Now my kids won’t eat any other brand.

How to be an Allergy Ally

 

When I first envisioned this blog, my main goal was to complain about how much I hate food allergies. I guess, maybe, to give advice to other parents with kids with food allergies to make their lives easier. But mostly to complain, you know?  Because there is a lot of good information online on how to keep your kid safe from food allergies once they are diagnosed, but those websites are very informative but super impassive. It’s: here’s how to check a food label! Not: man, checking food labels gets old. It’s: here’s how to replace eggs in your muffins. Not: have fun eating your rubbery brick!

But, I think some people who are reading this don’t have kids with food allergies and are completely new to the world of dangerous foods being everywhere you look. Luckily, in addition to knowing some tricks to feeding a kid with food allergies, I also have some tricks on how to be a better community member to kids with food allergies. In the before times, I tried to accommodate other kids- when bringing in treats for my son’s birthday, I knew that one of his friends had an allergy to eggs, so I made scones to share with everybody. I knew not to send peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to school (because it’s a written rule for his preschool), but I honestly had no idea what other foods my kid ate that had common allergens. So here are some things you can do, even if you aren’t living with a kid with food allergies.

Be aware when you are eating the top 9 allergens in public

Any food can cause an allergic reaction, but these are the most likely to cause a severe one: peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, soy, wheat, shellfish, fish, and sesame.

I think it’s good to know these top ones and just carry that awareness with you when you eat these things. You never know when somebody is around that is allergic. The biggest thing that drives me bonkers is kids eating snacks at a public place and then coming up to talk to my kid. A few weeks ago, we were at the park and there was another family- young toddler, little kid, and grandma. The young toddler, who was about my youngest’s age, came over and clearly wanted to talk and interact with my kid. The grandma started asking questions about how old my kids were and all I could think about was that the toddler was covered (and I mean COVERED) in cheese dust with what I can only assume is diary milk spilled all over their onesie. Hands and face looked like they had making out with Chester the Cheeto cheetah. Did I want to my kid to learn how to meet and talk to other people? Definitely. Did I physically pick her up and move her away from Chester’s BFF? I did. I mumbled something about “food allergies, sorry,” but I am not sure the grandma understood. After all, the kid was just eating goldfish and drinking milk! No peanuts in sight! In another life, I would have been confused, too.

This happened a few months ago, too, at the zoo. This time, the cute little kid was eating ice cream. It was hot. The ice cream was dripping. We were already in a conversation with the other mom when the liquid poison carrier waddled over. We explain about the food allergies and the other mom quickly snatched up her little one. But it was a conversation ender. We looked like crazy people for keeping our kid away from other kids and the other adult felt bad. Like they shouldn’t let their kid interact with anybody else.

Wash your hands AFTER eating

Generally, to have a food allergy reaction, the person has to actually consume the food. The only exception I know of is cooking shellfish. For peanuts, my allergist told me that to have a reaction to inhaling peanuts, everyone on the entire airplane would have to open their peanut pouches at the exact same time to release enough peanut dust. And that would only affect the person is they were extremely sensitive.

This means that you can safely eat foods with allergens near somebody with allergies- you just have to keep your food to yourself. The problem with food allergies and babies is how much babies like to put things in their mouths. So, after eating foods with allergens, to make sure you don’t accidentally leave a smear of peanut butter on a block that another kid chews on, you should wash everybody’s hands. With soap and water. Hand sanitizer doesn’t cut it here. The alcohol in hand sanitizer kills germs, but it doesn’t wash away anything off your hands. If you are somewhere without soap and water, then using a wipe and thoroughly wiping off your hands is the next best thing.

Now when we go to the park, if we bring a snack with us, I always wipe off my kids’ hands before setting them loose. Almost all of their snacks have wheat in them and who knows when a poor little guy with a wheat allergy is going to come along, either to say hi to my kids or to lick the hand rail.

Have separate serving utensils at get togethers

For birthday parties and family reunions I know my kid isn’t going to be able to eat the cake. Cakes are a minefield of top allergens. But maybe there’s something she can eat- like fresh fruit. The thing is, to keep those safe things safe, we need to make sure the cake spatula doesn’t come anywhere near the fruit and the fruit ladle doesn’t come anywhere near the yogurt dipping sauce. More utensils mean more dishes to clean but ultimately a much safer party.

Teach your kids about food allergies

Guys. A few years ago, a 13-year-old kid threw cheese at a kid with multiple food allergies, and because of complete ineptitude by his teacher and multiple adults in the “welfare office”, the kid died. Horrifying. It’s unclear what happened to the kid and adults involved, but you better believe I would pursue repercussions to the fullest extent of the law. Negligence. Manslaughter. I would want lives ruined. For a few weeks earlier in the summer, it seemed like every time I signed on to twitter, Kids With Food Allergies (@kfatweets) would have another horrifying story about bullying. Nearly 35% of kids with food allergies over the age of 5 are bullied about their food allergies! Their blog focuses on what the parents of kids with food allergies can do to prevent bullying- but what about the actual bullies?

When my oldest was little, we did talk about food allergies a little bit- we talked about how there are things that some kids in his class can’t eat. His best friend is allergic to sesame and we talked about how his best friend couldn’t eat hummus. Never did it cross my mind that I should also tell him PLEASE DON’T FLICK YOUR HUMMUS AT YOUR FRIEND, but maybe I should have? If the 13-year-old that threw the cheese had known about food allergies, would he have still thrown it? I hope not. I know that teenagers are mean, but they aren’t that mean, right?

Just like we’ve instituted a wash your hands after you eat rule, we could also institute a “never throw food because you don’t know who could be allergic to that food” rule. And a “just because your friend can’t eat a normal cookie doesn’t mean you can make fun of him” rule. Food allergies suck enough without adding on bullying.

 

So. Let’s make the world a food allergy friendlier place! Wash your hands! Keep your food to yourself! And don’t make fun of kids who can’t eat everything you can.

Food Allergies and Food Labels

 

Before food allergies, the only part of the food label that I looked at were the nutrition facts. And that was only if I was feeling particularly invested in how much sugar I was eating. These days, I glance right over the nutritional section, straight for the ingredient list. Getting used to reading through the gobitygook ingredients on processed food has been a real joy, only made easier by the fact that most of my kid’s allergies are part of the top 8* that have to labeled clearly in the US. (Not in the US?) According to the FDA, there are three ways the allergen can be clearly labeled: 

• Common or usual name of an ingredient is listed (ie “milk”)
• In parenthesis following the name of the ingredient (ie “whey (milk)”)
• Immediately after the list of ingredients in a contains statement (ie Contains: Milk)

Well, that’s fun. And super clear. Having three different ways to list allergens was definitely the best plan to avoid confusion... said no one ever. There’s a clear winner on the “easy and clear” to read scale and that’s having a contains statement. On my favorite packages the contains statement is even bold!

Oh la la! Look at that contains statement! So beautiful and clear.

The worst? When the ingredient list has no contains statement, is a whole page long, has many sets of parenthesis that have nothing to do with allergens, so you have to squint and read through every single word to make sure you aren’t missing anything. What a joy!

Just look at this nonsense! Sure, it states "wheat" and "sesame" in the ingredient list. But it's hidden in a list of things that could just as easily be a seed shopping list for your local garden store. Plus, why have organic before every ingredient? Really? I get it. It's organic. I don't care. 

This bread is so good. This label is NOT.

The really annoying thing? Ingredient lists can change at any time so every single time I’m at the grocery store, I glance at the ingredients before I toss it in the cart. It means we keep everything in the packages it came in because I also double check foods before passing them out to my daughter. It’s mostly just a lot of reading.

To further complicate the situation, there's an entire gray area of "may contain." Like this pasta that you are buying for your kid that is allergic to eggs "may contain: eggs." Great. So does it contain eggs? There's no regulation for "may contain" statements and some people assume it's just companies covering their booties. Our NP told us that the bigger the company the less you have to worry about cross contamination. If it's a small bakery- there's a good chance there could be peanuts and peanut dust in every single thing they make in their tiny back room. If it's a national conglomerate that only makes one kind of cereal in a giant warehouse, less likely for those peanuts to jump ship into your food. It seems like a big risk to take if there are safer alternatives. Online there is all kind of advice, but one thing is clear: milk is the most common top allergen to contaminate other ingredients, especially in chocolate. Which is why every singe chocolate bar I have ever seen has a special warning that that chocolate is made on the same line as other top allergens.

Womp. Womp. No chocolate bars for you, kiddo.

So, to recap, the only way to know what is in the food is to the look at the ingredient list on the box it came from. Simple, right? Get the box, read the ingredients. I try to remember to check all the boxes at the store. And then I try to remember to check them again when I open them to give them to my kid. It’s a lot of checking and I really appreciate when things are bolded.

Times this was a problem? When we went to visit the grandparents' house and grandma had removed all of the snacks and put them in clear containers. Looked great! Like a magazine! Not great? We had no idea what kind of Ritz they were. Normal kind? Butter flavored? Without that box, I’m not giving those crackers to my kid.

Another family member loves to google ingredients to see if they are safe for my kid to eat. I’ve tried to explain that google doesn’t know what ingredients are in the package of Oreos they have, only the package of Oreos knows that… but it’s taken some time to sink in. I think it’s extra hard to remember to check ingredients when you aren’t in a habit of it. When you only feed somebody with food allergies once a month, you don’t have that daily reminder. I guess that’s why FARE suggests having friends/family keep all the boxes of ingredients they use while cooking so that you can double check that what they made is safe. Should be an interesting Thanksgiving this year! Hi, yes, do you have the package of stock you used? Yep and every single can you opened? And every spice you used? Yes. And… corn meal? Flour? Did your turkey have anything in it other turkey? Are you sure you didn't add butter to the vegetables? On second thought, I think we’ll just pack her some food.

All in all, I don’t enjoy looking at ingredient lists. But it is really nice to be able to check the label and know what’s inside. Now, if only there was a way to know for sure what went into restaurant’s food!

Want more info on how to read a food label? FARE

*Soon to be Top 9 in the US! Welcome sesame! Biden signed a law that adds sesame to the required foods to be labeled starting: (checks notes) January 1, 2023?! Well, in a year and half I guess we will talk about the Top 9 allergens in the US.

Cookbook Review: Go Dairy Free

 

Pre-food allergies, almost all of my favorite recipes came from magazines. For years I have been collecting recipes from Cooking Light and Real Simple- making notes on the ones I liked and keeping them in a spiral notebook. But as the food allergens piled on, most of favorite recipes just didn’t quite work anymore. There are some replacements that are easy to make- a recipe calls for a couple of cloves of garlic? Ok. No problem. I’ll leave those out. Trying to make a frittata without eggs? Well, that’s going to take a miracle.

And, searching randomly online for vegan recipes- you just never know what you are going to get.  I haven’t had very much luck with recipes from random blogs from people with no official qualifications (Pot? Yes, hi, it’s me, Kettle.)

So, instead of sadly flipping through my favorite recipes that I can no longer have, or blindly trying recipes online, I went on the lookout for cookbooks that I could use. Cookbooks that presumably have had somebody other than the author test the recipes and they turned out okay. And cookbooks that have recipes that are already okay for my kid’s food allergies. Go Dairy Free by Alisa Fleming was one of the first ones (and one of the best ones!) I’ve gotten. It’s got hundreds of recipes from breakfast to sides to meals to desserts. Best of all, it’s not a healthy vegan book trying to sell you on a lifestyle where you don’t need cheese. It is perfectly aware that cheese IS delicious and unfortunately there are just times when you CAN’T PHYSICALLY eat it. Before the recipes it’s got chapters on just how to start living a dairy free life which I found very helpful. Some the advice?

• Get an ice cream maker. Yep, did that. Feel great about it.
• The longer you go without cheese, the better the alternatives taste. Seriously. That’s true. Also true for pretty much everything else- the longer I go without eating peanut butter, the better that sun butter tastes.
• Which kinds of restaurants to avoid (I see you Italian and all your cheesy, creamy, deliciousness) and things to do to try to make sure the restaurants you do go to are safe if you are allergic to milk

She's also got an entire website with good information if you are trying to ditch dairy.

Okay so are the recipes good?

No milk. No eggs. Still looks like a cake to me!

Yes! I have made all of my birthday cakes from this book for the past year. The first attempt stuck to the pan a lot and wasn’t the prettiest. One of the icing recipes never fluffed up but you know what? They’ve all been delicious. There are these avocado filled enchiladas that when eating them I never once thought “You know what this needs? Cheese.” Talk about magic. The wholesome pillowy pancakes my son eats at least 8 at a time and then has to lay down because he ate too much. Waffles? Yes. Cookies? Yes. Pasta? Yes. Pizza? Ehh…. The one recipe I have made from this book that my wife said maybe let’s not make this again was a pizza with a “cheese sauce” on it. It was weird. We still ate it though!

It's never good when you show somebody a photo of what you baked and they say ".... what is that?"

Is it good for people with food allergies?

Well, obviously it’s good for people who are allergic to dairy milk. But it also has a handy index with what allergens are in each recipe and it has easy swaps on most recipes if you are vegan or avoiding certain foods. A lot of the cheese alternatives use nuts so I can’t say if the cashew cheese wheel or the pine nut parma sprinkles are good… but the tofu ricotta made a delicious lasagna.

All in all, if you are forced to go dairy free, then this is the book for you.