I hope to provide you with some practical help as you seek to live out Christ's command in Galatians 6:2 to care for others by bearing "one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ," in doing something as simple as providing a meal in their time of need. If you would like some encouragement in this, check out this blog post where Lindsey Deitz at the Traditional Cooking School writes about Food as Ministry.
_____________________________
When you need to make a meal for someone who has food allergies, where do you start?
First, pray for direction in planning and preparing the meal.
Then, be sure you know
exactly what they cannot eat. This
is absolutely critical! There are
substitutions for every allergy, but if you do not know what to avoid, it is
impossible to make a safe meal.
There are three ways to go from there.
1. Think about
what you would usually make for a meal.
Are there any substitutions you could make to your recipes (based on the
person’s allergy requirements) that would make it a ‘safe’ meal for them?
2. Alternately,
if you do not have a go-to meal, decide which meal option you are going to go
with:
·
Meat/vegetable/starch
·
Soup/side or bread
·
Casserole style
·
Breakfast style
·
Will you add a dessert
3. There are times when a
restaurant meal will work within the allergen constraints. If you are
unable to prepare a meal yourself, ask about this option. This could include picking up a rotisserie chicken and sides at the grocery store. Then, look at the ingredients for those meals, making allergen-free substitutions where necessary. Keep the meals simple….rely on basic fresh/frozen vegetables and fruit, and fresh herbs for seasonings.
There are now many easy substitutions available at the supermarket for traditional ingredients:
- Gluten Free pasta for regular wheat pasta. (Wegmans brand gluten-free pasta is very good and only $1.29/lb)
- Coconut (or almond, or soy) milk for dairy milk. (I have found that SoDelicious unsweetened coconut milk works best in recipes and does not add a coconut flavor to dishes)
- Cornstarch as a thickener instead of wheat flour for gravies/sauces.
Another very important thing to keep in mind is avoiding cross contamination during
meal prep. The easiest way to do this is
to start with a clean counter (which you should do anyway, right?) and clean
cookware (ex. don't reuse a pasta strainer if you have just made wheat pasta, and the person has a gluten sensitivity). A reasonable effort put into
keeping allergen ingredients away from meal prep will go a long way in keeping
their meal safe.
When providing a meal for someone with food allergies, it is essential
to include a list of ingredients for each item you prepare. For help with this, click here to download a printable template. This will serve as a reference for them to
double check ingredients to see that you have only included ingredients that
are ok for them to eat. This is crucial,
and so appreciated! Using this template, you can provide ingredients and heating/serving instructions for each dish you have provided. The form can be filled out by either opening the form in Adobe and typing your information right onto the form, or by printing the form and filling it out with a pencil or pen. You can also add special notes to the person /family to whom you will be delivering the meal.
Remember that your meal is a blessing.
Those with food allergies know that their diets are a pain for others to
work with, and many bear these burdens alone during a crisis because of that. The effort you put into a ‘safe’ meal is a
blessing beyond measure to the person you are helping. Pray for the
family you a providing a meal to. Their time of need has unique stresses
that someone who does not have allergies simply will not have. By
providing a meal for them, you are providing much more than
just a meal.
May God bless you beyond measure for providing a 'safe' meal.
No comments:
Post a Comment