Top 8 Food Allergy Friendly Treats to Give Out this Halloween

      Are you ready for Halloween?  Whether you are a food allergy mom or not, I'm sure you will agree with me that the next few days will keep us busy.  From costumes to decorations and food, October 31st is exciting for the young and young at heart.

       Even food allergies haven't stopped my kids from having fun.  Yes, we also go Trick or Treating.  With a little twist though.  You can see how we do it here.

       
        Though there are so many candies to choose from, it is quite a challenge to find something that is free of the Top 8 allergens (wheat/gluten, dairy, egg, soy, tree nuts, peanuts, fish and shellfish). I think the last two are easier to avoid. Anyway, here's our family's top pick.
        

       

1. Yum Earth Organics

          This brand has individually wrapped lollipops, candy drops and even gummies. Aside from being free of the top 8 allergens, their products are also do not contain artificial flavors and colors. It's also organic.

2. Dum Dums
             A childhood favorite.  Who knew these are food allergy friendly as well?  If you have a soy allergy, please check out their disclosure. (see the Saf T Pops description below)

3. Enjoy Life Decadent Bars

         These bars are a real treat!  Not only for the kids but for the grown ups as well.  If you're the type who gives the regular size candy bars, these are way better.  

4. Surf Sweets

        Who doesn't like Jelly beans and sour gummies? These are also organic, without corn syrup and vegan.  

5. Saf-T-Pops

            Also from the company that makes Dum Dums, these lollipops have a unique handle that makes it friendly to younger children.  Though it is labelled Top 8 allergen free, the company website declares that  "the product may contain traces amount of soy oil, a processing aid in making candy. The soy oil has been refined, bleached and deodorized, a process that removes the protein that can cause an allergic reaction. But individual sensitivities vary, however, we have chosen to list soy oil."

     

6. Smarties

           Another all time favorite candy that's also food allergy friendly.  Their factory is also free of the top 8 common allergens. Since the company also sells their products to other re-baggers, their website says that "As consumers, we should check the UPC number on the packaging to be sure that the candy we are buying are not at risk for cross contamination.  Specifically, we should look packages with a UPC that starts with "0 11206" to make sure that it was packaged in their manufacturing facility.

7. Tasty Brand Organic Fruit Snacks

         I found a big box of these at Costco.  It's also vegan (doesn't use gelatin) and made without artificial colors and flavors as well. 

8. Home Free Cookies

             Made in a dedicated tree nut, wheat, dairy, egg, peanut and gluten free facility.  While some cookies such as mini vanilla, mini double chocolate, big oatmeal and the new gluten free large chocolate chip are soy free, their other varieties contain soy lecithin.  

         Do you have a favorite food allergy safe candy that did not make it on the list?  Please let me know so that we can check it out.  

Where to find Affordable Gluten Free Flour

      One of the challenges of going gluten free is finding flour substitutes especially for baking. Even before we went gluten free, I bake mostly from scratch.  For me, that method is way affordable and I exactly know what's in it.

       Since baking food allergy friendly can be a hit or miss, I realized that it is way more practical to create my own mix.  Though I still try boxed baking mixes for product reviews, I always have my flour collection accessible.  
       
      If you think I spent a month's supply of grocery shopping to build my collection, you're absolutely wrong.  Today, I'm sharing with you where to find most gluten free flours at tremendously low prices. No shipping costs as well.  

 1. The Asian Stores
          As some of you may have already known, I am of Filipino descent and is a frequent Asian store shopper. Can you just imagine how my face cringed after reading the ingredient list of most GF flour mixes?  Even before I was introduced to the word gluten, I have known most of the flours mentioned below as my grandmother use them all the time.  The weird thing though is that I have known them more by their brand name as that is what my grandma used to call them.  
 
        Most of these gluten free flour costs around $2.00 a bag which is almost half the price of those bought from supermarkets and organic food stores.  Some brands even go on sale!

        There are even some ready made flour mixes for rice cakes, buns and steamed muffins or bread.  Here's a list of what you'll see there:

     - Rice flour

     - Glutenous Rice Flour (also known as Sweet Rice Flour)

     - Corn Flour

     - Potato Flour

     - Potato Starch (yes, it's different from the flour)

     - Cornstarch

     - Tapioca Starch

     - Mung Bean Flour

     - Chestnut Flour

     - Soybean Flour (Though our household can't use it. Soy free remember?)

     - Sesame Flour (Also out for us because of Child#2's allergy)
     - Purple Yam flour (Ube) 

        

2. Indian Food Stores
          Often called "Cash and Carry", these stores not only carry assorted spices and beans in bulk, they also sell protein rich flours.  As a culture, India has the most number of vegetarians and vegans. This means that grains and beans are their primary source of nutrients. My finds here includes:

       - Sorghum flour
       - Millet flour
       - Amaranth flour
       - Chickpea flour
       - Lentil flour
       - Bean flour mix
       - Coconut flour
       - Almond flour  

      So if you're looking for some wheat flour substitute, I suggest check out your local Ethnic stores first.  Don't worry, most of the labels have English translations.  Also, feel free to ask for help from other shoppers.  More often than not, they are more than happy to give you the English translation or which brands are better.  

          

        That's it! My secret is out of the bag. Enjoy shopping.


- Roz