Egg Subsitute

I know what you are dealing with - my 2 1/2 year old has the same allergies plus corn, wheat, fish and shellfish. I am very concerned that you have been advised to "watch what happens." Do you have an epi-pen? Are you aware that a reaction does not always present with obvious signs such as hives or swelling? Before considering an egg substitute, you should find out if it is the egg yolk or whites (or even both) that your child is allergic to. Most substitutes are mostly egg whites. If you are desperate to have her eat similarly to her siblings - look for an egg replacement. Long/short - READ Labels/do a search for your favorite fast food nutrition facts - McDonald fries actually contain wheat and milk - and when in doubt it is okay to just say "no, that is not good for you - it can make you very sick."

Tofu is a wonderful eggs substitue! you can but silken, or soft tofu and crumble it up in your hands and put in in skillet and cook exactly as you would a scrambled egg. I would suggest a little salt for flavor. My children love tofu and have eaten it since they were babies, they still (3&1) eat it right out of the package. You can also use tofu for replacing eggs in cake and cookies. you can go to a website www.theppk.com this is a vegan website with alot of great answers and suggestions for things to replace eggs and milk. Good luck I hope this helps!

Hi.
My son is allergic to milk and eggs. He's 3 now but I would give him a little something with milk like a vanilla wafers and watch him...he'd get a little diaherra. So, slowly I introduced other things, cookies, cake, cheese, ice cream even yogurt. It's more of an intolerance now than an allergy. If he has too much cheese or yogurt he'll have diaherra for days so I just watch. But, I've been doing it since he was about 18 months.
He's the most allergic to eggs and is fine with I give him something where egg is not the main ingredient however, I have not given him an egg or egg beaters. I'm too scared. Last time he had hives. I would do it if I knew I was going to the doctor that day though. I believe my allergist once told me that egg beaters were fine but I can't remember. Please let me know what yours says. I would appreciate it!
Good luck.
D.

My son(5yrs) has the same exact allergies diagnosed at 2 after reacting to a peanut butter cracker. Be careful with your substitutes. Tofu is actually soy. There is a product called Egg replacer by EnerG in a powdered form that you can mix and substitute in many recipes. It does not make scrambled eggs but there is a recepie for quiche on the box which I have not yet tried. Also, we use Rice Dream milk, Rice cheese, Rice Dream "ice cream", veggie spiral noodles for egg noodle replacement. You will be suprised how many candies and sauces are made with egg too. We were told to avoid all dairy, nut and soy foods and anything made with them because even if he dooes not have an immediate reaction to a food, it can build up in his system over time and cause an asthma flare up.

Hope this helps. I know how frustrating it can be. Feel free to contact me.

Egg substitute is made with eggs. We are in the same boat with our 3 year old. Egg whites, dairy and nuts. Try to find out if she reacts to the whole egg or just the whites. It made it a little easier for us. Good luck!

There isn't really a good substitute for eggs except tofu, but tofu is soy so you can't have that one either. As previously posted there are tons of egg substitutes for in recipes, but nothing is quite like an egg when you scramble it. It is very common to outgrow an egg allergy, so don't get discouraged, just keep telling her that it would make her feel yucky to have what her sisters are having. (Once my daughter was able to put together the side effects with the food, she understood a lot better) Or if it is too frustrating you might even try cutting out eggs for a while for her sisters. 18 months is so early to understand this, but by two or three she will be telling people what she can and can't have.
I remember the first time my (now 4 year old) daughter was offered a cracker by her grandfather and she looked straight at him and said "Papa I can't have that I'm allergic to wheat."
It will get easier.
Good luck at the Dr.
D.

Between my two sons and my daughter, I have had to deal with all of the allergies that you mentioned. Fortunately, my second son outgrew all of his, and I'm hoping that my 19 month old daughter will too(her allergies are mild, but she's allergic to corn and that is in everything! plus milk, oats, beef, and oranges).

My oldest son who is 8 is the one who is highly allergic to eggs. Since he was 2 1/2 we have avoided eggs all together (cookies, cakes, etc.)hoping that it would help him outgrow the allergy. No luck so far. If you look at the egg substitute products, most of them say they are 99% egg or some other percentage. If she is allergic like my son, I would avoid those for sure.

In the health food section of your grocery store you can find a box of Egg Replacer (ours is in a yellow box) which you can use in baking things, but I haven't found a substitute for scrambled eggs, etc. that doesn't have any egg in it.

I have found some blueberry waffles in the health food section that don't have eggs or milk though, and my son and daughter both love those!

My daughter was also allergic to milk, eggs, soy, peanuts and pineapple. She outgrew her milk allergy at 3, but has since added fish. As for egg, do not use egg substitutes in the supermarket and tofu is not an option for you since I believe it contains soy. Someone already gave you several good options for egg substitutes earlier. They all work very well.

It does get easier. I have found FAAN at www.foodallergy.org to be a wonderful resource. The sell a cookbook: The Food Allegy News Cookbook that has a lot of good recipes...mostly baking ideas. There's also a brand called CherryBrook Farms found at Whole Foods and some at Kroger, that offers mixes for cakes and cookies. I've found the cookies to be good...the cakes were okay. As for birthday cake, here's an easy recipe if you want:

INgredients: 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 cup white sugar, 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 5 tablespoons vegetable oil, 1 tablespoon white vinegar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 cup cold water, 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I found vegan ones at whole foods or the walmart brand semi-sweet are also milk free)

Directions: preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Greese 8x8 pan or use muffin pan with liners. I like this recipe because it holds together for cupcakes, whereas most other egg free recipes do not.
In large bowl, combine flour, salt, sugar, cocoa powder and baking soda. Mix well with FORK. then stir in oil, vinegar, and vanilla extract.
When dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened (I usually add about 1/2 tsp more of oil), pour in cold water and stir until batter is smooth.
Stir in chocolate chips and pour batter in prepared pan or muffin cups.
Bake for 30 - 35 minutes for cake, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on rack.
For cupcakes, I bake for 23-25 minutes. I remove from pan immediately and cool on rack. If you leave them in the pan, they tend to get oily on the bottom.

As for icing, I use Duncan Hines Creamy Homestyle Classic chocolate as it doesn't contain any milk, eggs, soy or nuts.

Another option is to check out www.divvies.com

Good luck!
J.

Dear Friend-
My 7 year old son was diagnosed with soy, egg and peanut allergies at 16mos. old, there is light at the end of the tunnel, most of these the kids grow out of the allergies. He was released from his egg allergy when he was 5 and loves to have eggs for breakfast. Until he was 5 he had never had a real cake for his birthday or any of the goodies that a lot of kids eat for treats. He is very aware of his allergies and is very capable of checking the ingredients himself when at school or at a friends house. I don't know what allergist you will be using, but we have always used Cross Creek Asthma & Allergy in Greenville. They are a wonderful group of doctors and very good with kids.

Anyway, the doctors at CCAA gave me several small lists of "how to read a label" in regards to to above listed foods. On the "egg" list it gave me some great egg substitutions for preparing any recipie that included eggs, although we were never able to use an actual egg substitute (like the liquid ones in the little cartons), these substitutions work very well for making anything that calls for an egg.
For EACH egg, substituteone of the following:
1 tsp. baking powder, 1 tbsp. water, 1 tbsp. vinegar (or)
1 tsp. yeast dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water (or)
1 tbsp. apricot puree (or)
1 1/2 tbsp. water, 1 1/2 tbsp. oil, 1 tsp. baking powder (or)
1 packet plain gelatin, 2 tbsp. warm water (do not mix until you are readt to use this one because it will set up fairly fast)

You can call the Food Allergy Network for lists of your own
1-800-929-4040

I hope this information helps-

I remember reading a lot about allergies when my first was very young. I remember reading that egg yolks were not nearly as allergenic as egg whites, so I tried things like making boiled eggs and giving him just the yolk. French toast with just egg yolk and milk didn't work too well, though.

You didn't mention how you were preparing eggs, and different substitutes work for different things. Like, you can substitute bananas for eggs in *some* baked goods (like brownies). Applesauce is sometimes good - both of those add the moisture and density, but they won't give you the light fluffiness, so for baking you may need to use a little more leavener (baking soda, self-rising flour, etc)

There are a lot of vegan recipe websites that have great ideas for delicious egg substitutes. After reading them, I had another go at making French toast, this time using a bit of white flour and soy milk (of course you'd want to use rice milk - or maybe goat's milk.) That turned out great, and it was even more wonderful when I mixed a little mashed banana with the milk and flour.

Unfortunately, one of the best egg substitutes is tofu, which is a no-go with soy allergies. Here are a few links to egg substitutes from vegan recipe websites - as they say "Just remember to bear in mind the final dish — you can't use banana as a substitute when making a quiche!"

(This is my favorite vegan website, because the women are obsessed with good tasting food. And for each substitute, they tell you "When it works best" - pancakes? oatmeal cookies? quick breads or muffins? Is the recipe for something sweet or savory? Are the eggs used to bind or to make it crispy? )
http://www.theppk.com/veganbaking.html

http://www.vegansociety.com/html/food/catering_and_cooker...

http://www.vegansociety.com/html/food/catering_and_cooker...

Oh, and I have found a company, Cherrybrooke kitchen, that makes packaged cake mixes that are made for kids with all kinds of allergies. I've seen it at Target and Whole Foods. http://www.cherrybrookkitchen.com/

Many egg substitutes (like Egg Beaters) are actually eggs (usually just the whites with some color added). They are lower in fat and calories because the yolk is removed, but just as dangerous for her because the allergenic part is the egg white.