Quick, Tasty Tips for Dairy-Free Eating

If you must avoid all dairy products, you can still enjoy extremely tasty dishes that are simple to make. In fact, you may not even miss the dairy at all once you try some of these ideas.

First of all, try not to use dairy substitutes. Fake cheese doesn't taste or cook anything like real cheese, so don't bother. Instead, focus on cooking dishes that can shine without cheese. Also, butter can easily be substituted in a number of dishes. Here are some of our favorite dairy-free ideas:

Roasted Fresh Vegetables -We enjoy roasting our fresh vegetables, including halved brussels sprouts, cauliflour, broccoli and sweet potato wedges, We let them roast in the oven until lightly browned. Before roasting, we coat the vegetables with a bit of extra virgin olive oil to hold in moisture and then add sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste, just before serving. Variations: We add a good bit of cayenne pepper to our roasted vegetables and a friend of ours always adds freshly ground nutmeg to her roasted brussels sprouts.

Pumpkin Pie - We use canned pumpkin pie mix for our pie but substitute soy milk for the canned milk and use a dairy-free crust.

Instant Grits with Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Sea Salt - You really won't miss the butter if you use good quality extra-virgin olive oil and coursely ground sea salt. We microwave individual servings using ramekins. The ramekins keep the grits warm and really keep the olive oil from seeping away from the grits.

Fried Yuca - Pan-fry frozen yuca strips or chunks in a good bit of canola oil until well browned. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder just before serving to make a superior 'french fry'.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes - Roast in microwave for about 5 -6 minutes per potato, poking holes in sweet potato with a fork or knife before cooking. When soft, slice down the center and cover with maple syrup and a sprinkle of cinnamon for a quick, delicious autumn side dish.

How to Manage Dairy Cross-Contaimination in the Kitchen

Believe it or not, dairy cross-contamination in our kitchen was enough to make my son seriously ill. Being that he is allergic to dairy products and we are not, we have always cooked his meals separately. However, he began experiencing serious health issues. Once we suspected that minute amounts of dairy were causing his symptoms, we started analyzing everything he ate in a detailed food diary, keeping track of everything from meal prep to dish-washing procedures. We kept modifying our process until his symptoms disappeared. It is a rigorous process, but it works for us!

• Cook dairy-free meals in separate pots/pans that have never been used to cook dairy. We purchased all new pots/pans, bakeware and spatulas.
• We cook his meal first and wash our hands frequently to minimize contamination during meal prep.
  
• We use disposable (paper) plates and cups to further minimize the chances of cross-contamination
• We have a double sink in our kitchen, so his dishes go in one side and our dishes in the other. Also, we wash his dishes with a paper towel (even dedicated sponges were problematic for us).
• We clean countertops and eating surfaces immediately after use using kitchen cleaner and paper towels.
  
• Of course, we also avoid all processed foods due to the likelihood that most of that stuff is processed on shared equipment.
• We purchase specially marked 'dairy-free' treats or snack foods from our local natural foods store. Arrowhead Mills makes a great brownie mix and Enjoy Life makes delicious chocolate chips.
• We purchase only minimally processed meats as our pediatrician noted that meat is sometimes treated with lactic acid as a preservative, a component in dairy products.