Dairy-Free Creamy Pasta with Spinach and Mushrooms

This recipe was given by Andrea!

Free from: all top allergens depending on ingredients used!

This recipe is one that I created, and it is very adaptable according to your personal tastes and allergies. I admit that unless I am baking I never measure anything, so going through what I usually do and figuring out how much of the ingredients I actually use was interesting. So feel free to add less or more of whatever you want, or substitute the vegetables I use for your favorites instead!

Ingredients:

- Pasta - regular or gluten-free!

- Button mushrooms, sliced

- Broccoli, cut into florets

- ½ yellow or white onion, chopped

- Milk or an alternative (I use soy milk)

- Flour or an alternative flour mixture

- Cornstarch (if you don't have any, you can also use slightly more flour)

- 3 cloves garlic, sliced or minced

- ½ lemon

- Olive oil or alternative

- Salt and pepper

Directions:

Cook pasta according to instructions.

Add olive oil, onion, and mushrooms to a large pan over medium heat. Add salt and pepper. When they are almost cooked, add garlic and spinach.

Mix flour, milk/alternative, salt, and pepper together. Add half to the vegetables once the garlic is almost cooked and stir. Then add the cooked pasta and the other half of the sauce and stir. Remove from heat and add lemon. Enjoy!

Andrea's Bio:

Hi! My name is Andrea and I am 20 years old. I am a junior studying public health at Johns Hopkins and recently studied abroad at King's College London. I am originally from New Hampshire. My allergies include dairy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, kiwi, cumin, and seeds (sesame, chia, and poppy). I really enjoy cooking and baking, including making my own recipes and experimenting with different ingredients. My other hobbies include painting, reading, and spending time with my dog. My brother Adam is 18 years old and is allergic to dairy and eggs.

Molasses Cookies

This recipe was given by Maddie!

Free from: fish, milk, peanut, sesame, shellfish, soy, tree nuts, wheat

Ingredients:

- Brown sugar, packed (¾ cup)

- Milk-free butter or shortening (12 tablespoons)

- Molasses (½ cup)

- 1 large egg

- Gluten-free all-purpose baking mix (2 ½ cups)

- Baking soda (½ teaspoon)

- Ground ginger (1 teaspoon)

- Ground cinnamon (1 teaspoon)

- Ground cloves (¼ teaspoon)

- Granulated sugar (¼ cup)

Instructions:

- Preheat the oven to 325ºF.

- In a large bowl, beat together the brown sugar, butter, molasses, and egg until blended.

- Stir in the baking mix and spices.

- Roll the dough into balls and dip the tops of them in sugar.

- Place the balls (sugar side up) on a baking sheet about 2 inches apart.

- Bake for about 13 - 16 minutes.

Maddie's Bio:

Madeleine (Maddie) Waldie is an 18-year-old high school senior from Sunnyvale, CA. She is a member of FARE’s Teen Advisory Group (TAG), a Black Belt in Tang Soo Do, and lead programmer and drive team member on her school's FRC robotics team. Maddie has worked as a High School Embedded Software Intern at NVIDIA, and as a Math Department Intern at her high school. She loves participating in community outreach that empowers girls to pursue STEM careers and has helped to mentor an FLL team. As an infant, Maddie was diagnosed with a milk allergy. At age three, she was diagnosed with oral allergy syndrome, and allergies to peanuts, tree nuts, and tomatoes. During her journey, she has successfully completed milk desensitization and has seen positive improvements from Sublingual Immunotherapy (SLIT) for her environmental allergies. After multiple life-threatening reactions during her Junior year in high school, she started oral immunotherapy (OIT) in combination with Xolair, which has been a life-changing experience. Next year, as a student at Santa Clara University, Maddie hopes to be an advocate for herself and others, educating about the challenges of living with food allergies, being a change maker in her community, and helping the food allergic to find their voice.

Tofu (Or Chicken) and Veggies Pita

This recipe was given by Andrea!

Free of: top allergens except for soy and wheat, but can be made free of both.

Ingredients:

- ⅓ package tofu or 1 chicken breast

- 2-3 pitas depending on size - can substitute gluten-free pitas/wraps

- ½ cup raw spinach

- ½ cup carrots, sliced

- 1 bell pepper, chopped

- ⅓ onion, diced

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 2-3 tbsp smooth refried beans (optional)

- Sauce (any kind - I have used plum hoisin sauce and soy sauce)

- Salt and pepper

- Extra spices (optional - I use smoked paprika and cayenne)

- Olive oil or alternative

Instructions:

Cook tofu or chicken with oil, salt, and pepper on medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and bell pepper along with more salt, pepper, and optional extra spices. Cook until onions are translucent. Add garlic and sauce, then mix.

Toast pitas. Spread refried beans on top, then cover with spinach. Spoon the tofu/chicken and veggie mixture on top and enjoy!

Note: Picture is without refried beans and bell pepper

Andrea's Bio:

Hi! My name is Andrea and I am 20 years old. I am a junior studying public health at Johns Hopkins and recently studied abroad at King's College London. I am originally from New Hampshire. My allergies include dairy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, kiwi, cumin, and seeds (sesame, chia, and poppy). I really enjoy cooking and baking, including making my own recipes and experimenting with different ingredients. My other hobbies include painting, reading, and spending time with my dog. My brother Adam is 18 years old and is allergic to dairy and eggs.