But something happened to me recently that made me think about the others. Those who cannot indulge because of a food allergy. The nut allergy has become something so common that there are special sections in some school cafeterias where kids with the allergy have to sit. It has also become an issue, at least in my school district, that prohibits homemade or store bought treats from being brought to school for birthdays or holiday parties. Everything is handled by the food service company to ensure the utmost safety during special occasions.
I remember when my son was in preschool and the teachers passed out a list of recommended treats to be brought in for snack day. We were told to check labels and look for the mention of nuts or items made in a facility that processes nuts. I remember hearing some parents complain about having to take these extra steps. You don't really think about it unless your kid is affected and since my children do not have food allergies, I never really understood what some families go through.
For the past decade or so, my repertoire of homemade Christmas delights has included chocolate covered pretzels. I have always loved them, especially the red bag of Sarris pretzels. Prior to me making them myself, I thought they were time consuming and difficult. But a couple relatives, who made them and passed them out as tasty parting gifts after a holiday visit, convinced me they were easy and I should give it a go. One year I did and I never looked back.
They are nice to give out to teachers, friends, and co-workers. In fact, I started making them for the other students in my kids' dance group. We pass out treat bags each year at our Christmas party and my pretzels always got a compliment or two - some of those came from my own kids who get to enjoy the leftover melted chocolate and broken pieces.
We have a little girl in our group who has a dairy allergy. For the past couple years, she has not been able to eat the pretzels in her bag because of the milk in chocolate. (I was not aware of this until recently.) Her mother is really good about trying to provide treats her daughter can eat whenever there is food involved at any of our practices and gatherings since unlike nuts - milk is in a lot of stuff.
At our November parent meeting, we talked about the items we would be putting in the treat bags. Someone asked if I could make my pretzels again, which I was happy to do, until the mom pointed out that her daughter couldn't eat them. I didn't think it was such a big deal at first. There are other items in the bag. But then I thought about this sweet little girl having to be told, 'No, honey. You cannot eat those,' while watching her other friends, and possibly her sister, chomping like crazy. If I was going to make them I knew I would have to actively check the ingredients and try to find some sort of dairy free chocolate to use. Was there even such a thing?
I made a call to the store where I buy my chocolate and they told me they did not have anything I could use. I went to another store and found a couple baking bars that contained milk powder, wondering if that would be ok but after contacting the mom, I found out they were not. She did provide me with two items I could try - a dark chocolate bar at Aldi and special chocolate chip morsels sold at Giant Eagle.
I was a little apprehensive about using the morsels since they were different from what I normally use. But they melted really well and the only difference I noticed working with it, is that it took a little longer for the chocolate to set. As for the taste, my daughter and my husband cleaned out the left over chocolate bowl and said they could not taste a difference.
The night of our Christmas party I was distracted when Santa came to pass out the presents. It was a bowling party so many of us parents were trying to save face and knock some pins down. But before the party was over, I was caught off guard when the arms of a seven year old suddenly wrapped around my waist. With eyes twinkling and a wide smile she said, " Thank you for the pretzels, Kristen." Her mom explained how happy her daughter was when she asked if she could eat them and was told yes. (Which probably does not happen as often as her parents would like.)
That moment has been replayed so many times in my mind since that night. Her hug made me feel really good. For parents of kids who do not have food allergies we might not always think to ask the right questions when food is being provided to a group. This can cause hurt feelings and force parents to pick up the pieces when their kid is upset because they cannot eat what everyone else is eating.
This experience helped me to realize there are alternative ingredients and recipes out there to consider. A little modification on my part avoided any unintended exclusion. I am thankful to this mom for being a great advocate for her kid and also for bringing awareness to a condition that affects more people than we realize. Chocolate covered pretzels should only cause tears when there aren't any left not because someone cannot eat them.
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| A recent batch of pretzels with dairy free chocolate |
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