It all started with my son.  He had some seasonal allergy and asthma problems when he was a baby.  When it was time for him to give up his plastic covered crib mattress and move into his big boy bed, I looked into some hypoallergenic mattress covers.  Dust mites were on the list of things he was allergic to, so I wanted to find something that could protect him from this allergen.

I looked around at Wal-Mart and Target and found that they had similar mattress covers.  Actually, these were more than a cover.  They were actually a mattress case.  These were …read more

Over the past year or so, I have become quite a fan of vinegar.  I have learned that it cleans very well, is inexpensive, and safe for your family and pets.  Here are some of the ways to clean with vinegar:
1.  Add 1/4 cup vinegar to laundry, along with the usual soap, to brighten colors and make whites sparkle.  Also helps kills athlete’s foot germs on socks.
2.  Soak or simmer stuck-on food in 2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of vinegar.  The food will soften and lift off in a few minutes.
3.  Remove ink stains from clothes by soaking them …read more

I was inspired by Kim’s suggestions for kicking up an ordinary cake, to make this cake from a box of Duncan Hines’ yellow cake mix:

This is a dairy-free Strawberry Jello Cake:
Ingredients:1 box Duncan Hines yellow cake mix (replace eggs with Ener-G egg replacer)2 boxes Jello gelatin (strawberry flavor)2 containers of strawberries

People with dairy allergies find that they are limited in the types of desserts and baked goods that are available to them. So many of the commercial products contain milk and eggs, so that finding a dairy-free cake mix like Duncan Hines is a cause for celebration.
However, making and eating the same type of cake over and over again becomes pretty boring after some time. Thankfully, Kim, one of the readers here at Keeping the Castle, has shared some tips for using cake mixes in creative ways:
* bake your cake using the DH cake mix and a can of …read more

This is a newly discovered favorite treat at our house. I don’t know why I never made this before, it’s so good. I got the recipe right out of a package of Campfire Marshmallows.
Rice Krispie Treats
1/4 cup butter or margarine 1 10 oz bag Marshmallows6 cups crisp rice cereal
Melt margarine or butter in large saucepan over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir constantly until completely melted. Remove from heat. Add crisp rice cereal and stir until well coated. Using a buttered spatula or waxed paper, press mixture evenly into a greased 13″ x 9″ pan. Cut into …read more

I’ve been writing about allergy-free cooking  since the very beginning of this blog. I know that a lot of families also have to deal with the challenges that dairy- and nut-allergies pose. So I’ve put together a list of recipes and tips for cooking without eggs, milk or nuts. The page is “Dairy-Free and Nut-Free Cooking“. There is a link to it on the sidebar on the right. I will continually update this list as posts get written. I hope this will help those of you who have allergies in your family. If you have any tips or favorite recipes, …read more