Cooking Allergen free Part I: Introducing Alice Sherwood

Q: What have been your biggest surprises in creating allergen-free foods?

My biggest surprise was the number of international cuisines that offer easy solutions for various allergies. Chinese and South East Asian are almost completely dairy-free. Mexican (Tex-Mex) is inspirational for celiacs, being rice and corn-based. Japanese food offers great scope for the ‘Big Four' (gluten/dairy/egg/nuts) food allergy sufferers, though it's much less useful for fish or soy allergic people. Healthy Mediterranean grills, vegetables, antipasti and salads offer dishes for all. Even North African food became entirely doable once I realized that quinoa was a great gluten-free substitute for couscous.

Broadening food horizons is an excellent antidote to food allergies. The use of substitutes has actually been a revelation as I found that I often preferred the adaptation to the original. Deliciously crumbly, fruity millet flapjacks (gluten-free) are now my favorite. My children love rice and soymilk alternatives.

My most surprising discovery has been that potato flour is a fantastic substitute for eggs. I use it, mixed with water, to bind cakes, biscuits, pastry and even meatloaf.

I use it in this recipe for a fluffy, eggless quiche with egg-free pie shell:

Bacon & onion quiche

Nut and egg free

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Serves 6

1 quantity of nut- and egg-free Piecrust pastry (see below)

1 tbsp flavorless nut-free oil

2 onions, chopped

6 slices bacon, rind removed and diced

6 tbsp potato flour

1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum

1 scant cup water

1 1/3 cups light cream

1 tbsp English or Dijon mustard

1 cup grated hard cheese, e.g. cheddar

2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

1 tbsp chopped fresh sage

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F.

2. Roll out the pastry and use to line a 10 inch flan dish. Place on a baking sheet. ***** the base the base with a fork and fill with crumpled foil or waxed paper and baking beans. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove the foil or paper and beans and bake for about 5 minutes, until lightly golden and dried out. Remove from the oven. Reduce the temperatures to 375 F.

3. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the onion for 2 minutes, stirring, until translucent. Add the bacon and continue to fry for another 2 minutes. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and reserve.

4. Whisk potato flour, xanthan gum and water in a bowl with an electric beater utnil thick and white and the mixture stands in soft peaks. Whisk in the cream and the mustard. Beat together with half the cheese, the herbs, and salt and pepper to taste.

5. Transfer the bacon and onion mixture to the flan case and spread out. Spoon over the egg and cream mixture. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes until bubbling, set and turning pale golden. Serve warm or cold.

Courtesy of DK Publishing "Allergy-Free Cookbook"