FOOD

*To make the search easier, press CTRL+F and punch in the key word, like "rennet-free" , or "Chocolate" and hit Enter

** To find corn-free and soy-free ingredients for food and personal  care go to:THIS LIST
*** To discuss optional ingredients and get community support go to: DISCUSSIONS  

Corn-free Soy-free Food

 I realized I was allergic only when I started getting swollen from corn - and-soy containing foods. But swelling started kinda "late". I guess, I'm lucky it finally did. A few years before that i started almost passing out with dizziness, heart palpitations and stomach contractions any time i ate out or ate something pre-made from the store. I was literally almost dying, but no doctors ever thought of allergy as a cause. Even though my heart & stomach going out of whack was documented and observed, i was getting no answers why it was happening.. Nowadays my advice is: if feeling weird, watch your environment and consider being allergic and/or intolerant to something.
  
It's important - the environment and foods can contain corn and soy ingredients and derivatives, without getting YOU informed about it; often companies are surprised to find out themselves, that the stuff they put in their product is actually made of corn, or soy, like citric acid, distilled vinegar , ethyl alcohol , lecithin, and many OTHERS   and EVEN MORE. 

You can ask me how is CITRIC acid corn? Or how is vitamin E soy? Well, through a Chemical Lab.  
This  does not in any way make the resulting product more environmentally friendly or healthy, since the corn and soy used are GMO, and the hurdles  standing in a way of  making them be something they are naturally not, are not possible to conquer without a bunch of chemical reactions and a lot of processing.  To make the long story short, MY life is endangered by their mere existence.

  

Well, in the beginning of my "allergy trip" I was very very upset that store bought chocolate was neither CORN nor SOY  free.  I searched. I tried.  

My loved ones happily gobbled up my sweet-gooey-dripping fiascoes.  I could not take it.  I wanted a solid piece of chocolate! A bar! A brick! A mountain of it! 

After a year or so of searching and trying, I finally uncovered the secret of the home-made solid chocolate. Have happily shared it over years on and off-line, but it's time to bring it home.  Here it is, with photos of the final product in "Bitter" and "White" varieties:

Home-made CHOCOLATE

Allergy sufferers, please ONLY use ingredients that are well-researched and confirmed safe for you personally. 

Get good quality cocoa butter, like  THIS food grade raw organic cacao/cocoa butter and cacao powder like THIS raw organic cocoa powder.

Use a boiling water bath to melt the butter in, then mix in enough cocoa powder to thicken the liquid a bit, add sweetener of your choice, I am currently trialing one of THESE organic sugars maybe powdered milk, if you want white chocolate, substitute cacao powder with powdered milk altogether - taste it and adjust any flavoring - and here the magic starts:

Heat the mixture up in the boiling water bath till it gets more liquid-y (about 5 min) and cool it off while stirring till it thickens somewhat (about 5-7 min). Repeat at least 3-4 times; after the last heating pour it in a non-stick container (or any container laid with non-stick foil) and put it in the freezer until completely solid (an hour maybe).

You can take it out of the freezer later and just keep is in the frigde. Depending on the air temperature you can keep it out of the fridge. P.S.: The more times you change the mixtures' temperature and the better you stir it when cooling, the more solid chocolate bar comes out of it. Practice makes perfect!

  P.S.: adding a safe coconut butter/oil similar to THIS  raw organic coconut oil can cut your costs.  Making chocolate with ONLY coconut oil can work, but eat it out of the freezer - otherwise it will melt all over you : ))). 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next  Challenge I faced was corn and soy free cheese.  There was NO cheese that I could buy and have no allergic reaction to.  Thankfully,  i could get a hold of non-ultra-pasteurized organic milk.  And some cheese making literature.  And some ingredients available online.  And i did manage to make the cheese successfully using a 17 quart pot at a tiny kitchenette that i have.   The simplest to make is 

Home-made MOZZARELLA CHEESE

Allergy sufferers, please ONLY use ingredients that are well-researched and confirmed safe for you personally. 

I don't like complicating things.  Make it simple. Pour the safe-for-you, additive-free, non-ultra pasteurized milk into your pot. These large stainless steel pots are perfect for the task. make it barely warmish via low heat setting and constant mixing, add some lemon juice - around half a lemon per 17 quarts of milk  - (avoid citric acid, since it's made of corn).  Add some animal RENNET  bought in dry form/pills (vegetable and/or liquid rennet contains a lot of corn), pre-hydrated in non-chlorine water.  Let it rest for 1,5 hours. You can also Try these animal Rennets. Cut up the solidified milk inside the pot and start heating up the pot slowly. Mix it gently. When little pieces of cheese become nice and solid - drain the liquid through the cheese cloth and squish the curds together; let cool off and put in the freezer for storage. Or melt it over something.  Or start eating.  As far as I'm concerned - that's it.  I usually don't  "stretch" it, to save time and effort.  But when I do, I get this:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next one I tried to make, was the

 Home-made SWISS CHEESE

Allergy sufferers, please ONLY use ingredients that are well-researched and confirmed safe for you personally. 

It's a bit more involved, but still a lot of fun!  First of all, you need a safe milk that does not give you a reaction, as usual.  Very sensitive people would do best if they establish a relationship with a corn-free, soy-free local farmer.

  Then, you need to purchase reculturable "cheese culture", since the direct-set type  is too tough to handle:they come in small packages, filled with corn-derived powders, so I had to spread the needed amount on a flat surface, look closely and "fish out" the tiny irregular lumps of bacteria from the calibrated filler powder.  

Try Cheese Cultures like these ones

You might want to get even more precautious, that's why I recomment to buy "re-cultivable" bacteria; separate them from fillers and add them to a quart of your safe milk to make a starter "yogurt" from them . When your yogurt is nice and thick - use a  tablespoon per gallon to culture your milk for the cheese. Keep the rest in the freezer for  the next cheese making session, use  ice cube trays or  silicone chocolate  molds to conveniently pre- dose you future starter, and  seal cubes in a ziplock baggie.  It does not hurt to make multiple re-cultivation before you put it in your cheese, for the purest result..  it is not as hard as it sounds, when there's no curiosity rushing you along..

The two types of cultures you need for the Swiss are: a  Thermophilic
 culture, like s. thermophilus, d.s.lactis, helveticus  and an additional culture that makes holes, like Proprionibacteria freudenreichii subsp. shermanii (which will not work without the main culture).   

Disinfect your pots, tools, cheese-cloth, kitchen, yourself..

These large stainless steel pots are perfect for the task.

 Cheese cloth of THIS kind is necessary, too.

One or more large colanders like THESE are invaluable

 Add a LARGE slotted spoon like this one into the mix.

You are ready for action.

Sour your milk with  the Thermophilic culture - either already in your cheese-making pot, or in original milk containers (make sure neither is made out of aluminum).  For that add a tbsp of your home-made starter per gallon of milk and let sit 8-10 hours depending on your room temperature (the colder - the longer).  

Warm your milk on a low heat set, on  the stove to about 110 degrees F, constantly stirring it. I do not have a thermometer, so i just feel the pot with my hand - as soon as it feels slightly warm - shut the heat off and add pre-hydrated with chlorine-free water animal rennet, mix, let sit for 1.5 hours.   
You can also  Try these animal Rennets

Cut the solidified cheese mass into squares inside the pot and start heating it slowly on a low-heat setting, monitoring how the squares get more solid from the heat; when the pot starts feeling more on the hot side but you can still keep your hand on it, it's time to start slowly mixing the squares, turning them into curds.  Dont' overheat the pot, if you can't take to touch it, then the bacteria can't take it either, so periodically shut the heat off not to actually cook the cheese. 

When the curds get more on the solid side, it's time to dump the liquid.  I put a strainer covered by a double sheet of cheese cloth into the sink to catch the curds that fall out and just slowly pour the liquid out of the pot.  It does not have to be perfect, just pour out as much as you can without causing a cheese-curd avalanche. 

Put the runaway cheese curds back into the pot, where you are probably gonna have a slushy mix of liquid and cheese.  Now it's time for the Propionic culture - I haven't found a re-culturable version of it, but a lot of producers mix it with lactose, which I am okay with, plus, good old separation could work, too.  They say, add 1/8 tsp per up to 4 gallons of milk, but since we are not putting it in milk, we are just going to remember, how much milk we started with, and then add 1/3 tsp per 2 gallons of former milk, mix and let sit covered for  an hour.  

Next, mix the contents of the pot once again and start taking out the curds with a slotted anything  and putting them into your large strainer covered with a large doubled sheet of cheese cloth. Wring the transferred cheese  out inside the cheese cloth and let drain for a couple of hours (keep using the strainer as a cheese-shaping mold at all times).  

Then put a plate over it to compress and some weight on top of it. Let drain for 8-12 hours. Take out of the cheese cloth and brush with a corn-and soy free vinegar-salt-water brine.  Wrap loosely into the cheese cloth and let sit for half a day.  Repeat the brining a few times.

  When the surface feels dry, melt some pure beeswax in a water bath (or whichever cheesewax you're okay with, you can Try THESE cheese waxes) and paint your cute little wheel all around a few times, using a natural broad brush like THIS, and covering all the lumps bumps and cavities with a nice coat of wax.  Your cheese has to be sealed in wax.  

Let it sit at room temp for a week, flipping it once a day. then put in the fridge, bottom preferably, for 1.5 months at least! Don't forget to flip it daily, or at least every other day.  

Cut it and eat it!!!


We couldn't wait long with the cheese on the photo,  one of my Young Swiss Cheeses:

---------------------------------------------------------------

HOME MADE SOUR CREAM/ YOGURT/ DAIRY-FREE VEGGIE YOGURT

Allergy sufferers, please ONLY use ingredients that are well-researched and confirmed safe for you personally. 

corn free, soy free

I love sour cream, it's delicious.  But to have it corn and soy free, you gotta make your own!  

This recipe also works the same exact way with yogurt cultures, if you prefer to make home made yogurt instead.

EVEN MORE, THIS RECIPE CAN GO DAIRY FREE,  and GRAIN FREE with pureed veggie "soup", raw of cooked INSTEAD!! THE SAME exact WAY!! You can get creative with culturing and fermenting...

The recipe is first gonna be described using traditional sour cream as an example.

To avoid allergic reactions, find a safe milk. Grass-fed milks that have no vitamins added could work, so could a grass-fed half and half with no additives.  The best and the safest is to get it from your local corn-&-soy free farmers.. 

Find safe jars or pots where you want to culture and keep your sour cream.

Then you have to get yourself some sour cream culture.  Try culture like THIS one.Since they come in small packages, filled with corn-derived powders, first you gotta separate tiny irregular lumps of bacteria from the calibrated filler powder by hand.  Then you can make a "safety-cushion" starter  - add your culture to a quart of milk, stir,  and let it sit in warm environment for not more then a day . 

If you're highly concerned about traces of corn in your starter do multiple re-cultivation before you put it in your milk, for the purest result..

When your starter is nice and thick - use a  tablespoon per half-gallon to culture your milk with it for the sour cream. As with the starter culture, stir it and keep it in a warm place.  

 Keep the rest of the starter in the freezer for  the next session, use  ice cube trays or  silicone chocolate  molds to conveniently pre- dose you future starter, and  seal cubes in a Ziploc baggie.  

When your sour cream thickens - it's ready to go!! Creamy tangy deliciousness!!! Keep it in the fridge. It can also be frozen  - the nutritional properties are not gonna change...

AS FOR THE VEGGIE YOGURT/SOUR CREAM:
Make lightly acidified pureed veggie soup, you can use raw or cooked soup as your veggie yogurt/sour cream. To acidify, you can add  some lemon juice to the soup to aid the good bacteria. 

 If you choose raw, make sure your veggies are clean/disinfected, so that no unwanted bacteria/fungi from mother nature get in your ferments.

If you only want it as a starter to make krout or any fermented salads later, then I'd use a well cooked soup in order to make a pure culture starter. 
Make your "soup" as thick as milk yogurt would be, let cool  - luke warm is the hottest, add culture - everything  applies the same as with the sour cream recipe.

You can pour the veggie yogurt into ice cubes and freeze it, to make sourkrout of any sour-veggie mixes later,

 You can also put it in the fridge, after it became yogurt, and use as you would a yogurt..  :)

_______________________________________

EGG-FREE LAYERED CAKE

NO CORN, NO SOY

Allergy sufferers, please ONLY use ingredients that are well-researched and confirmed safe for you personally. 

There's a nice layered cake recipe, comes out fluffy and delicious and yet,

 there's no need to put any eggs in the dough . As long as you can make pie-

crust-like flat-bread you can make the cake, that's what i like about it.

. 
Make 9 flatbreads, using your safe flour (Jovial Einkorn cultured at home with either lactobacillus, of even better, a bifidum culture, is the safest for me so far; you can replace safe flour with a safe starch/nut mix for gluten-free breads) poke them with a fork in a few places to avoid bubbling,bake them in the oven on 350 for about 10-12 min, cool them and  build a cake spreading icing on each layer.  

Decorate as you wish, I used dough extras to make crumbles which I sprinkled all over the cake.  

You can use a safe jam or anything spreadable and sweet as icing. 

You can add safe spices to the dough like vanilla bean or anything you like. 

You can add safe crushed nuts to the icing.

I use THIS Cold-Pressed  Organic  Shortening both as shortening for cake layers

 and icing for the cake itself.  

I like my icing made with a mixture of my home-made sour-cream (see the recipe above) , corn-n-soy-free shortening/butter and sugar; 2 cups of sour cream, a cup of sugar and 200 gr. of butter do it for me, but things  can be tweaked according to your taste. 

 For the dough, I never measure anything, making dough by the feel of it, but here's some figures: 320 gr flour, 250 gr shortening, cold water - 125 gr, lemon juice -1tbs, salt 1/4 tsp. 

 Combine cool shaved/crumbled shortening, flour, salt and lemon juice in a mixing bowl and work it with your hands until you get somewhat even crumbly texture, then add water and work the dough with your hands some more. Don't break up all the shortening crumbles, they will add air pockets to your flat breads, making them crispy and fluffy when baked. 
Add a tablespoon of safe homemade yogurt or sour cream, if you want your dough fermented for better digestibility.

To ferment it, don't forget to add a little extra lemon juice so that acidity guards is against yeasts and other fungi, leave it on the counter overnight, or for a full 24 hours, covered to prevent drying; put it in the coldest part of the fridge for not less then 2 hours before baking, so that the softened shortening pieces inside the dough solidify again. 

If you want to skip fermenting, put the dough it in the fridge for a hour, then divide into 9 equal parts, roll them into circles on a well-dusted surface. 

They don't need to be thin; handle with care they're fragile. bake 'em, cool 'em and that's it. 

Comes out crumbly and tasty!

--------------------------------------------------------

GLUTEN-FREE 

Yuca Root and  Sorghum Pancakes (Flat-breads)

Corn-Free, Soy-Free

Allergy sufferers, please ONLY use ingredients that are well-researched and confirmed safe for you personally. 

 After watching how they make Yuca (yucca, casava) root starch by hand,  I decided I could utilize my hard, stringy, but tantalizingly starchy roots that I got online by making Tapioca starch out of them.

I had to simplify though: put the peeled and hand chopped root into a glass jar with a lid, filled the jar (2/3) with water, let it sit for about 20 min interrupted by vigorous shaking (about 4 times). 

Than put the milky liquid through strainer, pouring right into the sorghum flour, like THIS one:. 

Tossed the pieces of the root, added more water to the flour, some oil and salt, mixed everything well and used a ladle to scoop and pour the  dough in a pan with gently heated  raw organic coconut oil:

Then flipped it and fried the other side.  Came out delicious and firm!!

HOMEMADE RENNET-FREE, STARTER FREE CHEESE

Sometimes you just need to make a truly "all natural" additive-free cheese.

It's easy. Just let the unadulterated milk sour and turn thick in a warm room, then proceed with cheese recipe as if you've added rennet and culture. which is basically heat gently, let curds form, drain and compress them into a solid block, or eat them loose, either way tastes good. 

I find rennet not essential in cheesemaking, your cheese will still be cheese, just a rennet-free one.

The longer you let the milk sit,
the better the solids aggregate on the top,



when you see a solid white bubbly monster floating on the top in yellowish clear liquid - that's as close to adding rennet as it's possible;


 if the milk is not overly cultured, and is like silky/thick yogurt - you might not make too much curd.






I heat it when it looks like this. 




The main thing is to find corn-free or your-allergen-free milk - the rest is easy!