Happy ‘Allergy Free’ Birthday
“Happy Birthday to you!” Usually those words make you elated with a feeling of happiness and joy. Usually they are accompanied by fun frivolity and of course a cake. But prior to my sons 8th birthday those words also made me think…..hmmm how many kids on the list will have an allergy or food intolerance (something that my son doesn’t have) that I will need to be aware of.
So two weeks prior I sent out the invitations with my son to school and awaited the RSVPs. The school he goes to has signs everywhere about being nut free, a no nut zone and don’t send nuts to school (I see the irony in that…. do you?). No nuts was easy, although it may mean I can’t have one of my favourite party treats – Peanut M & Ms – I knew I could deal with producing enough party favourites to easily avoid nuts. And therefore avoid the severity that can occur with this particular allergy.
But what about the other allergies and intolerances that seem to be plaguing our children currently? If someone is intolerant do we still need to be so vigilant? I thought so, as then I didn’t want to have kids feeling ill or unhappy after the party. I thought it was best to start googling for tips to hold an allergy free birthday party. Alongside also researching a Lego Party – which I may add was a hit for an 8 year old boys party. One of the tips on googles list was that you, as the party host, should ask each participant if they have an allergy and what type – well I had already sent the invites out and also I ‘personally’ feel , if your child has an allergy YOU should make it known to the host. Another tip was that if your child has an allergy, was to send them to a party with their own goodie bag so they can eat their own treats.
I started receiving RSVPs from mums and no mention of allergies or intolerances however my son was mentioning what the kids were saying – and according to them there was at least one gluten intolerance and no additives or artificial colours. OK, I thought I can deal with that. So I made a Gluten Free cake (recipe coming soon) in the shape of Lego. Tips below and researched how to address the no artifical colours. I came across a brand called Hopper, it is Australian and available at most health stores. The colours are based on foods, eg Red is based on Beetroot. The colours are a little paler than the ‘off the supermarket shelf’ kind, but workable. I could manage a red, green and yellow for my Lego cake. Natural Confectionary do not have additives and you can get a Schwepps Lemonade without additives too. Or have a yummy simple juice with Sparkling Mineral water or even a few drops of the natural food colouring.
Making most food from scratch was both enjoyable and beneficial for the party, as then I knew if I had any questions about what ingredients were in the food I could easily answer them. Alas, I had no questions as the party was pretty much allergy free from the kids point of view.
Vicki’s top tips for an allergy free birthday party
- Offer a Gluten Free cake if you don’t have the recipe (and we will be SHARING one with you soon) this way all the kids can enjoy the key part of any party
- Offer a few other gluten free treats – if you can’t find any recipes there are a number of ready to bake/cook products you can purchase such as Basco or Hoppers
- Keep the party nut free – easy!
- Wipe over any chairs or tables etc that you are using prior to the party, just to make sure any residue (namely from peanuts) has been removed
- Include on your invite a small note querying about allergies to be noted to you when they RSVP
- If your child has an allergy and is invited let the host parent know, so they are aware and be prepared to send along a goodie bag if need be
- Ask for a contact phone number of the parents in case of an emergency.
- Talk to your own child about the importance of not sharing food before any little visitors arrive.
- Try not to make the child feel special or different, but instead create activities that allows them to join in.
If you have any suggestions you would like to SHARE with us, please let us know below.
Happy cooking
Vicki
