How to be an Allergy Goddess
How many of you know a loved one with peanut allergies? Have no fear; I have created a new dessert bar that tastes like peanut butter and chocolate but sans the nuts. By using the magic ingredient: sunflower butter, the kids or the kid in you can indulge.
I was browsing through one of my favorite cookbooks, “How To Be A Domestic Goddess” and altered Nigella Lawson’s Chocolate Peanut Butter bar recipe. I hope to help you out so much that you nickname your Denver Cooking Examiner “The Allergy Goddess”.
Sunflower butter also offers a great source of protein with no trans fats and helps to reduce the risk of heart disease so enjoy!
Peanut Allergy Chocolate Bars:
1 cup of powdered sugar 10X
¼ cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup unsalted butter
¾ cup sunflower butter
Frosting:
12 oz. milk chocolate chips
1 tbs. unsalted butter
Grease a 9-inch square pan. Stir all of the ingredients above together with a spoon or mixer. Press the sand-like mixture into the pan and press to make an even surface.
Next, melt the chocolate and butter on medium in the microwave for one to two minutes. Stir until smooth and immediately pour over base. Place the pan in the refrigerator to set. When chocolate is firm, cut into squares.
Comments
Thanks so much for addressing food allergies, Rachel. Food allergy is an important issue to the National Peanut Board which is actually the only commodity board that funds food allergy research -- $6 million since 2000.
Since you're offering alternatives to your readers who may have an allergy to peanuts, I wanted to share some important health and safety information that you or your readers may not be aware of.
Unfortunately, if someone has a peanut allergy they may also be allergic to other nuts, seeds or legumes.
Specific to your recipe that suggests using sunflower seed butter as a safe alternative to peanut butter, studies have suggested that there is a chance of cross-reactivity for peanuts and sunflower seeds. One study found that 9.5% of people who were allergic peanuts were also allergic to sunflower seeds. You can read about that study on the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology's website ("Sunflower Seed Food Allergy as a Co-allergy With Peanut").
We're all concerned about the health and safety of ourselves and others, especially when comes to food allergy issues.
For more information, please visit nationalpeanutboard.org.
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