Getting ready for school Christmas parties...make sure to read the ingredients

[gshoemate]

I decided to put together little candy packets for my DD kindergarden class. I go out shopping yesterday all excited to find stuff to put in the packets and I picked up a bag of 3 muskateers and just happened to look at the ingredients. We were given strict orders to never send anything to school with peanuts in it. So what does it say on the bag....the candy was made on the same equiment that peanuts have come into contact with. O.K. so I check Kit Kats and Milky Way...same thing. I ended up getting starburts, tootsie rolls and bubble gum. I also signed up to make cookies and thought I would throw in some holiday brownies....ingredients says the same thing. So please watch out for those peanut allergies.

 

[RUDisney]

You know... you can make brownies from scratch to avoid the factory processing...

 

[gshoemate]

RUDisney....you've never tried my food made from scratch, if I sent something homemade to school with my DD, it would haunt her for the rest of her school years

 

[CamColt]

Thanks for the reminder, and thanks for being understanding.

 

[RUDisney]

That's funny.

I'm a great cook and baker, but the two things that elude me are mashed potatoes (always runny) and brownies.... even the break and bake ones.

That's why I had to tease you about that.

 

[disykat]

Thanks so much for looking out for our kids! It is really wonderful to see parents whose own children aren't allergic caring about those who are!

 

[DD2Disney]

Maybe someone whose loved one has a peanut alergy can answer this question for me...

I was told once that if a pan was used for something with peanuts in it (even just once) that it could never be used for a non-peanut recipe. Because the oils (or whatever) can seep into the pan.

Is this true? So even if I make a Non peanut recipe from scratch I would have to use a new pan??

Just curious.

 

[gshoemate]

Oh no, I just looke at the Toll House chocolate chip cookies that I planned on making and they say the same thing. I'm going to look a little funny if I show up to the Christmas party with Oreos. I might just have to try to do this from scratch after all.....i'll make sure to have the fire department on speed dial....just in case the oven explodes.

 

[Cruisin]

DD2Disney:

I have never heard that about metal baking pans. I would think if they have gone through the dishwasher that they should be okay.

Plastic bowls, utensils etc. are said to soak up the peanut oils and retain them though.

If you wanted to be sure about the pans, what about using parchment paper of waxed paper linings between the pan and whatever you are baking

I have a 20 yr old peanut allergic son so have dealt with it for 20 years. It is becoming very very difficult to find anything out there that does not have the peanut disclaimer on it. Seems like everything may contain traces or is manufactured in a peanut processing plant!!

I would think that most peanut allergic children would not eat the treats made available at school anyway because no matter how careful people are you can never be really sure, especially with home made items.

 

[sue1013]

My daughter is an elementary school teacher frequently I will help her out and make treats for the kids. We always have to be so careful because of the peanut allergies. Neither of my kids had this allergy, so maybe one of you parents whose child does have it can answer a question. When my kids were young it was rare to hear of peanut allergies now it seems my daughter has a few children in her class each year, any idea why it has blossomed? Just curious if any of you have ever asked you physician.

 

[momof2inPA]

My peanut allergic son eats some Pillsbury brownies from the box, not the already mixed ones in the refrigerator section, but I would not let him eat them if they were made in someone else's house. Even if they used a knife with a tiny bit of nut residue on it, that would cause a reaction. The mom of the child in your daughter's class might be a bit more relaxed about this, some parents of allergic kids are.

No one knows why peanut allergies are so prevalent. There are some theories surrounding antibiotics, vaccines, Americans eating more roasted peanuts during pregnancy, and overuse of home cleaning products. There seems to also be a genetic component. No one knows why, the fact is it's a strange phenomenon.

 

[Cruisin]

Regarding higher peanut allergy levels.

Do you think also that years ago people just died and they didn't really figure out what caused it?

Just a thought.

 

[momof2inPA]

Yes, I have thought about that (but don't like to). Natural selection of a sort. Allergic medicine is a young field of study, so there are not always answers and cures. My mom participated in a study for the development of allergy shots when she was young, because her allergies and asthma were so severe her family doctor did not think she would survive childhood. I am hoping for a peanut allergy cure before my kids are ready for college.

 

[Mickey527]

I have a question for those of you who have children with Peanut allergies.
Have you ever gone to WDW and walked by China in Epcot? There is such a strong peanut oil smell that each time I walk by I worry about the people who might have allergies. I did tell Guest Relations that they should look into this and they said they would write my comment down and give it to the proper channels. That means circular file I think.
I remember a few years ago when I took my son's girlfriend with us on vacation. While she was away her best friend went to the store with other friends and bought a snack cake. She made a point of checking th elabel and it did not have peanuts listed. They didn't have the note about being made in the same plant as peanut products. She took one bite and had a severe anaphylactic shock. She died in front of her friends before the ambulance could get to her. It was such a tragedy, I would hate to see someone in WDW have such an occurance. Peggie

 

[RitaZ.]

The schools in our county don't allow homemade pastries/cookies/etc. to be sent to school, only commercially made ones. I think their concern has to do with food borne illness.

That's interesting about the candy, I never even thought of that. I figured that if it didn't contain peanuts that it was safe to buy, then again I'm not familiar with peanut allergies.

 

[Cruisin]

MIckey 527
We have been to WDW many times, but we only took the kids thru Epcot once and didn't notice any problems but that was a lot of years ago.

We were just there in the first week of November, (without my peanut allergic son), in Epcot they were handing out sample packages of peanuts.

That would be a pretty scary thing for a peanut allergic person to come across because then there would be peanut residue everywhere for sure.

momof2
They are working hard on the vaccine right now to lessen the severity of reactions. You have probably heard of it. For those who haven't -- it would not make a person NOT allergic to peanuts, it would just allow them to accidently ingest a larger amount before having a major reaction. Some people react to a miniscule amount.

Here's hoping they manage to get a vaccine ready soon.