Egg allergy is less common than milk allergy, but the allergic threshold is much lower. Sometimes, merely touching or smelling an egg can produce symptoms. This also happens when one is given vaccines for measles, mumps, rubella, and flu, all of which vaccines are made with eggs. Any egg, be it chicken, goose, duck, or turkey, can produce symptoms if you have an egg allergy. The avoidance list also includes eggs in any form, fresh, dried, or powdered, as well as yolk and albumin. Candy is often brushed with egg white for luster, and pies are, too, so that they bake to a golden brown. Coffee and homemade beer, as well as some soups, may be clarified with egg shells. Generally speaking, you should beware of such foods as waffles, cakes, pastries, ice cream, and sherbet (unless made from an egg-free powder), creamy salad dressings and mayonnaise, heavy sauces, bouillon and broths, root beer, Ovaltine and Ovomalt, meat loaf and sausages, noodles, and baking products. Egg-free meals can be prepared in a variety of ways. Ener-G-Foods’ Egg Replacer (formerly Jolly Joan) is one of the most readily available egg substitutes. You can also replace one egg by mixing 2 tablespoons of flour, V2 teaspoon of shortening, Vz teaspoon of baking powder, and 2 tablespoons of liquid. A package of Knox gelatin or a mashed banana can be used as a binder for each missing egg. Not all cake mixes absolutely require eggs. If you wish, you may write to the company making a particular recipe and ask for in­formation. Many so-called egg substitutes available today are not egg-free, as they contain egg whites, the major source of egg allergen for most people. Remember to eat plenty of meat, fish, poultry, liver, cheese, dried beans, or nuts to get the amount of protein and В vitamins usually derived from eggs.

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 27th, 2009 at 10:52 am and is filed under Food Allergy Cooking. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.