This is a very exciting day for me. Not only do I get to tell you about Curtis Sittenfeldโs brand new short story collection โ You Think It, Iโll ย Say It, myย favorite of all the books sheโs written โ it is the day that the real life Curtis Sittenfeld makes a cameo on Dinner: A Love Story. Yes, thatโs right. This blog, this post in fact. In You Think It, Sittenfeld, whose writing we all fell in love with when we read Prep a decade ago, follows a menagerie of female protagonists navigating the most ordinary of circumstances โ running into grown-up high school queen bees, hooking up with Trump supporters, crushing on other kidsโ dads at school.ย Sittenfeldโs characters are my favorite kinds of characters: They are never exceptional, though they are often funny or smart without being pretentious. And they hate people who think theyโre exceptional, believing this to be a serious flaw.ย Sittenfeld is the master of the withering observation, and no one is safe from it here in the best, most entertaining way. Please doย yourself a favor and order her book for yourself today. (And when it arrives, read โA Regular Coupleโ first. Or maybe โGender Studies.โ Or maybe โVolunteers Areย Shining Stars.โ I canโt decide, but whatever you do, savor each one!) Until then, hereโs Sittenfeld chiming in my Top 10 Series with her list of her top, uh, almost ten allergy-friendly foods for kids. Thanks Curtis!
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Did you know that Oreos are vegan? If you did, thereโs a decent chance youโre the parent of a kid with allergies to milk and eggsโฆand youโre delighted that your child can actually enjoy these junky favorites. (That creamy filling is, well, not cream. I believe itโs canola oil and/or palm oil.)
After my second child was diagnosed in 2012 with allergies to milk, eggs, peanuts, and tree nuts, I became a scrupulous reader of ingredients on food labels. I also ended up embracing foods I hadnโt previously been in the habit of eating or even necessarily ever tasted. My daughter can now eat milk and eggs, which has significantly expanded our options for family meals, but Iโll always be grateful to the products and brands that have in the last six years allowed us to enjoy tasty foodโฆ and one another.
SunButter At this point, I eat more SunButter, which is made out of sunflower seeds, than anyone else in my familyโI have it for lunch on a rice cake a few times a week. Itโs easy and delicious and protein-filled, like peanut butter without the peanuts. Iโve even traveled with a 16-ounce jar, so when I learned that SunButter had started selling single-serving cups, I was actively excited (sometimes you have to take your thrills where they come).
Cherrybrook Kitchen Cake Mix and Frosting My daughter has taken her own treat many times to birthday parties, and for years, our go-to was a cupcake my husband would make with this mix and frosting. Together, they make a cupcake look and taste likeโฆa cupcake!
Dum Dums Lollipopsย Dum Dums are made in a facility free of the top eight allergens, a fact they mention on their packaging. Because theyโre portable and donโt get mushed or stale, I usually keep a baggie with four or five in my purse, and if weโre out and about and unexpectedly find ourselves in a situation where other kids are eating treats, I give one (or all four) to my daughter. Dum Dums are also our usual offering for Halloween (I aspire to be the curmudgeon who gives out dental floss, but Iโm not all the way there yet).
Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chipsย My husband had barely baked before our daughterโs allergy diagnosis, and he became a whiz at making pancakes and cookies that didnโt include eggs and milk but did often include these chocolate chips.
Made Good Granola Bars Itโs tough to find granola bars without nuts, but this Canadian brand is like Dum Dums in being produced in a facility free of top allergens. Unlike Dum Dums, Made Well granola bars actually contain a serving of vegetablesโsome almost magical mix of spinach, broccoli, carrots, tomatoes, beets, and mushrooms that does notย affect the barsโ taste. The most popular flavors at our house are apple cinnamon and chocolate chip.
Fritos Okay, I wonโt pretend I was unfamiliar with Fritos prior to 2012. But Fritos and I certainly didnโt used to enjoy the very close relationship we do now. I like that Fritos have just three ingredients (corn, corn oil, and salt), meaning I donโt need to spend 45 minutes checking their label. I like that, unlike nichey granola bars, theyโre sold everywhere so if my daughter needs a snack on the fly, we can grab a pack from a gas station. And I like that theyโre delicious. As a Fritos connoisseur, I prefer the larger Scoops version.
So Delicious Coconut yogurt, Coconut milk, vanilla bars, and vanilla sandwiches : Oh So Delicious, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways! First, I love that these foods contain a satisfying richnessโthe vanilla bars, for example, can proudly go toe to toe with Dove bars. I also love So Deliciousโs labeling so much that I still almost weep upon reading it. Food labels and warnings are not created equal in terms of clarity, and some of the ones that say โMay contain nutsโฆโ feel as if theyโre saying, โYou have allergies? Tough shit! This food might be fine for you, but we donโt want to go to the trouble of making sure.โ By contrast, So Deliciousโs label, which I consider the gold standard, is almost a paragraph long and feels like the voice of a sympathetic and responsible friend: โProduced in a facility that processes other tree nuts and soy. We have a rigorous allergen testing program and apply strict quality control measures in an effort to prevent contamination by undeclared food allergensโฆโ It might be an odd thing to say about a food safety disclaimer, but So Deliciousโs labels are for me a beautiful affirmation of my own outlook about food allergies: Having them is a lot more complicated than not having them. But even with them, life can be, yes, so delicious.
Thank you Curtis!ย And now, a GIVEAWAY.ย (I know, the day just keeps getting better!) Comment below for a chance to win a signed copy of You Think it Iโll Sayย It. There will be TWO winners and the contest ends Thursday, May 3, 2018 at noon ET. Good luck everyone. UPDATE: The winners have been notified. Thanks for playing and congrats Stephanie and Asia!
My favorite Curtis Sittenfeld book is Eligible, a modern day retelling of Pride and Prejudice. Hilarious.
As the parent of a child with type 1 diabetes, we need to know the carbs in each and everything he eats. I share your pain โ I am an expert at food labels and in digging through other peopleโs garbage at parties to find the labels ๐
Huge fan of Fritos, Curtisโs books, and of course DALS recipesโwe made bean burritos last night and Tonyโs Steak is a family favorite. Thanks for this great post
Curtis, Iโve loved your books ever since I read Eligible! Pure brilliance. Thanks for the helpful allergy-free food list too โ you rock!
I looooove a good short story collection- and Iโm excited to finally read this one!
I would love a signed copy of this book so much. Curtis Sittenfeld is my favorite.
And thank you for this list! I have to pack tree-nut free lunches for my son for summer camp and I was running out of ideas. Oreos and Fritos all the way!
Fun post! Iโd love to win a copy of the book. ๐
That information about Fritos has just blown my MIND!
Also blowing my mind โ my favourite food writer and favourite author blogging together.
Fritos FTW! I had no idea the ingredient list was so simpleโฆ
I already finished her book and canโt WAIT to meet her in Boston tomorrow. Her books are such a treat โ so well-observed and sharp.
Just finished reading Eligible, which I loved and looking forward to her book of short stories!
One of my favorite writers with one of my favorite writers!
And now Iโll never look at Fritos the same way โ who knew how simple and special they are?!
I LOVE CURTIS!! Her books are the best.
I read Prep for the first time (I say first time, because Iโll probably read it again) last year after not knowing why I waited so long. This story collection sounds perfect.
Cross Sugarman 4 life
Thanks for the snack list, as a mom with one kid allergic to peanuts and the other allergic to eggs Iโm always interested in seeing what kind of treats are out there for my kids. Oreos and dumdums are a staple in my house! By the way the tiny fudge covered Oreo thin bites are ridiculous, I actually hide them away for myself.
Would love to read the new book too!
Love Curtis Sittenfeld. I first met her at a reading in St Louis where she was living at the time. Our county library has a wonderful authors series and she appears almost every year. I especially love when she writes about locales I can drive by.
I am a big fan of Sittenfeldโs writing, so am excited to read this book. I have a child with a severe peanut allergy. I highly recommend the Trader Joeโs brand of sunflower butter (the one with the sugar in it, because please, who wants the sugar-free) which I think is the best. I never thought I could live without peanut butter but it turns out I can. My son hates it, which is more proof that it is a lot like peanut butter! Thanks for the granola bar recommendation as this has been very tricky. If I can get my non-allergic kid to eat them then Iโll have solved the vegetable problem too. Our trick for avoiding peanuts is to look for European products as they donโt use many peanuts in Europe and so there is little chance that they are a cross-contaminant.
Loved Prep and American Wife!!! Thanks ladies!!
love all of her books! so excited to see her featured here
Always so happy when there is a new Curtis Sittenfeld book to read! Prep, American Wife. Sisterlandโฆall favorites.
Those granola bars sound tasty! And I love her books so so much. Eagerly waiting to read this one!
I love Curtis Sittenfeld and winning a signed book would be amazing!
As the person tasked with organizing birthday celebrations at my office, this Oreo news is revelatory. Once again, Curtis Sittenfeld is changing lives.