As a chef for children with food allergies, I am always on the lookout for manufactured products that are simple. Not all families can make everything from scratch and many rely on pre-made products. The simpler the ingredient list, the easier it is for me to decide if the product is safe for the kids that I feed.
A new product that I just found at Costco is Organic Edamame Spaghetti. For ingredients, it says “Organic Edamame (Green Soybeans), Water.
For my soy-allergic kids, this would obviously not be a good choice. For almost everyone else, it rocks!!! With just two ingredients, it is easy to figure out who can have it and who can’t. What I love about this product besides it only having two ingredients, is that it tastes really yummy. It is kid tested – the Walker Girls approved. And, it has the added benefit of having 24 grams of protein for 2 ounces! When I first tried this product, I couldn’t believe how full I felt after eating just one serving. It is also high in fiber.
Here is another great one!
All it has in it is dried bananas!!! These are so delicious. Again, the fact that this product has one ingredient helps me. I can recommend this to almost all my clients. Unless they are allergic to bananas, can’t have that much Potassium, or need products lower in sugar, this rocks it!
I know some would say that you just can’t trust that these products don’t have trace amounts of other ingredients that the FDA does not require be put in the ingredient list. For my clients, I call the companies to ask about cross contamination and trace ingredients to make sure that the items are safe.
If you must use processed food, these types of products are probably the safest manufactured food that you can buy. And for those kids with food allergies, finding products like these is the best way to keep kids safe and satisfied!