This recipe is adapted from "The Kid-Friendly Food Allergy Cookbook" It's a pretty good book to have if you're dealing with multiple allergies or odd-ball issues, such as a garlic allergy, that force you to cook things no normal working parent would consider making from scratch.

Chewy granola bars

1 c. butter

¾ c. brown sugar

½ c. sugar – I cut it to ¼ and might try to eliminate it.

2 tbl corn or maple syrup

4 c. oats or buckwheat flakes

1 c. coconut – I skip this because  Big Guy thinks coconut is worms

1/3 c. chopped nuts – I skip this, too, because we don’t know if Big Guy is allergic

1 c. chocolate chips and/or dried fruit. I’ve been using just chocolate chips lately

1.      Grease a jelly roll pan and line with parchment paper

I'll admit, this one was more my indulgence than anything the kids were actually clamouring for. Though Little Guy ate it -- but he'll eat anything. Big Guy promises me he'll love it the next time I make it -- which is his polite way of saying, "I really hate this."

I was suprised at how easy this was. I love to try new recipes, but always wind up with a case of the "I'm gonna screw this up" heeby jeebies right before it goes in the oven. I followed the directions to the letter, though, and it turned out nicely. Hmmm ... wonder if there's a cause and effect there?

The only variations I made from the original were, of course, the egg substitute and leaving out the pistachios, because we're afraid to try Big Guy on nuts. I bet some added orange peel would be good, though.

I did wind up baking mine about 10 minutes longer than suggested in each round, but I use Air Bake, which are notorious for dragging out everything.

If you want to fancy it up a bit, you can drizzle or dip it in chocolate -- we used white. And in my house, they, of course, had to have sprinkles.

I’ve added a new step today to my monthly Epi-Pen fire drills – practicing on the potential patient.

For about six months now, Big Guy has had his own emergency drill. I’ll catch him unawares and ask, “Can you find the emergency kit?” It’s always in the same place – a small black bag at the back of the kitchen counter, loaded with an Epi-Pen, Benadryl and a medicine dropper – but I want to make sure the location is burned into his brain, in case I’m not home when he needs it.

It never occurred to me until today, though, that Big Guy had never seen my practice session. When I pulled out the Epi-Pen trainer this afternoon, though, was fascinated. At least, he was after I could convince him that it really didn’t have a needle.

So we sat and played with it for about a half hour, me giving him “shots” and him giving me “shots.”

I’m hoping that, as a result, he’ll feel a little more comfortable with the process if the time ever comes that I have to do it for real. I’m sure he won’t be completely comfortable – how could you be when your throat is closing and you’re gasping for breath? – but maybe he’ll freak out a little less.

Hypocrisy warning: I’m about to recommend purchasing a Christmas present, even though my alter ego Cornhusk Christmas is blogging her butt off about the glory of handmade gifts.

For the food-allergic home, though, a good cookbook will save you a ton of time and painful error in trying to feed your family. And  for cooks with loved ones who have been recently diagnosed with allergies, it’s a gift that will be treasured for years to come.

I have two favorites:

“The Kid-Friendly Allergy Cookbook,” currently $10.17 at amazon.com, covers wheat, dairy, nut and egg allergies. It’s also helpful for gluten-free and low-sugar diets.

What I love about this one is its variety. With that many allergies, you can forget about buying anything commercially prepared, so the book covers a lot of  basics you can’t purchase very longer.

This recipe was a dream come true when it showed up three years ago in Kraft’s “Food and Family” magazine. An egg-free cut-out cookie! I feared I’d have to spend weeks of frustrating trial and error to come up with something, but it took only a little tweaking to make this one work. The best part: All  ingredients are normal stuff you can find at any grocery store.

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
3/4 c  (1-1/2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp.  vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour – I used 3 cups if I’m going to roll the dough.
1/2 tsp.  baking soda
1/4 cup colored sugar or festive sprinkles
Beat cream cheese, butter, granulated sugar and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add flour and baking soda; mix well. Cover. Refrigerate 30 min.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness on lightly floured surface. Cut into assorted shapes, using 3-inch cookie cutters. Place, 2 inches apart, on greased baking sheets. Sprinkle with colored sugar.
Bake 10 to 12 min. or until edges begin to brown. Transfer to wire racks; cool completely.

WHAT: Mott's All Natural Fruit Snacks

WHAT: Dye-free and peanut safe.

THE APPEAL: After a year of hopefully reading fruit chew labels, only to find the evil Red 40 or Yellow 5 in all of them, I finally scored with this product. It’s not going to be a staple in their diet, but at least it’s a chance for Big Guy to have what other kids do.

COST: $3.99 for a 24 pack at Target.

KID REVIEW: The guys loved them. But, then, what do they know? They’ve never had a fruit snack before.

MOM REVIEW: Though they’re made with fruit juice and applesauce, don’t be mislead. It’s still candy and still loaded with corn syrup. The claim of “good source of vitamin C” also is pretty bogus. They weigh in at only 10 percent of the recommended daily allowance. And there are 70 calories in a very tiny package. You’d get more vitamin C (136 percent) in a cup of strawberries at a barely half the calories – 43.

I’ve been to restaurants that have gone above and beyond the call to let Big Guy eat, and I’ve been to restaurants that have moved heaven and earth in an attempt that fell a bit short.

But never, in decades of dealing with food allergies, have I been to a restaurant that’s charged me to bring my own food. Or part of it, at least.

The situation: Big Guy’s end-of-season soccer party is Saturday, so I called the pizza place today to see if he was going to be able to eat their food. I had pretty much assumed he wouldn’t – Italian food is a real challenge when you have a garlic allergy. Che Debra is about the only joint I know that regularly serves garlic-free marinara.

So I asked about garlic first, figuring I’d get to egg questions if I got the right answer on the garlic. And of course I didn’t.

I’ll need to bring a pizza for him then, I said.

We don’t allow outside food other than desserts, I was told.