There is a beautiful new cookbook on the market called Freshalicious by Stacey Fokas. It is chock full of 125 recipes that are seasonal and emphasize living a local lifestyle. All the recipes are completely dairy free, too. Here’s what Stacey writes on her bio on her webite about why dairy free:

“Well, with the birth of our eldest daughter Anastasia, my husband and I were given an unexpected gift: a great food awakening that would stir in me a passion for preparing food using only the fresh, local, in-season, and dairy-free ingredients.

Imagine arriving into this world, a newborn, and you are anaphylactic (seriously allergic) to milk protein. You would no doubt hope that your parents quickly learn how to take care of you and keep you out of harm’s way. This was exactly the situation with my eldest daughter. Not just allergic to all milk ingredients though, Anastasia was also to allergic to eggs, olives, olive oil, tomatoes, lemons and sulphites.

As a parent, I had to undergo a lifestyle change in short order. No more dairy products in my house. No more cheese, no more yoghurt, no more milk. And that was just the start. We stopped eating out at restaurants and started cooking everything at home.”‘

As someone who suffers from food allergies, I am always on the look out for great cookbooks and recipes that my kids will love and I can eat. I was delighted to find Stacey Fokas’ cookbook and her great blog, too!

I love all the fall recipes in her book, especially these yummy Cran-apple Bran Muffins on pg. 354.

Cran-apple bran muffins

Makes 12 medium muffins
Prep time: 5 minutes
Baking time: 35-40 minutes

Ingredients:
Empire apple 1 grated
whole wheat flour 1 cup
all-purpose flour 1 cup
baking powder 1 tsp
baking soda 1 tsp
cinnamon 2 tsp
ginger 1 tsp
allspice 1 tsp
sunflower oil 3/4 cup
brown sugar 3/4 cup
eggs 2
maple extract 1 tsp
apple juice 1 cup
maple syrup 1/4 cup
crushed bran 2 cups
dried cranberries

Tools:
tray(s) for 12 muffins
mixer
2 large bowls

Tips:
Try using grated carrots, pears and zucchini. All will bake up quite nicely using this recipe as a base.

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Start by peeling and grating the apple. Set aside. Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside. In another large bowl, mix the oil, brown sugar and eggs until creamy. Add the remaining liquids gradually into the creamy mixture, alternating with flour mixture. Once this is completely mixed, add the bran and finally the cranberries and grated apple. Pour the mixture right up to the tops of oil sprayed muffin trays. This will give you really nice muffin tops – the crunchiest part that everyone enjoys! Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes. Cool on a wire rack and enjoy!

Thanks to Stacey Fokas for the great lessons in her book on eating, shopping and buying local foods. You will enjoy her stories and her journeys as she searches for the best local products.