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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to ask what you would feed a toddler on this restricted diet?

83 replies

Callistone · 12/06/2019 13:20

2.5yo DS is already almost entirely milk and egg free anyway due to intolerances - he can handle them baked in products but not on their own.

We've now been told we need to go soy and wheat (not gluten, full wheat) free for a few weeks before slowly reintroducing them.

If this was an adult I'd be less stressed, but a toddler who is already in the throws of usual toddler food fun?

That's a month without many of his favourite foods and regular staples - no bread products, no pasta, no breaded fish or meat, no crackers or similar, none of the soy replacements.

I can think of meals, obviously, there is meat and rice and potatoes but I suspect they mean exclude all the other wheats like couscous, barley etc, and fruit and veg ("but not too much fruit", said the consultant helpfully...) but it's such a radical change from for a toddler who is currently not a fan of anything that resembles a meal. Plus no eggs or cheese anyway. It's so repetitive, for three meals a day, plus snacks, when half the replacements I can think of - hummus, rice noodles, chickpea and lentil curries etc - are things he is not too fond of anyway.

Any suggestions or advice gratefully received!!!

OP posts:
DXBMermaid · 12/06/2019 15:04

I would contact a dieticien/nutricionist. They should be able to help you put a sort of week menu together.

Sweak · 12/06/2019 15:13

My eldest is I tolerant to egg and dairy. His ezcema was out of control when he was about 9 or 10 months so we cut wheat/gluten/soy out too.

He's just dairy and egg free for now

It's not as hard as it sounds because the free from section in supermarkets is great. Free from pasta, in particular is a lifesaver. Rice is good. Free from bread, etc.

Get a copy of the baby and toddler allergy cook book. Also there are loads of ideas for allergy and fussy (you said he won't eat much but chicken nuggets) on Instagram.

I would take the approach of adapting what you Normally eat, and get the whole family on it for meals to save time

WineIsMyCarb · 12/06/2019 15:26

Homemade shepherds pie (no milk in mash, check stock cube for wheat). Use cornflower as thickener.

Fish and chips. Shallow fry white fish (Aldi does frozen bass fish fillers whch are cheap and yum). Potato sliced into fat chips, drizzle with oil and a bit of garlic if you like, oven bake. Frozen peas microwaved in a mug.

Crumpets with lard or dripping or similar, and honey. Served with ham and fruit (weird 'after nursery' tea in this house)

'Big ham'. Gammon joint or similar cooked. Serve warm with mash and veg for a proper meal, make into wraps using those corn tortillas. Also serve as a 'salad' (as in cold, not as 'diet food'!). Goes nicely with jacket potato etc.

Flapjack made with oats, honey, stem ginger, oil.

Rice noodles, white fish, sweet and sour sauce (check sauce for wheat/gluten).

Hot pot / casserole / stew depending on where you live in the country!

It might be easier than you think if you focus on what children in Uk and Far East ate before food became international / globalised .

ExCwmbranDweller · 12/06/2019 22:16

I've been thinking all day and can't come up with any amazing menus. We just lived on very traditional 'meat and two veg' meals, like we were back in the 70's Grin. I got very good at reading a label and travelling to places that had lots of hippies because back then there weren't 'free from' sections in supermarkets so you needed 'alternative' food shops! Good plain food, lots of home made potato wedges etc. I'd not really cooked a lot before (was young and very career driven before children) and it got me into cooking from scratch which was actually a good thing in the long run.

Ha just had a memory flood back and checked with the online ingredients list and McCain potato smiles look like they come in within you remit, we got through a lot of those! Also bad mother McDonalds was well ahead of the curve back then with having a great flip book of all the ingredients and allergen risks which they'd let me look at, then would happily cook him just a burger patty with extra pickles (still loves them!) and fries which were all ok.

Always around if you want to chat, it wasn't the most fun as I remember, once I'd got it sorted and he stopped screaming all the time it was so worth it though.

cestlavielife · 12/06/2019 22:40

Loads of free from bread pasta pizza fish fingers etc .
All the main supermarkets. gluten free means wheat free .
But if medically ordered ask to see dietician.
Just go thru Sainsbury free from or Tesco free from .
Coeliac UK website.

cestlavielife · 12/06/2019 22:42

Birds eye potato waffles
Some oven chips .
Nandos chicken !

If you look up gluten free options you can check for soy etc

cestlavielife · 12/06/2019 22:43

Try the different breads to see which he likes
Schar is good

StellarLunar · 12/06/2019 22:48

B: porridge and banana, raisins, grated apple (if you have time!)
L: we usually have scrambled eggs. That's out for you. Pancakes? Nut butter on rice cakes? Turkey slices, olives,
D: meat (lamb /beef/chicken /duck /fish) with rice /pot /sweet potato mash or wedges and green veg
Snacks :fruit, rice cakes, homemade biscuits, nut butter, Ella's pouches if the budget allows

doxxed · 12/06/2019 22:53

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ for privacy reasons.

Pjsandbaileys · 12/06/2019 22:59

Cornflakes are wheatfree what about chicken nuggets made with them as a coating. Perhaps the coconut yogurt that was vilified for being calorie laden on how to eat well for less would keep his calorie count up if you want him to gain some weight?

PatoPotato · 12/06/2019 23:05

I just wanted to mention that the HIPP trays I pasted have milk cooked in them so I'm not sure if that falls under the "baked" exception. You could try to make your own versions of the same meals and exclude the allergens.

stucknoue · 12/06/2019 23:13

For snacks rice cakes, if you are up for baking you can buy rice flour, but to make chapattis/flat breads you can use chickpea (gram) flour, and they are super quick, just a few mins. There's "milks" that are dairy and soy free. Sorbet (check first) I think is ok. Some sausages may be ok, they are certainly gluten free often now

Ruralretreating · 12/06/2019 23:14

My DS, 3 years old, has wheat, egg, milk and soy allergies. I find replacements a lot easier now than I did 3 years ago when he was first diagnosed. BFree brand is great (Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Waitrose) do it, especially the sweet potato bread and wraps which sound grim but are pretty good. He ate Violife vegan cheese in that bread for lunch today. They also do pittas so those with hummus, carrots, cucumber are a good option. Covent Garden Roast Tomato soup and Bacon and Lentil soup are tasty. Tesco do a vegan sweet corn fritter (I can’t remember brand) which is good finger food. Tesco’s free-from range is great - including their frozen stuff. They even do a pizza (Katie’s is the brand) that’s reasonable and fairly tasty. BFree also do pizza based you can top yourself. They do beef, chicken and veg gravy granules. Waitrose carry a brand of hot cross buns that’s suitable, useful for breakfasts or snacks. Barilla gluten-free pasta is the tastiest I’ve found. Honestly, I could go on forever - I have a replacement for almost anything! I was breastfeeding for ages so had to follow the same diet and was keen to maximise taste!

Ruralretreating · 12/06/2019 23:17

I meant - he ate the vegan cheese melted on that bread today i.e. cheese on toast. He also likes pate on toast or bread. Tesco do one in their normal range that works - coarse farmhouse one possibly?

HoneysuckIejasmine · 12/06/2019 23:28

DS has all four of those allergies too. He's 20 months so also picky.

Tesco free from fish fingers (fresh aisle) and chicken goujons (freezer) are both fine. Tesco and Asda both do a suitable bread own brand. The one in the odd vacuum pack, not the loaf. Genius brand pitta bread is good (but all the other genius products have egg in them), bfree is fine too but tastes rank. Asda free from pittas are fine too. Morrisons do great bourbons, jammy Dodgers, Oreos and custard creams.

Koko yogurt, and coconut collective is great but really pricey. Corn thins are fab, most houmous is fine. Asda do a vegan pea, spinach and mint dip too. Oh, and Morrisons own brand free from falafel, and they do a gluten free vegan pizza, as do Tesco but the Morrisons one is better.

Honestly, there's loads out there. Meridian do curry sauces and pataks curry pastes (tikka and korma at least) are free from too. DS adores mango chutney too 😆

Any particular favourite meals if his we can help you adapt?

LauraPalmersBodybag · 12/06/2019 23:31

Polenta chips - I usually flavour them with low salt stock and some cheese, maybe you can find a vegan cheese to do the job? I’ve not met a toddler that doesn’t wolf them down.

Peachsummer · 12/06/2019 23:36

no bread products, no pasta, no breaded fish or meat, no crackers or similar
You can get wheat free alternatives for all of these. Try shopping on the Tesco website. They have filters that let you exclude foods containing specific allergens. In my experience other supermarket websites don’t have these sort of filters and it makes your life so much easier.

Hellobell0 · 12/06/2019 23:47

I think popchips (crisps) are wheat free. They are definitely gluten and soy free

Popcorn always good for an alternative snack

You can get quinoa pasta/ spinach pasta etc..all looks like normal pasta my husband has no idea he hasn't eaten real pasta for a year Grin

Supermarkets also have things like butternut waffles and smiley faces. The novelty may encourage them being eaten?

Thegoodandbadlife · 12/06/2019 23:48

Can you try the lentil or spinach pastas and make a homemade sauce? Or vegetable spaghetti? Also homemade burgers and meatballs I find can be made without eggs or breadcrumbs with nice and herbs and then oven bake. Sausages I believe you can get gluten free and probably wheat free too which might help. Also have a look at slimming word chips. Literally par boil the peeled and chopped potatoes and then oven bake with some fry light.

Peachsummer · 12/06/2019 23:54

You really don’t need to make anything from scratch. McCain do gf oven chips or you can buy plain own brand frozen chips. Birds Eye do gf fish fingers. Loads of sausages and meatballs and burgers are already gf, you certainly don’t need to make them yourself. All Seabrooks crisps are gf and so are things like Pom bears.

patsycrime · 13/06/2019 06:03

The Food maestro app is very good. It's developed by kings college London & Allergy uk. You can add what the diet needs to exclude, your sons age & it will bring up products available.

Good luck!

HermioneMakepeace · 13/06/2019 06:06

Where I live you can buy pasta made from chickpeas. Maybe have a look for that? It tastes like normal pasta. Happy to send you some if you can’t fine it.

DontBiteTheBoobThatFeedsYou · 13/06/2019 06:19

There's LOADS he can have.

In fact, he can have everything he had before but just a Free From version.

My middle son is dairy, egg, but, wheat and soya free.

We use all the Tesco Free From pasta, their bread their wraps, their naan their cheese etc etc etc

It isn't anywhere as difficult as it was 8 years ago when he was first diagnosed.

Get thee to a Tesco and their Free From aisle.

Also - I've never seen soya in free from pasta and I've been doing this for years.

IWouldPreferNotTo · 13/06/2019 06:28

Check out Kasza in the Polish section of the supermarket, there's pearl barley and millet and also buckwheat groats although I'm not sure the last is too wheaty.