This vanilla pudding is easy to make. It’s also auto-immune paleo friendly – no dairy, no refined sugars, no eggs – so it’s a good helper for anyone with Top 8 food allergies, FPIES, or eating carefully due to IBS/IBD. And though it technically contains a nut in the coconut ingredient, I’ve found in my pediatric nutrition practice that coconut is often tolerable for kids who are allergic to other nuts. This is a good helper for kids with food allergies who are looking for a treat but need to avoid junky ingredients.
So simple, just six ingredients, and simple to make. It has more of a custard feel and is sure to please. Enjoy this warm with a softer texture from the stove (perfect for older infants and young toddlers), or chill for an hour or two for classic firm pudding texture and a cooling treat. It’s also a serious calorie boost at about 360 calories per serving – a plus for picky eaters or kids with weak appetites who need a shortcut to daily intake goals for growth and gain.
Use coconut cream for pudding that will thicken faster, although canned whole full fat coconut milk works well too – just stir a little longer and if necessary add an extra teaspoon of arrowroot starch. Have fun with toppings: Organic roasted flax meal (this brand is my favorite, found some at Costco), crushed nuts, berries, or even chocolate chips (use this brand if you want a gluten, dairy and sugar free chocolate chip). If you haven’t used arrowroot starch before as a thickener, this brand has worked well for me and is in many supermarkets, but there are also organic options available. To keep it strictly casein and dairy free, and for optimum texture and taste, use ghee instead of butter. Lastly if you are avoiding Top 8 allergens be sure your vanilla flavoring is gluten free.
AIP Friendly Delicious Vanilla Pudding
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Ultimate delicious vanilla pudding. Or is it custard? Coconut cream is my preference for easy thickening and best flavor, but whole plain canned coconut milk works well too.
Ultimate delicious vanilla pudding. Or is it custard? Coconut cream is my preference for easy thickening and best flavor, but whole plain canned coconut milk works well too.
In a sauce pan over low-medium heat, combine the honey, arrowroot starch and salt. Stir continuously to combine evenly, about 3 minutes.
Add coconut milk and turn up to medium high heat. Stir continuously until thick and smooth, 5-8 minutes. Do not boil, and don't let the bottom burn.
Once thickened, reduce heat to low. Continue stirring while adding the vanilla and the ghee. Stir until all are combined evenly throughout.
Pour into individual serving cups. Add any desired toppings, allow cooling for a few minutes. Then cover with plastic wrap and store in fridge til firm. Option to enjoy the pudding warm from stove and less firm, if desired.
Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) leans hard on eggs. Eggs are great, but not everyone can eat them, let alone every day in quantity for breakfast. Here’s an option that minimizes the daily eggs-for-breakfast habit while giving some helpful SCD-legal carbohydrates too. Plus, who doesn’t love pancakes? Enjoy plain or drop in fruits as your child’s progression in the SCD stages allows. Or, top with soft cooked diced apples! If egg is an issue, double the applesauce and omit the egg entirely. Pancakes will be more dense but still work.
SCD Apple Pancakes
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These SCD legal pancakes are delicate, mildly sweet and savory all at the same time. Enjoy plain or drop in fruits as your child's progression in the SCD stages allows.
These SCD legal pancakes are delicate, mildly sweet and savory all at the same time. Enjoy plain or drop in fruits as your child's progression in the SCD stages allows.
Mix the wet ingredients (first five ingredients - applesauce, honey, vanilla, coconut milk, and egg) evenly in a bowl.
Mix dry ingredients evenly in a separate bowl (the flours, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon).
Combine the wet and dry ingredients by adding the dry to the wet. Stir to mix evenly.
Melt ghee or coconut oil in skillet and heat on medium heat. Drop generous spoonfuls of batter onto skillet once the fat is hot/melted. Skillet should be hot enough so batter quickly sets, but doesn't burn. After a few moments, slide a spatula under the pancakes to make sure they aren't sticking. If they are, add a bit more ghee or coconut oil and let it flow under and around pancakes.
If you like, this is when to add fruit: Drop blueberries, raspberries, or thin banana slices into the pancake as it starts cooking.
Cook til bubbles just appear in the pancakes. Flip the pancakes to cook other side. Cook for about a minute or two, then remove from skillet. If there is enough fat/oil in skillet, they will cook without sticking. Add more if need be, and lift edges of pancakes with skillet to allow fat/oil to flow under them so they won't stick.
Weight gain is something many kids I meet need to work on. But so often, strategies include allergens or other problematic foods that they can’t have: Milk protein (casein), eggs, ice cream, full fat yogurt, cream, Pediasure (that’s milk protein), cane sugar…. What to do?
Shakes, puddings and liquid boost drinks are a great way to do it. Use this hypoallergenic short cut pudding that is full of protein, healthy fats, and some SCD legal carbs and proteins too. Don’t skip the crushed ice in the bottom of your mixing container, it gives a refreshing coolness to the whole recipe!
Cool Vanilla Weight Gain Pudding - Paleo and SCD
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Cool and soothing, not to mention a big hit of easy to digest calories that help rather than hurt healthy gut bacteria. This will yield as much as 500 calories per serving (recipe makes two generous servings) depending on the size of avocado you are using.
Cool and soothing, not to mention a big hit of easy to digest calories that help rather than hurt healthy gut bacteria. This will yield as much as 500 calories per serving (recipe makes two generous servings) depending on the size of avocado you are using.
1scoopcollagen(Ancient Nutrition Multi Collagen is my favorite!)
Servings: ~5-6 oz servings
Instructions
Place crushed ice in the bottom of blender or tall quart mixing jar or container (in which case you'll need an immersion blender). Add remaining ingredients on top. Blend all together until smooth and evenly blended into pudding texture.
Spoon into single serving Pyrex cups or bowls. Sprinkle nutmeg on top for garnish and flavor.
If a drinkable version is ideal, add water until thinned to desired degree. This will reduce calories per serving.
Soothing, easy to digest, helpful for kids who need to gain weight, or a low sugar treat for any occasion. Cook this longer to make it even more digestible and nourishing. In Chinese medical tradition, congee is a slow-cooked, white rice porridge used as a base for many ailments, and for weak digestion in particular. Medicinal herbs are often added to congee. This recipe emulates that tradition with ginger (anti-inflammatory), cinnamon (modulates blood sugar), cardamom (eases nausea and constipation), and adds easy-to-assimilate coconut fats. Raisins, though a higher FODMAPs food, become more digestible here also, with long slow cooking. For further sweetening, this recipe calls for maple syrup and coconut sugar in small amounts. Coconut sugar has a lower glycemic index than cane sugar. It also adds inulin, a pre-biotic for healthy bacteria strains in the gut, along with some zinc, iron, and short chain fatty acids that benefit the large intestine. Organic stevia is always an option, for those unable to tolerate any sugars. In that case, use 2-5 drops for the entire recipe, or to your taste. Lastly: Brown rice is a suitable option here for those with no digestive issues; cook it even longer, up to 2 hours, and increase the liquid in the recipe. Otherwise, use a good quality organic white rice.
“But it’s not Paleo! It’s not GAPS! It’s not SCD!” True, it isn’t. But if there is one thing I’ve learned in my decades working with babies and kids, it’s that there is no dogma. Every child is different, every gut is different. Individualizing care for each child, each gut, each circumstance is what works best. Don’t forget to bend the rules, to find what works for your child.
Dairy Free Creamy Coconut Rice Pudding
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A slow cooked soother for tender digestion. Ready to eat after 45 minutes of cooking, but cooking longer is fine also, as long as you continue to add liquid to keep the porridge from drying or burning.
A slow cooked soother for tender digestion. Ready to eat after 45 minutes of cooking, but cooking longer is fine also, as long as you continue to add liquid to keep the porridge from drying or burning.
Place a medium sized pot on stove. If you are using fresh minced rather than powdered ginger, soften this in the pot first, with a teaspoon of ghee or coconut oil, for 5 minutes, on low-medium heat. Then add coconut milk, almond milk, cinnamon, cardamom, maple syrup, coconut sugar, and vanilla. Stir and heat together on low-medium heat until well blended. Do not boil.
If you are using powdered ginger, heat the milks gently. Blend in powdered spices, maple syrup, coconut sugar, and vanilla. Stir and heat to steaming but not boiling.
Add the cooked rice and mix til evenly blended. Turn up heat to medium high until just boiling, then reduce heat to low simmer. Liquid should just cover rice. Add more coconut milk if needed to cover rice. Add raisins.
Whisk the egg with a small amount of almond or coconut milk. Add to the pot, mix well.
Cook on low heat for 45 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally. Add more liquid if needed, or if you would like a softer porridge: Use additional almond milk, coconut milk, plain coconut water, or water as needed. Serve warm.
Make this as a creamsicle smoothie to enjoy right away, or freeze in freezer pop forms and enjoy on a hot day. Adjust to your desired of tartness or sweetness. Dairy free, soy free, and still creamier than can be. Full of healthy fats, without any added sugar. Use these BPA free popsicle molds and you’re good to go. For a cute baby size mold, try this one.
Honeydew Lime Creamsicle
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Creamy, nourishing, and lip-smacking lime-y. Give your kids a replenishing alternative to junky corn syrup popsicles or shakes. Tastes best with ripe organic ingredients. Don't use processed coconut milk from a carton like So Delicious - it's the wrong animal for this recipe. Be sure to use a good full fat organic canned coconut milk, unsweetened, and blend it to even consistency before using it, if necessary.
Creamy, nourishing, and lip-smacking lime-y. Give your kids a replenishing alternative to junky corn syrup popsicles or shakes. Tastes best with ripe organic ingredients. Don't use processed coconut milk from a carton like So Delicious - it's the wrong animal for this recipe. Be sure to use a good full fat organic canned coconut milk, unsweetened, and blend it to even consistency before using it, if necessary.
Place crushed ice in bottom of blender, followed by remaining ingredients in order shown above, except the water. Blend til creamy. If this is thicker than you'd like, add water as needed and blend again. Pour into popsicle forms and freeze, or serve immediately as a smoothie or creamy thick treat to eat with a spoon.
