Frederick author hopes allergy cookbook helps other parents

Thursday, Jan. 5, 2006

Shortly after her son was born, Penny Webster knew something was wrong - Christian couldn’t keep any baby formula down.

Hoping that his milk allergy would go away soon, Webster took him to an allergist, but learned that not only was the allergy still there, but there were additional, life-threatening allergies that Christian had, as well.

‘‘From that point on, the seriousness of the situation was apparent,” Webster said.

The mother of two spent months of frustration in the grocery store and online, trying to figure out what she could feed her son.

Out of this frustration, her cookbook, ‘‘Allergy Free for All Ages,” was born.

The Frederick resident is hoping that the book will help other families avoid her frustration and worry, especially since there aren’t many cookbooks that address food allergies.

‘‘One bite of the wrong food and a child could be dead. That’s scary, especially at the toddler age,” Webster said.

According to the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network, there are 11 million Americans who have food allergies, including 5 million children. The number of people with food allergies continues to grow each year.

Since the rest of the Webster family, which includes Penny’s husband and 10-year-old daughter, has no allergies, she wanted to provide meals that everyone could eat.

The result of these trials and errors in the kitchen is a 124-page book filled with 80 recipes and pictures, as well as cooking tips and resources for families.

‘‘Every single recipe has been taste tested by our family,” Webster said.

The book, which took Webster just months to put together, includes sections such as main courses, side dishes, desserts and salads, and appetizers. There is also a section called ‘‘Just 4 Kids” with meals geared toward children with allergies.

Webster also took all of the photographs for the book, including the ten featured on the front cover.

The book was published by Publish America, a publishing company based in Frederick, and released on Dec. 19. It is available through the publisher, www.publishamerica.com, as well as at Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble.

The book’s recipes are geared toward people who have allergies to milk, eggs, peanuts and tree nuts (such as walnuts), like her son, and include such staples as chicken pot pie, steak fajitas and chocolate cake.

Christian is now 4 years old and has only had one episode relating to his allergies. That happened when he was a baby and started going into anaphlyaxic shock, which occurs when the wrong food is eaten and airways start constricting. Webster thinks he had come into contact with peanut butter somehow, but she was able to save him with his medicine.

‘‘I was really afraid after that point,” she said.

Since she has learned to cook and avoid certain foods, though, Christian has enjoyed good health.

Webster, who has always enjoyed writing, is now working on her second project – a children’s book about allergies.

She also maintains a web site, www.allergyfreecookbook.com, including information and links about food allergies.

‘‘It helps to know that I’m making a difference,” she said.