Culinary Reflections from the SICA-USA Board

Allergy-Friendly, Freezer-Ready Recipes for People on the Go – by Roberta Hoffman

Let’s face it—when you’re hungry, it’s easy to reach for chips or crackers, especially if you have dietary restrictions and can’t just grab whatever’s around. That’s why I like to prep food ahead of time. These two recipes—flavor-packed turkey patties and a hearty gluten-free buckwheat oat bread—are freezer-friendly, allergy-friendly, and satisfying. They’re my go-to staples for building quick meals or snacks throughout the week.

Savory Turkey Herb Patties
Dairy-free, Egg-free, Gluten-free, Yeast-free, Sugar-free

These protein-rich patties are flavorful, freezer-friendly, and easy to reheat. They make a great base for meals when you’re short on time.

Ingredients

• 4 lbs ground turkey breast (you can halve the recipe if needed)
• 6–8 sprigs fresh sage (or 2 small herb containers)
• 2–3 sprigs fresh oregano
• 1 bunch fresh basil
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1–3 Tbsp tapioca starch, as needed
• Cooking oil or fat (chicken fat, duck fat, ghee, or high-heat oil)

Instructions

1. Wash, dry, and finely chop all the herbs.
2. In a large bowl, combine herbs, salt, pepper, and turkey.
3. If the mixture is too sticky to form patties, mix in 1–2 Tbsp tapioca starch a little at a time until it holds its shape.
4. Scoop out portions (about the size of an ice cream scoop) and gently shape into patties.
5. Heat oil in a cast iron or heavy skillet over medium heat. Cook patties in batches for about 5 minutes per side, until fully cooked and golden. Add more oil between batches as needed.
6. Let patties cool completely, then stack in freezer-safe bags and freeze.

Yields: 20-30 patties, depending on the size

Buckwheat, Oat  & Hempseed Bread
Dairy-free, Egg-free, Gluten-free, Yeast-free, Sugar-free

If you’re craving something bread-like but can’t do wheat or yeast, this hearty loaf hits the spot. It uses psyllium husk as a binder and features oats, buckwheat, and hemp seeds for a nutty, satisfying flavor.

Psyllium Gel

• 2 cups oat milk (or any non-dairy milk)
• 3 Tbsp psyllium husk powder (if powder isn’t available, grind whole psyllium husks in a small coffee grinder or spice mill until very fine)

Whisk psyllium powder into oat milk until well combined. Let sit for 30 minutes to thicken (almost like jello).

Dry Ingredients

• 3/4 cup buckwheat flour
• 2/3 cup white rice flour
• 1 cup oat flour (you can make your own by blending oats into a fine powder)
• 5 Tbsp tapioca starch
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup hemp seeds

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 390°F (200°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, mix all dry ingredients thoroughly.
3. After the psyllium gel has thickened, add it to the dry ingredients.
4. Mix by hand or use a stand mixer with a dough hook. Knead for 5-10 minutes until the dough comes together.

• • If too wet, add 1-2 Tbsp tapioca starch or 1/8 cup buckwheat flour.
  • If too dry, add a little oat milk.

5. Shape the dough into a round or rectangular loaf. Place on prepared baking sheet.
6. Bake for 90 minutes. It should sound hollow when tapped and feel firm.
7. Let cool completely before slicing.
8. Slice and freeze in bags. Toast slices directly from the freezer as needed.

These two recipes help me stay nourished and satisfied during busy weeks—without grabbing processed snacks. They’re simple, flavorful, and tailored for people with dietary restrictions. I hope they become staples in your kitchen too!

A Healthier Chicken Paprikash – by Jim O’Halloran

I just love chicken paprikash, but the usual recipe looks like a heart attack waiting to happen, so here’s a modification that takes little prep time.

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp sweet Hungarian paprika
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt
• one large chopped bay leaf
• juice from 1/2 lemon

Oil a pan and evenly distribute the spices and lemon juice on the pan. Place sliced chicken on top of spices & lightly oil the top of the chicken. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes, turn the chicken & bake at 250 degrees for another 5 minutes. Serve with generous portions of steamed greens, or asparagus if in season. Bonus! Between the paprika and lemon juice, the pan will clean up rapidly and easily!

Chocolate Chip Cookie-Brownies: by Alexandra Boyer

1. Buy yourself a package of Tollhouse, semi-sweet chocolate morsels
2. Start by making yourself a good cup of coffee and enjoy it while you are preparing the dough
3. Follow the recipe on the package with these changes:

Use half unbleached white flour and half oat flour. You can change the proportions, but you will need at least some of the white flour or the resulting cookie brownies will be too crumbly.
You can make the oat flour by putting some oats (like Quaker oatmeal oats) in your blender and running it until they are ground up very fine.
Instead of one cup of butter, use one cup of a heart-healthy fat. Actually, a good vegetable oil works fine.

Use all brown sugar, no white.

Be generous with the vanilla extract.

I like a generous amount of walnuts too.

You may need to thicken the dough a little bit with extra white flour if you have used vegetable oil, but don’t add very much- gooey brownies are better than bland cakey brownies.

Now you have the dough made, and instead of messing around with cookie sheets and timing in between cookie batches, I just spread all the dough in a greased pan. Cook it until about two minutes after a delicious powerful fragrance fills the room. When it is done, if you press it in the middle, it should go in a little bit, but not very far. If it is overcooked, it will taste too dry.

Cool in the pan, cut into sections, and enjoy.

If you have any left, finish your coffee with the first taste of your chocolate chip brownies😋