Family Dinner... Finally!

It has been my goal for quite some time to have a safe, allergy-free dinner together. And tonight it finally happened. Dan took Evan to Menard's in the afternoon to get some boards for yet another project while I spent my time in the kitchen.

We had ham, biscuits, and candied sweet potatoes. The last time (and only time) Evan has had ham previously, he had a mild allergic reaction, so our allergist told us to hold off trying it again. His latest bloodwork revealed very low levels, so she said to go for it and we did. I was worried that he would break out or worse, or that he wouldn't like it, but he seemed to do just fine and he ate every little bit that I gave him! He is pretty attached to his chicken and I am not a huge ham fan, so we won't have it all the time, but it is nice to have some variety once in a while!





The biscuits came from Incredible Edible Gluten-Free Food for Kids by Sheri L. Sanderson. They turned out okay, but I wasn't too impressed. Dan said they weren't bad and Evan tried one teensy tiny little bite and was not impressed either. I couldn't get him to eat any more of it, so I caved and gave him puffed rice cereal instead.

Maybe Evan wasn't feeling very well- he did spit up on me while I was singing to him before nap. He loved these sweet potatoes the last time I made them, but only ate about half tonight. He is normally a very good eater. Maybe he'll go for a biscuit tomorrow. But back to the sweet potatoes. These are amazing! The recipe is from my mother-in-law. The original recipe calls for toasted walnuts or pecans sprinkled over the top, but we really don't miss them.

Candied Sweet Potatoes

2 lbs. sweet potatoes
16 oz. can peaches (juice pack)
2/3 c. packed brown sugar
2 T. margarine or butter (obviously I used dairy-free margarine)
dash of ground cloves

1. Wash and peel sweet potatoes and cut into half-inch thick slices. Cook in large saucepan in lightly salted boiling water about 10 minutes or until just tender. Drain and cool.

2. Drain peach slices, reserving juice. In a greased 3-quart rectangular baking dish, combine peach slices and sweet potatoes.

3. In a small saucepan, combine 3 Tbsp. reserved peach juice, brown sugar, margarine or butter, and ground cloves. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat and boil gently for one minute. Drizzle over peaches and sweet potatoes.

4. Bake, uncovered, in a 350-degree F oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until potatoes and peaches are glazed, stirring twice.

Notes: The stirring is kind of optional. I gave it one half-hearted stir and they still came out just fine. Also, you can prepare everything ahead of time, cover and chill for up to 2 hours, then bake as above. This is especially helpful when preparing this for Thanksgiving or Christmas!

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Speaking of Thanksgiving, I may be the only one, but I am already thinking hard about what to serve for our meal. These sweet potatoes will definitely be there, and I was hoping the biscuits would be, too, but I will have to keep searching for a better recipe.

So although Evan made a mess, refused some of his food, and went to bed way late because of the Menard's trip and whatnot, I'd say dinner was a success! It made my heart so happy just to have the three of us eating together at the dining room table! Can't wait to do it again!