I can consider my family lucky because we deal with just a couple of severe food allergies. Our house is completely free of my daughter’s allergens. We cook and bake on a daily basis and on a weekly/ biweekly schedule I do the Top 8 baking.

If you are familiar with severe allergies you know you don’t just have to worry about the actual food, but also any surface the allergen may or may not have been in contact with due to someone else eating it recently or if that allergen has come in contact with any food you may try to eat. Cross contamination is always lurking and is the invisible danger that can and will hurt you or someone you love with a severe allergy.

So how do I bake Top 8 (peanut, tree nuts, fish, wheat, shellfish, eggs, milk and soy) free in a non Top 8 kitchen? I use utensils, bowls, measuring cups and spoons, mixers (yes I have multiple mixers), baking sheets, sponges, and a designated counter just for my allergen free baking. All of these are dishwasher safe, including the sponges, or can easily be pulled apart to thoroughly clean. Of course, I also wipe down all surfaces before and after baking. As well as keeping all my supplies clean and put away so they stay that way and contamination free.

My daughter is only (it’s funny how easily in the allergy world we use this) allergic to peanuts and a couple of tree nuts which are pretty easy to control once you get the hang of it, it becomes second nature to keep away from certain things or what is safe. There are other allergies that are harder to deal with when it comes to cross contamination- such as gluten. Everyone who has ever worked with flour or even watched a baker bake with it can easily see that once flour is being used it can and will get everywhere! It spills, it’s light and can fly up when being measured or mixed. This is to me one of the scariest allergen to keep contained. How do I deal with this now that I bake Top 8? For me, it was a really simple solution- I have completely rid my house of any actual flour. I just could not bare to think of unknowingly contaminating my house because something I could not see could or would make someone sick or much worse!

I just could not deal with that much guilt and I’m Jewish so I can handle a lot! Cross contamination is something most people never have to concern themselves with but living with an allergy this is a daily thought and worry on our minds. I will save how to read labels and navigate the grocery store another day. But baking Top 8 helps eliminate most of the concerns with the invisible dangers of store bought goods.

Clean ingredients, clean tools, and surfaces make for healthy foods and a clear conscious!

 All products in this review were purchased with my own money and no one has approached me to do a review for them. My thoughts on the products are my own and do not reflect the thoughts or opinions of anyone else.