Dairy products may be hidden in foods like breads, deli meats, or canned tuna. Actually, I’ve found dairy hidden in products that have made me wonder if the Dairy Council was paying someone to think up new uses for milk byproducts. I can’t come up with any other reason why someone would want whey in their tuna fish, let alone their non-dairy creamer.
When I first started the elimination diet I had overwhelming cravings for dairy products. After a while I realized that most of the problem was that I was not getting enough fat in my diet and the intense cravings went away, though I still sometimes miss dairy. I take any cravings for ice cream as a sign that I am not getting enough calcium in my diet and focus on eating healthy, well-balanced foods, and the cravings go away in a day or so.
Dairy Ingredient List
- artificial butter flavor
- brown sugar flavoring
- butter, butter fat, butter oil
- buttermilk
- caramel (coloring or flavoring)
- casein/ casseinates
- cheese (cottage, cream, goat, sheep, cow, etc.)
- cream
- curds
- custard
- ghee
- half and half
- high protein flour
- Hydrolysates (casein, milk protein, protein, whey, whey protein)
- ice cream
- lactalbumin
- lactic acid
- lactoferrin
- lactose
- lactulose
- Lactoglobulin
- margarine (inc dairy free)
- Milk (derivative, protein, solids, malted, condensed, evaporated, dry, LactaidTM Milk)
- natural and artificial flavorings
- non-dairy creamer & products
- nougat
- pudding
- rennet casein
- sour cream
- whey
- yogurt
“Creamy” things you CAN eat
- Avocado (great on sandwiches)
- Rice milk
- Rice “ice cream” (check to make sure it does not contain dairy or soy)
- Tapioaca or rice pidding made with coconut milk
- Frozen bananas
- Smoothies made with bananas and/or coconut milk
- Tropical Popscicles
- Hummus (if you are not allergic to sesame)
- White bean dip
I like to put good quality olive oil and salt on my bread instead of margerine. It is almost impossible to find a margerine that is both dairy and soy free, and it doesn’t taste that good if/when you find it!
I’m confused why it would matter with hummus whether you’re allergic to sesame or not. I’ve never seen hummus with sesame in it, but I’ve seen plenty with soy in it. Trader Joe’s sells a hummus made with standard Middle Eastern ingredients that no one seems to react to.
As for ice cream, we have an ice cream maker and make ice cream with coconut cream. Just add a little raw sugar and a touch of vanilla (preferably homemade) and if you want chocolate ice cream add cocoa. 20 minutes later you’ll have ice cream. It’s the best dairy-free ice cream I’ve had, at least that isn’t polluted with corn or soy (which I’m also allergic to.)
I haven’t found any use for rice milk. I make my own milks with a soymilk machine, mostly using almonds and/or oats, depending on what I’m using it for. Rice milk is terrible for baking. The leftovers from making your own nut milk are great as a substitute for sour cream in baking recipes and are a great additive for homemade protein bars also.
Sharon:
One of the main ingredients in most hummus recipes is tahini, which is sesame butter. It is possible to make hummus without tahini, but the stuff we see in the grocery case generally includes it.
I do not know what the ingredients in Trader Joe’s hummus are, and I was unable to find the information online. However, I would hesitate to reccomend any storebought hummus to someone allergic to sesame. Even if that flavor was tahini-free, there would always be the risk of cross-contamination.
The name of our site “Top 8 Free” refers to foods that are free of the top eight food allergens, which includes nuts. Almond milk is not a good option for someone with a nut allergy, though I agree with you about it being yummy. (It makes fabulous hot cocoa, if you can eat it.)
Rice milk does not contain as much protien as soy or cow milk, and therefore bakes differently. The recipes on this site have all been tested multiple times using rice milk, and the ingredient proportions are designed for rice milk, so they will work if you try them.
Making all of your own food from stratch is time consuming, so I try to make use of the few packaged convenience foods that I can. That is why many of the recipes in this book call for boxed rice milk. If you have the inclination to make your own, more the better!
I’d love to get your recipe for homemade oat milk, if you are willing to share!
Thanks for the comments.
Just and FYI that my family learned the hard way. My niece is soy and dairy allergic. We are all ingredient watch dogs (down to her older sister who is 5). Usually my sister brings a meal for her to any potluck type function and we visit any restaurant before hand to make sure they can accommodate her restrictions. Recently, we were at a potluck and my sister forgot my niece’s meal on the kitchen counter on the way out the door. We interrogated every cook and went for known “safe foods” including hummus. That night, she experienced her usual symptoms of exposure. In our searching to figure out what it had been (we had only offered very few items), I found out that the hummus carried at Costco has milk as the third ingredient. Thankfully, her reactions to dairy are not life threatening, just miserable.
Earth Balance has a Dairy Free and Soy Free Spread out that tastes good and does well in everything I have tried to cook.
http://www.earthbalancenatural.com/#/products/soy-free/
For a great dairy-free “butter”, my family uses Earth Balance, it bakes, frys, melts like regular butter available at Trader Joe’s, Ultra Foods, and Fruitful Yield. Also, Coconut Milk is now available in cartons as well as ice cream made from coconut milk which my son likes much better than rice milk or Rice Dream ice cream.
Thank you for alerting me to the fact that Earth Balance now has a dairy AND soy-free product! How great!
Readers should note that it is colored with annatto, a natural food coloring that comes from tree seeds. Use your own discretion.
My 4 year old son is allergic to lactose(And soy, coconut, grapes, and latex which comes with its own list of connected foods). I wish there were more options out there for him. His father isn’t even careful because he thinks he’ll just ‘adapt’ if he challenges it enough. He took him out for frozen yogurt awhile back and it took a month for the gruesome scabby rash he got from it to go away!
Glad I found this website. I’m posting this list (and the soy one) on my fridge.
Thank you for you site!
I just wanted to note that many dairy free foods have “Parve” marked on them. This is a note for kosher dieters that there is no dairy or meat products in the food item. Though i do not eat kosher, I found this very helpful when looking through margarines or cookies for a dairy free version. Not all foods that are dairy free carry this mark, but, if you see it, you know it’s milk free.
I know that Passover macaroons don’t have dairy in them either! Yum.
The requirements for a kosher “Parve” seal are not as strict as needed for someone with a severe dairy allergy.
Emerald – I know how hard it can be for family members without allergies to understand. Especially for dads who just want to “go out for a treat” to have fun with their son/daughter. I have found yogurt shops that serve dairy-free frozen treats – and they are yummy! Maybe you can hunt one down and tell him “the raspberry sorbet is his favorite!”