Nut-Free Valentine's Day! A Roundup of Nut-Free Treats, Helpful Links, Ideas and More!

Valentine's Day, the season of love is nearly here. And as those of us coping with food allergies know, it's also the season of potentially unsafe food.

That's why I'm offering this convenient roundup of posts and links that provide some wonderful nut-free alternatives.

Important to note: Seasonal or holiday candy may be made on different lines depending on the brand, and those manufacturing differences may result in a previously "safe" brand becoming "unsafe" due to cross-contact risk. Read the labels, always, every time to make sure your candy is OK to use!

Now onto the links! You will find recipes, treats ideas, non-food crafts (perfect for school) and more. If you are a Pinner, I highly recommend you check out my Nut-Free Valentine's Day Pinterest board. I've been collecting some really good pins from other sites as well as this one. Lots of fun and creative ideas there! The Pinterest link is listed below.

Online Resources for a Nut-Free Valentine's Day

Food Allergies, Valentine's Day and School Party Tips

Pinterest Board for a Nut-Free Valentine's Day

Last Minute Valentine's Day Ideas plus an easy nut-free recipe!

I am proud to say that three of my site sponsors offer nut-free treats. Nutphree's Cupcakes, Surf Sweets and Dean's Sweets are favorite sources of nut-free sweets and goodies for my family. (I've got many more included in the link/posts above). It's nice to be able to count on a nut-free facility -- which these three great companies consistently provide.

And don't forget to click the two Valentine's Day images on the right side bar of the site: the cupid and the box of heart-shaped chocolates. These two images will take you to posts that hook you up with nut-free treats online as well as those you find at the supermarket.

A new one I found this year: Willy Wonka brand Everlasting Gobstoppers in a new heart shape. These may contain allergens other than nuts, but check the label. No nut allergen warnings and I've called this company in the past--they will mark for cross-contact risk. Have any of you found some new nut-free treats at the store? Let us know.

Happy Valentine's Day to you and your sweeties!

Food Allergy News: New Allergy-Friendly Valentine's Day Candy from Surf Sweets

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I am thrilled to be able to tell you about an all-new, allergy-friendly and organic treat--Surf Sweets Fruity Hearts! These sweet little heart-shaped gummy candies are certified organic watermelon and cherry heart-shaped gummies. I think they're perfect to share with your kids, their classmates and friends. Plus, they are a cute and festive decoration for a home-baked cupcake.

As you know, it's a difficult prospect to decipher food labels on Valentine's Day candy in order to find nut-free but delicious items kids will enjoy eating and receiving (and don't forget about adults--I love these things!). I like to support companies like Surf Sweets because they take all the guesswork out of it for me. I need nut-free and no question, these are nut-free, made in a free-from facility. Kind of makes things simpler, doesn't it?

Surf Sweets Fruity Hearts are made right here in the Chicago area with real organic fruit juice, fortified with antioxidant Vitamin C, and they’re allergy friendly, gluten free and vegan. Fruity Hearts are also free of corn syrup, synthetic dyes, and artificial flavors.


All Surf Sweets candies are gluten free; dairy and casein free; allergy friendly, meaning that they contain none of the most common food allergens (wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish, shellfish); and Feingold approved. Surf Sweets candies are produced and packaged in a dedicated nut-free facility.

Most Surf Sweets candies are currently available in mainstream grocery and natural foods stores, online, and at specialty retailers throughout the U.S. and Canada. For more information on store locations, visit the Surf Sweets website where you can also order online.

I'll have more info on my favorite nut-free chocolates for V-Day in an upcoming post!

Peanut Allergy News: Valentine's Day Chocolate!

Almost everyone loves chocolate on Valentine's Day. For those of us caring for kids with nut allergies (or who have nut allergies ourselves) it can be difficult to find chocolate that is not only nut-free but also delicious.

Internet shopping to the rescue! Luckily, there are a few really good nut-free chocolate candy companies out there with everything we need to treat our kids or ourselves. You may have heard of some of these before but for those of you who haven't seen these before, allow me to introduce you.

First up is Vermont Nut-Free Chocolate, one of my all-time favorites. I've ordered from them numerous times and every product I've tried is absolutely delicious. Best of all, both of my daughters go ga-ga over this stuff! This is true gourmet chocolate at its finest. You can find beautiful heart-shaped boxes of nut-free truffles and fudge if you really want to impress. Plus, there are many Valentine's Day-themed chocolates that will make your child's day! In fact, Vermont Nut-Free has pretty much every holiday covered in terms of chocolate. They also offer great baking chocolate if you want to whip up a homemade treat. Check them out . I got a note from them that they get busy this time of year so if you want your order by February 14, head there now!

Next is Divvies, a fabulous nut-free candy company that is also egg-free and dairy-free. They have all sorts of Valentine's Day themed goodies and a great array of candies in general. I also like them because they offer a choice for people dealing with multiple food allergies.

Finally, many of you have tried Enjoy Life Foods chocolate treats. Candy bars like Boom Choco Boom (crispy rice is my favorite) are free of the top 8 food allergens as well as sesame and sulfites. While Enjoy Life does not offer Valentine candy, per se, you can check out their website for Valentine's Day themed recipes using their delicious, allergy-friendly chocolate products like dairy-free, nut-free semi-sweet chocolate chips!

Later this week: online nut-free bakeries!

Peanut-Free, Tree Nut-Free Valentine's Candy: Sweet Tarts Conversation Hearts

I'm bringing back my Valentine's Day post about conversation hearts from Sweet Tarts. Please note: these have nut-free status, only. I will be sharing more Valentine's Day treat ideas soon, so keep visiting!

When we first found out about my daughter's nut allergy, it was really hard to find "safe" candies for each holiday, especially the really iconic ones like candy corn for Halloween and of course, conversation hearts for Valentine's Day. It seemed like every candy heart package had a nut allergy warning on it, so she couldn't eat them at class parties or at home. Bummer.

Luckily, Sweet Tarts Hearts are the allergy-free answer to our  nut-free conversation heart problem. The candies are the Willy Wonka brand, made by Nestle, so I did a little digging to ensure these candies are safe for peanut and tree nut allergies.

The Wonka web site states that you should "check the back of the package" to locate allergen information. Just to be sure, I called Nestle and asked about the Sweet Tarts Hearts. They assured me that if there were any cross-contact risk for the "Top 8" allergens, this info would be reflected on the label with warnings such as "Processed on equipment that also processed nuts (or the other top 8) or "Made in a facility that also processes peanuts (or egg, etc.)

To clarify: There is a product called Sweet Tarts brand GUMMY hearts and they DO have a peanut and tree nut allergy warning. It appears they are made in a different facility from the converation-style hearts. They look very different too, as they are larger than the candy hearts and a soft "gummy" style of candy. So be careful and read all labels.

Of course, if you ever are unsure about a candy, just call the company as I did. The side benefit of calling is that they usually send you free stuff or coupons.

Important note: This post refers to the Sweet Tarts brand candy hearts ONLY! You will often see other brands of conversation hearts in the stores. Two popular brands are Brach's and Necco. Many candy hearts  carry peanut allergy and/or tree nut allergy warnings--at least in my most recent research. So be careful not to confuse Sweet Tarts with any other brand. It's up to you, the consumer to check! Thanks for your cooperation and understanding. :)

Personally, I like the taste of Sweet Tarts better than the "traditional" candy hearts. I bought these at Super Target, but I've seen them for sale everywhere. Enjoy!

Surf Sweets fruity hearts are always nut-free and free of the Top 8 food allergens.
www.surfsweets.com for store locator