January always seems to be hectic, time for getting organized after the holidays and serious about our goals. Unfortunately for me, this also means a little less time for creating in the kitchen. Lately, my husband and I have been in throw-it-together mode. The results have beeen delicious (a dairy-free/gluten-free eggplant lasagna that I created and a spicy mushroom pepper pork stir fry courtesy of my husband), but alas, they really were using up the fridge meals that I just didn’t have the energy to measure and write down.

But in the spirit of things, I thought I would share one of my quick lunch meals, Ten-Minute Tuna Couscous. It is truly a speedy endeavor, flavorful, and quite versatile. The recipe, as I have made it numerous times for myself and a ravenous husband, is below. However, I tend to fiddle with the seasoning amounts often, so feel free to adjust to your own tastes.

I am planning on attempting a vegetarian / vegan version of it using lightly smashed chickpeas and a sheet of nori seaweed (cut into small pieces) in place of the tuna. Nori seems to have that great “from the sea” taste and I thought it might compliment chickpeas/garbanzo beans well. Head to One Frugal Foodie to see the recipe (and the new blog look!) and to offer any quick couscous lunch ideas you may have.

Q: Heather (of Heather Eats Almond Butter) - I was curious about how my body would react to heavy whipping cream and butter. I know I have problems with the proteins in dairy, but do you know of anyone who has to skip out on the high protein dairy products like yogurt and cottage cheese but can handle the ones that are mostly fat?

A: Alisa – The answer to this question hinges on the level of milk sensitivity and the product in question.

In general, heavy cream will offer little relief to someone who is sensitive to milk, and will still pose a threat to the milk allergic. Cream varies in grade depending on the country. In the U.S., heavy cream or heavy whipping cream is defined as 36% milk fat or higher. It is the higher-butterfat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. Increasing the fat “pushes out” some of the proteins, but not all. For example, skim milk contains about 8 grams of protein per cup, while fluid heavy cream contains just under 5 grams of protein per cup. There is certainly enough protein remaining in heavy cream to cause problems for most people who are sensitive to milk proteins (whey, casein, or otherwise), and it is definitely an unsuitable food for those with moderate to severe milk allergies ...

The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) has announced that registration for the 2010 Walk for Food Allergy: Moving Toward a Cure is officially open. According to FAAN, the mission of the walk is, "To raise public awareness, to provide advocacy and education, and to advance research on behalf of all those affected by food allergies and anaphylaxis."

In 2009, the event hosted 18,000 walkers in 33 cities and online using the Alexander's Hometown Virtual Walk (for those who aren't near a walk or who can't make the date), raising over $1.8 million.

Now in its seventh year, this fundraising event will be held in over 50 cities across the United States throughout the year. Visit the Walk Locations page to see if there will be a walk in your local area.

Update: February 15, 2010 - The Picky Eater app has been renamed to "Allergy Guard."  In addition to the name change, they have also released Allergy Guard Lite, which is a free version of the app, though ad-supported. 

January 20, 2010 - Cooking Allergy Free has announced the availability of a new iPhone or iPod Touch application specifically for those with food allergies. The app, "Picky Eater", is packed with information about over 1500 ingredients. Each listing contains a description and it's association to over 150 different allergen groups. All information is stored on the device so that you can easily take it with you to the grocery store, out to eat, or while you're making your next recipe. When near an internet connection, the application has the ability to update it's listings as new ingredients and allergens are added. Plus, the application is just $1.99.

Future versions are already being worked on which will contain some great new features, such as storing your allergies for easier searching, ability to select ingredients to create a shopping list, and more ...