Food allergies affect 5.6 million children in the U.S. and if you’re a parent, you know how challenging it can be to keep kids with them safe at school, birthday parties, and restaurants. Around the holidays, however, there are so many new foods, tons of cookies, and homemade family favorites that often have secret ingredients, and plenty of places where food will be so avoiding an allergic reaction can be tough. In this episode, I sat down with Kelly Woyan Rudnicki, a writer, producer, and television personality who has nearly twenty years of experience in the business. She is also the author of several cookbooks, including The Food Allergy Mama’s Baking Book, Vegan Baking Classics, and The Food Allergy Mama’s Easy, Fast Family Meals, and her newest title, The Food Allergy Baking Book. Kelly shares her amazing journey caring for a child with severe food allergies and serves up her best tips to prepare for the holidays whether you’re hosting, going to someone else’s home, or going out to eat. Kelly also talks about how to help your kids advocate for themselves, and she shares simple ingredient swaps and her favorite allergy-safe baking recipes. Welcome 2:29 Let’s talk about your story! 7:58 How did you become a cookbook author? 9:56 Let’s paint the picture of what it’s really like to have a child with food allergies. 16:43 How can parents prepare ahead of time if they’ll be going to someone else’s house, or a holiday party or event? 20:45 If you’re hosting, how can you ensure that the food other people bring is safe and prevent your kid from having an allergic reaction? 24:35  How can we prepare our kids to advocate for themselves? 28:20 What are the best ways to modify recipes to ensure they’re safe? 31:10 What are your favorite recipes from your book? LINKS MENTIONED IN THE SHOW Kelly mentions that 32 million adults and 5 million kids in the U.S. have food allergies. Kelly talks about oral immunotherapy (OIT). Purchase a copy of Kelly’s book, “The Food Allergy Baking Book." Learn more about Kelly on her website. Follow Kelly on Instagram or on Facebook. FROM OUR PARTNERS Kids Cook Real Food eCourse The Kids Cook Real Food eCourse, created by a mom of 4 and a former elementary school teacher, is designed to build connection, confidence, and creativity in the kitchen. The course includes 30 basic cooking skills, 45 videos including several bonuses, printable supply and grocery shopping lists, and kid-friendly recipes. The course is designed for all kids ages 2 to teen and has three different skill levels. More than 18,000 families have taken the course and The Wall Street Journal named it the #1 cooking class for kids. Sign up now for the Kids Cook Real Food ecourse and get a free lesson for being a “Food Issues” listener. Thrive Market Thrive Market is an online membership-based market that has the highest quality, organic, non-GMO, healthy, and sustainable products. From groceries, clean beauty, safe supplements, and non-toxic home products to ethical meat, sustainable seafood, clean wine, and more, Thrive Market is where members save an average of $32 on every order! Through Thrive Gives, every paid membership sponsors a free one for a low-income family. Join Thrive Market today and get 25% off your first order and a free gift.