Need Help Finding Non-dairy Birthday "Cake" Ideas

Updated on March 16, 2009
A.A. asks from Naperville, IL
27 answers

Hi -
My son has a milk protein allergy and has been on Neocate and Nutramigen since birth. He is turning 1 in April and I am wondering if anyone has any suggestions on what type of "cake" or treat I can make/buy for him. Also, soy is not an option...
Thanks so much!

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So What Happened?

Thank you SO, SO much to everyone for your great responses!! All of the responses are really helpful and I greatly appreciate it. I and am going to start trying recipes now in preparation for my son's big day!

More Answers

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T.H.

answers from Chicago on

google Kathy P's Wacky cake - i think it's under the Kid's with food allergies website - great cakecupcakes, and you can accomodate just about every food allergy. I've made it dairy, soy, egg, gluten, corn free or just regular and it turns out great! You should be able to find it on the website, and if not email me and i'm happy to send it to you. good luck!

1 mom found this helpful
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P.P.

answers from Chicago on

Hi,
I use the website www.vegweb.com for vegan recipes. They have no dairy or eggs in the recipes. There are some fabulous cake recipes on it, as well as recipes from every food category from appetizers to main courses to desserts. I highly recommend the "super moist chocolate cake." It turns out fabulous every time, and is very simple to make.

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J.Z.

answers from Chicago on

Hi A.,
My daughter has dairy and egg allergies. We use mixes made by Cherrybrook Kitchens which you can find at Whole Foods, Fruitful Yield, Meijer and some Jewel stores. The mixes are VERY easy to use and are free of the top allergens including soy! Cherrybrook Kitchens has cake mixes, frostings, cookie mixes and pancake mixes. All the products are extremely tasty and you only need to add some basics to the mix which can vary depending on your child's allergies. We use these mixes often and the whole family enjoys them! In fact, for her birthday parties we use only these mixes so we don't risk any reactions to outside products. Email me if you have any questions. Best of Luck!

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M.B.

answers from Chicago on

I have a year and a half year old son who has celiac disease (gluten intolerance) and I know that a lot of the gluten free items also are dairy/lactose free. I just checked my pantry and I have a product by the company Cherrybrook Kitchen, I happen to have the chocolate frosting in front of me, but I just made last week their chocolate cake and vanilla frosting. They are both dairy free, the frosting is soy free also, and I am almost positive that the cake is soy free too, but since I don't have it right in front of me, I don't want to say for sure. But the vanilla frosting was "to die" for. I will never even buy regular (pillsbury) frosting again it was that good. The chocolate cake was good too, but it tasted a litlle more like a dark chocolate than regular chocolate. I hope this helps. You can always contact me if you need any help, alot of gluten free items we have tried are also dairy free:)

1 mom found this helpful
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J.C.

answers from Chicago on

My son has a milk allergy and I went through the same thing in terms of finding what types of cakes (desserts) I could substitute for birthdays & celebrations.

For his 1st bday I ordered an angel food cake professionally decorated from Fleckensteins Bakery in Mokena.

Angel food has no dairy - as well as the icing used. Just make mention of the allergy during ordering.

I have also used Duncan Hines when making my own cakes at home.

But for special occassion, I felt the angel food option was nice - plus other kids without allergies liked it as well.
-J.

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K.C.

answers from Chicago on

My son (now 5) has egg and dairy allergies and I would recommend the book "the Food Allergy News Cookbook" from the Food Allergy Network-- it has a lot of great recipes for all sorts of sweets without the main food allergens (soy, wheat, dairy, egg and nut), including cakes, cupcakes, and cookies. Also, here is a recipe for a dairy-free, egg free chocolate cake that our whole family enjoys:
3 c. flour
2 c. sugar
1/3 c. cocoa
1 t salt
3/4 c. oil
1 t. baking soda
2 T vinegar
2 c. cold water
Sift all dry ingredients together. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add liquid ingred. Mix until smooth. Bake at 350 degrees in ungreased 9X13 pan for 30 minutes (also can make into layer cake).
For frosting:
1/2 C dairy-free margarine (Fleichman's is dairy free)
2 2/3 c confectioners' sugar (a little more)
1/2 c unsweetened coca powder
1/4 c water (if necessary)
1 tsp. vanilla.
IN a large glass bowl, melt the margarine. Add sugar, cocoa and vanilla and beat until creamy and smooth.
Good luck!

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K.E.

answers from Chicago on

My son has multiple food allergies, including milk, and I've tried different mixes each birthday. The better ones I've used are cake mixes from 123glutenfree.com (shipping is expensive, but they items taste very good) or Gluten Free Pantry brand. I found this at Woodman's in North Aurora. Whole Foods probably has it also. There is also a Cherrybrook Kitchen brand that I've seen even at Wal-Mart and Jewel, etc. I haven't actually tried those because it has gluten, and he's allergic to that, too, but I've heard that brand is very good. Check the icing brands in the store because some are okay for food allergies. I use the Funfetti kind b/c it only has soy and that's the only thing he's NOT allergic to, but since that's not an option for you, just check the labels because there is probably one you could use.

When my son was very young, he didn't really know the difference so I just had a plain cake for him or cupcakes and a regular cake for everyone else decorated with the theme. This year, he just turned 4 and can tell the difference so I used the Gluten Free Pantry brand and had it decorated just like his other one (Wall-E) and it turned out great! Wall-Mart let me buy the WallE cake toppers w/o buying the cake for five bucks.

Happy Birthday to him!

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L.P.

answers from Chicago on

The Cake Box in New Lenox makes CF/GF and soy free cakes. They taste very good too.

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E.A.

answers from Chicago on

Google dairy free cakes or dairy free muffin, quick bread recipes. I use a carrot or pumpkin recipe that is dairy free for my kids. There are tons of recipes online for these types of recipes. (crackers too! as i make most all our crackers for the hosuehold -it gets too expensive to buy the "special" ones)

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L.Z.

answers from Chicago on

My Daughter had the same allergy, we have been dairy challenging her since she turned one in feb and so far so good. My Ped told us that a good portion of the kids outgrow the allergy at 1 years old. Her symptom was bloody stools (sorry if tmi)I could not find anyone who would make a dairy free cake for her birthday and I did not think of Whole foods. My sister's friend has a neighbor who makes cakes, she made us a nondairy smash cake and a nondairy regular cake and they were very good. The frosting was made with margrine (our ped said whey was ok, not sure how severe your son's allergy is), you could tell a little bit but you could see if she would just make a smash cake and get a regular cake for everyone else. Let me know if you are interested she lives in mundelein near 60 and 83. Good luck

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J.K.

answers from Chicago on

Bleeding Heart Bakery in Chicago makes vegan cakes/cupcakes. Pricey but scrumptious!

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J.V.

answers from Chicago on

For my daughter's 1 bday, I decided to make a blueberry tart. Very little sugar and something she absolutely loves.

We are celebrating this Sunday. I'm making one big tart for the adults and then a baby 4 inch tart for her.

How about something like that?

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E.K.

answers from Chicago on

Hi there - you already have a lot of good tips, but I know how hard this is - went through it too with my guy's first birthday - the dairy/soy combo is HARD! I found a recipe for a jelly roll - it's basically a sponge cake (dairy free naturally, so no substitutes that might make it taste funny) that you put preserves in and roll up! We did peach jam and sprinkled it with confectioners' sugar and it was SO good. And super easy - as easy as a mix. I ate a lot of it myself. :-) My recipe came from the King Arthur Flour Bakers Companion cookbook, which is an amazing book for all sorts of baked yummies.

Just one note - be careful with some of the mixes, there will be soy in them (soy lecithin is common), or even some "hidden" things like whey or casein. That's why I'd recommend you bake it yourself. Hope that helps!

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A.L.

answers from Chicago on

you can substitute rice milk for regular milk. rice milk can be found in the natural foods section of Jewel/Dominicks or at Whole Foods/Trader Joes. Also, check out Roses Wheat Free Bakery in Evanston. They are allergy friendly and might be able to make a dairy free cake for you.

N.C.

answers from Rockford on

Hi A....my nephew has food allergies (milk, eggs, nuts) so I made an allergy free cake for my sons birthday so my nephew could also enjoy and it was AWESOME! It was a carrot cake w/ 3 cups of shredded carrots, apple juice and applesauce. I know my sister had quite a few really yummy recipes for desserts...cakes, cookies, snacks and even dinner type stuf (some may have used soy though..but not this cake) Anyway, if you would be interested, please let me know and I can get the recipes copied and emailed to you.

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J.W.

answers from Chicago on

We are vegan and for my son's 2nd birthday a few weeks ago we made chocolate cupcakes for everyone from a recipe that we got from my mother in law. It uses oil and vinegar instead of eggs and dairy. We used soymilk to make the chocolate frosting, but you could use rice milk instead (frosting also from scratch, not box mix) The cupcakes are delicious and we make them all the time. If you are interested in the recipes--send me a message. We usually buy the "cheeze"cake slices from the Chicago Diner at Whole Foods and they are sooooo delicious. You could just buy a single slice for your son and have a regular cake for everyone else. Good luck!

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E.C.

answers from Chicago on

My son was allergic to milk and eggs we used city diner in chicago they sell to whole foods and will do whatever you want. I is expensive but I wanted him to have his own cake.
Good Luck

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E.B.

answers from Chicago on

Duncan Hines has cakes that are milk and soy free- that is what I use - they also have a frosting too. Just make sure to read the labels- it is clearly marked in bold print.

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T.T.

answers from Chicago on

any recipe that calls for milk can be substituted for Rice milk also there are non dairy non soy shortenings ...I would venture out to Whole Foods..they have a ton of non dairy items!

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J.D.

answers from Chicago on

kidswithfoodallergies.org has a great food recipe database

we did a banana w/ a candle in it for our dd's 1st

or you can also use a play cake - like melissa & dougs

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M.R.

answers from Chicago on

I just saw a non-dairy cake at Jewel or Sam's club. I am not sure which one. It looked very good. Also you can find cake mixes that are vegan at Whole Foods and Traders Joe. i ordered a vegan cake from Whole Foods that was very pricey and was not very good. If you google vegan cakes you will get many recipes that are good. As for frosting check on the Peta.org website for a list of frostings that are vegan. My one daughter has dairy allergies and my other daughter was vegan for years so I used the peta shopping list often. Oreo cookies are another great vegan food.

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K.

answers from Chicago on

I found the best nondairy cake recipe on allrecipes.com. I've made cupcakes and a regular cake with it and it tastes delicious either way. Here's the link.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Egg-Free-Dairy-Free-Nut-Free...

Also, Pilsbury frosting in the can is dairy free.

Hope I've helped!

K.
SAHM mom to 5 yr boy, 3 yr boy, and 6 mo girl.

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A.C.

answers from Chicago on

Hello!
My son has a milk allergy and his birthday is this weekend. I ordered him a non-dairy cake from Whole Foods in Naperville.

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M.S.

answers from Chicago on

As long as it is just a dairy allergy Duncan Heinz cake mixes have no dairy in them, also one of their brownie mixes has no dairy. Just be sure to read the label. I think Pillsbury frosting is dairy free and so is angelfood cake. Hope this helps. There are a lot of good suggestions on here that I will also have to try.

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J.G.

answers from Chicago on

When my son (who has a dairy allergy) turned one I made cupcakes (which I think turn out better than cakes). I can't remember the name of the cupcake cookbook -- maybe Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. Look it up on Amazon. Also, there are a few bakeries in Chicago that make vegan cakes -- Sweet Cakes (in Ukrainian Village) and Chicago Diner. This year, I got my sons's 2 year old cake from Sweet Cakes -- it was DELICIOUS! Chicago Diner has a deal with Whole Foods, so if it's too hard for you to come to the city, you could order it through them (i think they are at the Whole Foods in the suburbs as well, but you'd have to check). Also Swirlz -- which is a cupcake bakery in chicago -- makes vegan cupcakes that are also great. They sell them at Whole Foods as well.

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C.K.

answers from Chicago on

I bought a box of cake mix from whole food and made one myself. No dairy, no eggs. My son is alergic to egg. The cake taste pretty good.

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P.M.

answers from Chicago on

I think Angelfood cake doesn't contain dairy. you can also make a cake mix using soda in place of the milk. White cake with orange soda tastes great. My son is allergic to dairy, eggs, soy and everything else you can think of. For his birthdays (he's 6) we make a cake and he blows out the candles then I give him a special dish of sorbet topped with strawberries.

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