Cream Cheese Pastry with Pumpkin (or fruit jam)

Sweet & tasty breakfast pastry perfect for holidays

It can be almost impossible to find safe bakery goods when dealing with nut and egg allergies. Almost all professional bakeries use a wide variety of treenuts and peanuts or peanutbutter. Many doughs and fillings contain eggs. Some baked goods, especially gluten-free versions, use nutmeals in lieu of flour. Some piecrusts feature ground nuts. And egg washes on pies, tarts, and pastries to make them shiny & golden are common. Even if the ingredients for a specific baked good don’t contain the allergens, the abundance of the allergens in the kitchen contributes to a high risk of cross-contamination. The same high risk can be found in cafeteria or buffet settings, especially if serving utensils are used for more than one food item or people are handling food while eating. Unfortunately, even unintentional trace amounts of an allergen can lead to life-threatening or fatal reactions. Which can lead to some really diligent, but often criticized proactive behavior by the parents of children with severe food allergies. And which is why many parents experience a bit of anxiety when eating out or prefer to make their children’s food at home.

An example of both the danger of cross-contamination, and the benefits of strong parental advocacy, can be found in the story of Sabrina Shannon.

PHOTO CREDIT: Anaphylaxis Canada

Excerpted from an article published by Allergic Living “Sabrina’s Law: The Girl and the Allergy Law,” written by Gwen Smith (February 2006)

               “ON SEPTEMBER 29, 2003, Sabrina balked at her mother’s efforts to have her take yet another allergen-free sandwich to school. She told her mom that the previous week, she’d eaten French fries once in the cafeteria after checking that they didn’t contain any of her allergy triggers [peanuts, soy, and dairy products]. The fries were safe – and tasty – and she wanted eat them again at lunch today. Sara Shannon resisted at first, but she also trusted Sabrina’s judgment. Her daughter had always been responsible about her allergies, asking the right questions before eating, always carrying her EpiPen in her backpack, along with the puffer for her asthma. Sara agreed.”

“Around 11:40 that morning, Sabrina and her best friend went to the cafeteria, and Sabrina ordered fries after again making sure that they were cooked in vegetable rather than peanut oil. In the class after lunch, Sabrina began to wheeze. Thinking she was having an asthma attack, the teen headed for the school office at the other end of the building. By the time she got there, Sabrina was in trouble, and kept repeating ‘it’s my asthma.’”

“A teacher raced to Sabrina’s locker to get her EpiPen in case it was in fact her food allergies; school officials called an ambulance. Sabrina collapsed and lost consciousness, going into cardiac arrest before the EpiPen could be administered, before the ambulance arrived.”

“On September 30, 2003 a day after her reaction, Sabrina was removed from life support and died.”

“Later, it would be determined that her devastated condition was the result of anaphylaxis due to food allergy. The coroner posited that the allergic trigger was dairy protein, which Sabrina would have been exposed to through cross-contamination from tongs used to lift her fries. Those same tongs had also been used to serve orders accompanied by poutine, the French Canadian accompaniment of gravy and melted cheese curds. She would have been allergic to the curds.”

“At a press conference in Ottawa almost a year after Sabrina’s death, Dr. Andrew McCallum, the chief coroner for Eastern Ontario, called for the implementation of comprehensive anaphylaxis management plans in the schools, and said that high schools, in particular, needed to pay better attention to the need to protect allergic children such as Sabrina. All schools, he said, should keep EpiPens available in the school office and staff and teachers must have proper training in the use of the device. Then Sara Shannon stepped up to the microphone to tell the assembled media that, while her daughter lay dying, 'I made a promise to Sabrina that I would do whatever is possible to prevent this fate from happening to any other child. Please help me to keep my promise,' she said softly.”

“…After all the delays, the government suddenly convened the standing committee’s review [of legislation to protect students with food allergies] in early May 2005. On May 16, the final vote on Bill 3 – Sabrina’s Law - was held in the legislature. As parents and allergic children watched intently from the public gallery, all three parties voted in favour of Sabrina’s Law; it passed unanimously. The law, which took effect January 1, 2006, requires school boards to have all principals implement anaphylaxis plans that include: strategies to reduce exposure to allergens, procedures to communicate to parents, students and employees about life-threatening allergies, and regular training on dealing with life-threatening allergies for teachers and staff.”

Ontario was the first province in Canada to enact Sabrina’s Law. Hopefully the US will follow suit with a similar law in the near future. So far laws to protect American children with food allergies are spotty or nonexistent. Every school district has different policies. Some districts are more aware and accommodating for children – Massachusetts in particular has an outstanding comprehensive plan for schools – while other districts resist training their staff or taking any responsibility. We have a long way to go in America…but many of us are inspired by Sara Shannon and Sabrina and we will keep working to keep our children safe.

“While some states have anaphylaxis programs in their schools, other jurisdictions in the United States are still disputing whether children are allowed to carry medication in the form of EpiPens in their schools. Rachel Sanzari [Administrator of Food Allergy Initiative in USA] thinks a law in a province the size of Ontario ‘will serve as a model here in the United States.’”

Sabrina's legacy also lives on in an audio documentary she recorded, "A Nutty Tale," when she was 10 years old. You can listen here. And her parents' advocacy efforts are highlighted in a documentary film, "Sabrina's Law," by the National Film Board of Canada. You can see more information here.

Now on to the baking!

This recipe was inspired by Kelsey’s “Sopapilla Cheesecake” on the Welcome to my Yellow Umbrella blog. I liked the taste, but it didn’t fit my idea of a typical cheesecake. However, any disappointment immediately vanished as I realized it was *perfect* as a breakfast pastry. I’ve tweaked the original recipe, which uses already prepared crescent roll dough, saving time and guaranteeing a flaky, golden finish. I’m guessing that prepared puff pastry could work too. I prepare this in an 8x8 pan, as I have a small family. The recipe can easily be doubled for a 13x9x2 pan.

Cream Cheese Pastry with Pumpkin

Ingredients:

PASTRY

1 can crescent rolls (I use Pillsbury as they are quite good with allergy labeling)

FRUIT FILLING*

½ - 1 cup Spiced Pumpkin Butter (recipe for homemade can be found here)

8 oz cream cheese, whipped

½ cup maple syrup

½ tsp vanilla extract

½ stick butter, melted (4 Tbsp)

TOPPING

handful toasted seeds – either pumpkin seed kernels or sunflower seeds

~Tbsp of maple syrup

*NOTE – use as much pumpkin butter as needed to cover in even layer; if opting for other fruit flavor substitute with fresh berries, fruit slices, chunky jam or even a little pie filling.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Take half the crescent rolls, unroll and place in bottom of a nonstick 8x8 pan. Stretch the dough to fit into corners and pinch perforations in dough together to make single square bottom.

This photo shows dough at bottom with pumpkin butter being spread over

Spread Spiced Pumpkin Butter (or other fruit) in generous and even layer across pastry and leaving a small border of pastry still showing around edges. I suggest keeping Spiced Pumpkin Butter away from sides of pan to prevent sticking.

In small mixing bowl combine whipped cream cheese, syrup, extract, and butter using whisk or wooden spoon. Pour mixture over the Spiced Pumpkin Butter (or fruit) layer and spread carefully using a spatula.

This photo shows thick cream cheese layer going over pumpkin butter

Take remaining half of crescent rolls. Unroll. Either use rolls separately (easier to work with) or pinch perforations together to form a single sheet. Carefully stretch and flatten the dough to cover a 8x8 square shape. I do this working with one triangle roll at a time – I flatten and stretch before I gingerly place on fillings and then try to match up and pinch together pieces to get a more uniform top pastry.

Using a pastry brush, spread maple syrup all over the pastry dough. Sprinkle on seeds. I love the bright green color of the pumpkin kernels, but either kernels or sunflower seeds will add a nice contrasting crunch.

Put in oven for ~30 minutes to bake dough and get pastry top golden brown.

Fresh out of the oven showing golden browning and sprinkling of seeds

Allow to completely cool before serving. The taste is good while warm, but the filling will be runny. Cut into rectangular slices. Allowing the pastry to cool sets up the filling and allows the pastry to be picked up and eaten without a fork. Refrigerate any leftovers. You can also chill for an hour or longer - once the pastry is completely cooled – and serve it cold.

VEGAN SUGGESTION: substitute nondairy cream cheese and margarine for butter

ALLERGENS: dairy, wheat

ALLERGY ACCOMMODATIONS: Replace cream cheese with nondairy version; replace butter with margarine (or just leave out butter); To replace wheat – I’m not aware of any brand for commercially made gluten-free crescent rolls, but there are numerous recipes for homemade versions and you’ll need to search and compare especially if you’re avoiding other allergens as well (some versions call for dairy or even egg; each version uses different types of gluten-free baking flours).