Our No 2 son got eczema at 5 months of age.  His skin was pretty terrible and his cheeks were a bleeding, weeping mess.  It was awful.  We kept going to the doctor, who kept prescribing medication that really didn’t do anything.  Finally we found a doctor who sent him for testing in Melbourne.  We made an appointment, and waited. The waiting list was months away.

When we had him tested he was allergic to dairy, egg (got an epi pen he was THAT allergic), and basically a whole lot of other things.  He was taken off everything he was eating and was reduced to bread, potatoes, chicken, apples, pears and a smattering of other vegetables.  It was fantastic that he wasn’t gluten intolerant or I don’t know what I would have fed him.

He wasn’t allowed outside until his face cleared up (which is hard for a 2 year old – this was how long it took us to get a doctor to do something and then how long we had to wait for an appointment).  He was prescribed creams 3 to 4 times a day for a week and antibiotics.  Well he cleared up within 7 days, it was amazing, he could go outside and play again.  His cheeks were quite red for a long time but it has now cleared up.  We thought with all the creams over the years that he may have some skin damage, but praise the Lord his cheeks are just smooth and beautiful.

So over the last 4 years it has come and gone, we had another breakout after travelling to visit family and I thought it was back in full force again.  But after a period of time (and only eating what he was allowed) it went away again.  I am happy to say that his face is still clear, which is great, he still has to deal with it on his inner arms and behind his knees, but that is fairly manageable.

So I suppose the point of this post is to share with you a chocolate cake recipe that I used so that he could at least have something special and a birthday cake.  I became quite adept at cooking without dairy and eggs and really basically substituted butter for olive oil.

Anyway here is the recipe,  it sure put a smile on our little boys face.

Chocolate Cake

• 3 cups flour
• 2 cups white sugar (I always use raw)
• 2 tsp baking soda (bi carb soda)
• 6 tblsp cocoa
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups cold water
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp vinegar
• 10 tblsp olive oil

Mix dry ingredients, add remaining ingredients.  Bake at 190 degrees for 35 mins or until skewer comes out clean.

When I made this cake for our son I iced it with a chocolate icing and changed the butter for water.

OPTIONAL EXTRA:  when mixing you can add frozen raspberries.

This mixture is also great for muffins as well.

No 1 daughter made this cake for our local show and won first prize in the relevant section. (even after the cake had hit the ground, face down – it was covered in glad wrap!!!!)

ENJOY

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