Allergies and Cake

saacjw

One of my guests is allergic to nuts (in a very severe way). It's been her experience that a lot of pastry chefs say that things don't come into contact with nuts, but do. Would it be appropriate to make her a cupcake or small dessert that we know will be safe? She's only 12 and I don't want her to be left out of the desserts. 

TheDoctor10

The girl and her parents should be pretty well acquainted with how to manage her allergy and mitigate the risks by now, so you needn't take the responsibility of worrying for them. (It sounds a little harsh, but they're better equipped to manage it than you.) 

Providing a separate cake or treat for her, while a very nice gesture, is risky. Unless you're absolutely sure (and then some) that you can provide a treat wherein all ingredients are from nut-free providers and the final product was prepared in a nut-free environment, don't risk it.

(This is all advice I vicariously learned through two close friends in undergrad with severe nut allergies.)

saacjw

I nannied this girl from the time she was an infant, so I'm very familiar with how to deal with her allergies and prepare food for her. I will talk to her parents and see what they want to do though. 

ElisabethJoanne

My sister's in the same boat. At age 12, she would very very much have preferred to skip dessert than to have the show of a separate one. She's very shy and hates attention and standing out in any way.

And there wouldn't be any way to safely serve her something different unobtrusively. It would have to be stored and served separately, so there'd be a scene in her saying "Umm, somewhere there's a special cake for me" and then it being brought over, or however you did it. Remember, at 12, such things can feel like she's a second bride. It's much easier on a shy girl to just decline cake, or take it and pass it to a family member.

But maybe this girl likes being the center of attention.