funny.  There are times I feel more comfortable with an at home challenge.  My complaint is that I don't always think shocking the system with vast amounts of a new food is the best way to go.  They told me to challenge my non-allergic 5 year old at home with peanuts because he had never had any...I sat in the ER parking lot.  They told me to challenge the child in question at home with black beans which initially baffled me because he had vomited, his RAST was never very high, and it was still just barely positive when they gave me the clear.  It took me 2 years to get up the guts to do it.  However, I am glad we have been able to do that one MY way.  1/4 of a bean baked into a brownie for many days, then 1/2 a bean, and finally now we've done 1 full bean.  We will try to keep going with this and so far zero symptoms.  But I am tempted to brush his lip with an almond before the challenge because if we can't get past that, there's no point with all this anxiety and planning and hope.
Brownie

Dr. Wood did not explain this thinking.  He has been pretty tight lipped with me since I shared that I knew he felt ambivalent about the existence of an actual shellfish allergy and asked why he wasn't challenging.  I believe he thinks I am a risk for at home trials.  To be clear, I am NOT. 

I am, however, a risk for switching to an allergist with a shorter wait time for challenges if I can figure out what should be up, but I doubt he feels protective about that.

Here's what I did for our hazelnut challenge--

1.  obtained in-shell nuts-- from supplier that (mostly) handles only those tree nuts (but also some walnut/almond), but DEFINITELY no peanuts--

2. Washed them in copious amounts of hot water and a single drop of dishsoap  to act as a mild surfactant

3.  Rinsed them in even MORE copious amounts of water

4.  Dried on a cookie sheet in the oven, set at about 150F, for a couple of hours.

5.  Cracked inside a large freezer bag, outside

6.  Ground in a cheap electric coffee grinder.

Obviously, buying safe shelled nuts from a supplier that can assure you about processing is a better option if you have it.

Wonderful brand almonds are safe.

Zinke (?) is (reputedly) another supplier which processes ONLY almonds.

Ok great.  I have blue diamond in the freezer for my oldest who is just PA, but I noticed a tree nut warning.  I was hoping I could buy unshelled and that would make the risk miniscule, esp if walnut x-contam is not a risk.  Where do you find Barney Butter? I see it on Amazon.  Brownie

Barney Butter is safe for PN and TN (except coconut). Blue Diamond is no longer safe for other tree nuts.

I used hazelnut meal (made in a cheap coffee grinder that I figured I could pitch if the challenge were a fail) and flax seed meal for our last challenge-- allergist mixed them into applesauce.

Blue Diamond is safe for PA but not sure about cross contact with other nuts. I think Barney butter is safe for PA but again not sure about other tree nuts. Worth a call.

That's a good idea if there's a safe almond butter.  He is opposed to using almond butter because of the stronger flavor, but I should at least try at home to get him used to the flavor by trying sunbutter ahead of time.
Brownie

What about almond butter?  You could mix in bits of almond butter into sunbutter or something else that is similar but safe.  One would mask the flavour of the other maybe?

CMDeux, My husband just said the same thing...see if we can do the challenge blinded.  I will have to ask and also figure out how that would work.  I can't think how I would manage this unless I crush it into a powder ahead of time.  But I am concerned about this.  I thought his bean reaction was psychosomatic until the test came back positive...because he didn't want to eat it and then he vomited.  He was young then but he is my anxious/emotional kiddo.

Yup-- this is the next on on our list.  I think that DD is actually allergic, and her SPT to it come and go, but... she DID pass hazelnut with no problems, though we know she is highly allergic to pistachio/cashew and now, evidently to walnuts.

I'd go for it if you trust your allergist's judgment and s/he knows your child well. 

Just make sure to bring in something that is a look-alike that can serve as a "control" and then the allergist can switch them over at some point in the first four doses.  That's what we always do just to make VERY sure that anything subjective is real.  DD has never ""reacted"" during such a challenge, by the way (that is, with psychosomatic complaints). 

DS did an oral challenge to almond last year, and he passed. His allergist is @ Mt. Sinai, and even though his RAST and SPT weren't completely negative (don't remember his RAST # and he had a small wheal), she felt he had a good chance of passing - and he did. 

It has literally been life changing. Almond butter and almonds have given him a great source of non-perishable protein which has been great for traveling.

She thinks he might pass chick pea too, but he has no interest in doing it. Stinker.

I'd go for it, assuming you trust your allergist.  I wish our's would offer challenges to DS.  We haven't been with her a year yet and just finished up weekly allergy shots so I am hoping there will be some in DS's future.