It’s important to consider all diets when planning what dishes to make for your Thanksgiving dinner. Gluten free diets are especially important to note because eating food with gluten can make some people sick.
We sat down with our friend Lauren, who is gluten free, to ask her about ways you can be accommodating for your gluten free friends and family.
Tip #1: Be knowledgeable about what dishes you are serving that contain gluten. This may seem obvious, but gluten can creep into lots of foods at the Thanksgiving table. Everything with flour contains gluten - meaning stuffing, pies, gravy, and more. Make sure you know which dishes contain gluten, so you can make your gluten free friends and family aware. It’s easy to make things gluten free by using gluten free flour or gluten free bread. Here are some examples:
Tip #2: Be careful of cross contamination. If you are cooking lots of family recipes that contain gluten, sometimes it's best to let your gluten free guests bring their own dishes instead of making two of everything. If you try to make a gluten free and a gluten full version of all your dishes, there is a high potential for cross contamination. Don’t worry - your gluten free guests will understand if you tell them in advance and will be appreciative that their dishes have no chance of being contaminated.
Tip #3: A lot of alcoholic beverages contain gluten. If your family and friends drink alcohol, this is one way you can leave your gluten free guests out without even realizing it. Almost all beer contains gluten and even some wines and spirits. Always make sure to check the labels when you are shopping to make sure there are some gluten free options without barley or wheat. A good rule of thumb is that most ciders are gluten free. This Strongbow cider is one of our favorite gluten free alcoholic options.
Lauren was also generous enough to share her gluten free Thanksgiving cocktail recipe:
Apple cider heated up in a saucepan with cinnamon sticks
The best thing you can do for your gluten free friends and family on Thanksgiving is to be transparent with all of your ingredients. Don’t forget to try the gluten free dishes that they make too. Most of the time you can’t even tell that there’s no gluten! We hope this guide helps you to navigate a gluten free Thanksgiving and make your gluten free friends and family happy!