w hotel buffet, originally uploaded by heather.
with the holiday season approaching many of you might be starting to plan and organize dinner parties, brunches, or sending out baking to family, friends and coworkers. if you know you have to prepare some food for someone who is allergic to gluten we have a few suggestions…first, familiarize yourself with what gluten actually is, and how it negatively affects people who are gluten sensitive or someone with Celiac Disease. there is a general lack of awareness when it comes to what the consequences are if someone who is celiac eats gluten, and it’s not always comfortable for the person who is allergic to gluten to discuss their intestinal disorder just so they can clarify how they can best enjoy a meal you have invited them to.
second, it is also important to understand what gluten is and the foods that contain gluten, it also important to understand that cross contamination should be avoided. if your home is not a gluten free home, then it is important that you set aside a set of cookware that you can dedicate to the gluten free cooking you are embarking on. clean it well, and keep it in a separate area of your kitchen during your cooking. for example, you could decide to prepare and cook all your gluten free foods on your kitchen island, and prepare and cook foods that do contain gluten on the counter next to your stove. however once you decide how to segregate the two areas, make sure that other members of your household are aware of your system so they don’t cross contaminate by accident. make a big sign if necessary!
cross contamination can easily happen. If your recipe calls for butter, for example, and you used your butter to spread on toast, and your butter has crumbs on it, don’t use it. be prepared to buy new ingredients that have not been contaminated.
recipes can be simple or complex, and there may be ingredients you are not familiar with, let alone whether or not they contain gluten. to be sure, call your friend or coworker and ask them if they are ok with the ingredient in question. they will really appreciate it, and will be able to offer alternatives if the one you planned to use is questionable.
if your menu ends up being a combination of foods that contain gluten and gluten free foods make sure to keep them separated well on your serving table. it is helpful to indicate which foods are gluten free so that your gluten free guests know with certainty what they can enjoy without having to hunt you down for clarification. it’s also helpful to remind everyone every so often that the gluten free food shouldn’t be contaminated with a spoon that was just dipped in soy sauce for example. (yes soy sauce contains gluten!) as a gluten free guest it can be really disappointing to peruse the buffet table only to find bread or cracker crumbs all over the cheese selection. it is important for the host to take part in this food control, so that the gluten free guests don’t feel like they are imposing on others.
we have both been in situations where there was no planned gluten free food, but by default we were able to eat the cheese and fruit, but found the table to be in such a state that we decided it wasn’t worth the risk to eat anything. this leads to a feeling of alienation, lack of enjoyment, and HUNGER!
learning from these experiences we often come to parties, showers, lunches, with our own food as a backup, and then have to explain to people why we aren’t sharing!
the best advice we can give to someone trying to entertain gluten free, is to make the whole experience gluten free! challenge yourself to find enough recipes, buff up on your ingredient knowledge, and make an experience that everyone can enjoy equally! you will provide your gluten free friends with a completely satisfying and stress-free experience! and your gluten eating friends will never know the difference. kudos to you!
stay tuned for our mom’s Best Gluten Free Turkey Dinner recipes.
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2 comments:
So looking forward to the recipes!!!!
The Turkey dinner is always a crowd pleaser - and you don't feel heavy and bloated after :)
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