Gluten Free Party Food

[Pauliewog]

We are hoping to have a backyard open house type of party for friends. All the things my husband keeps throwing out as food ideas are full of gluten. As he said, "you don't have to eat them." No I don't. But I also don't want muffin crumbs, bun crumbs, cracker crumbs or any other gluten item in my gluten free kitchen/house! I could fire up the BBQ but then I end up spending most of my time cooking rather than mingling. I am looking for snack item suggestions. I should add that I don't live in the US so prepackaged items are impossible. We do have Costco so Costco corn chips and salsa, fresh cut fruit, salads etc. are my only ideas so far.... any suggestions???? I haven't done any entertaining since going gluten-free 1.5 years ago.

 

thanks.

[GF Lover]

A cheesy bean dip with Tostidos.  Home made Chex mix.

[kareng]

You might want to go to the main page and use the google function.  I always go down and check the "as posts" so its easier to read.  Snacks and party food have been big topics.

 

Cheese and crackers,  IF you don't have nice crackers just cheese chunks are good.  A big board of cheese, fruits, olives, nuts, salami....who needs crackers!  You could make mini cornbread muffins, quiches without a crust, pumpkin pie without a crust, chocolate truffles, meatballs in a sauce, chili, taco bar - keep meat hot and spread out the fixings, brownies, cookies,....  Quick breads like pumpkin or banana breads are good gluten-free. 

 

Open Original Shared Link  Take special note of the "spread" that would be good on other "breads"

 

I make a nice pina colada dip for fruit. 

 

I have a cold southwest cheesecake recipe that is gluten-free.  Serve with chips and makes a bunch!  Bacon wrapped tator tots. 

 

Speak up if you need a recipe - we have lots of good ones on here. 

[kareng]

I forgot what country you live in.  What do they serve for parties like this?  Could you just do the gluten-free ones or maybe tweak them to be gluten-free?

[Adalaide]

I've made these for a get-together before. They are really amazing. I make them as mini-muffins, you can just use a really fine shredder for the apples if you do that rather than dicing them as small as you'd have to. My gluten eating husband loves the things so much I barely get any when I make them.

 

Open Original Shared Link

[notme]

deviled eggs, jalapeno poppers, corn tortilla taquitos, cocktail weenies, i even make mini crab cakes that are gluten-free - just sub regular bread crumbs for gluten-free.... 

[LauraTX]

I do not serve gluten to guests at my house, because they don't know how to not contaminate everything in their path.  Only a few select people who understand me are allowed to consume gluten around me, haha.  I always put it like this if I am given trouble with it by someone.  

 

"If you were allergic to peanuts and had a peanut-free kitchen, would you still serve peanuts to your guests?"  And when they respond "No, that would be ridiculous!"  I say, "Exactly!!!!"  and it drives the point across well.

 

I think the idea of a taco bar is a good idea.  Then you can only put out gluten-free taco shells/nacho chips (if anyone asks if you have tortillas just say "oops only bought hard shells!"), plus all the toppings that are naturally gluten-free.  Also, meatballs are really easy to make ahead of time if you cannot find them pre-made, and heat them up the day of.  A crock pot is great for that.  You can make baked pasta and people can never tell the pasta is gluten free.  Buy some big foil pans, throw in cooked pasta/sauce and some cheese on top, hands-off preparation just pop them in and out of the oven.   For grilled items, you could do meat and veggie skewers, those you can put together ahead of time and they cook up quickly.

 

If you do a cheese/fruit platter, you can probably get away with serving gluten-free crackers as well, people will just think they are some fancy brand.  But for me, I try to not waste so much money on food people will possible turn their nose up at, so I usually will not buy a gluten-free substitute item to serve to guests except for pasta, I stick to things that are naturally gluten free.

 

If you do a taco bar, here is a recipe for mexican rice, you can multiply the recipe very easily, it is mild but tasty.  Was given to me by a mexican friend

 

Mexican Rice

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 C long grain white rice

2 C chicken broth

1/2 onion or 1 shallot

1 whole tomato,seeded

1 tsp. garlic powder

Salt & pepper to taste

 

Heat oil in saucepan over medium-low heat.   Add rice and brown until golden brown.  Carefully add chicken broth and grate in onion and tomato. Add garlic powder, salt, and pepper.  Bring to a boil and then simmer 25 minutes, covered, until rice is done.

 

To prevent the rice from being soggy, use grated tomato towards total liquid volume measurement if the tomato is really juicy.

[Pauliewog]

Thank you for all the ideas! The recipes all look good for any occassion!

[Juliebove]

Stuffed tomatoes.  Cut the tops off of little cherry tomatoes.  Use a melon baller or tiny spoon to hollow them out.  Let sit on paper towels, upside down while you prepare the stuffing.  There are various recipes online and I don't have exact amounts but you will need crisply cooked bacon, finely crumbled, chopped green onions and mayo.  Mix together and fill.  If you want, you can put the tops back on and spear with a frilly toothpick.  Cover a platter with curly parsley to help prevent them from rolling around.  Chill for up to 2 hours before serving so the bacon doesn't get soggy.

 

Popcorn.

 

Hummus cups.  Cut cucumbers into chunks, hollow out with a small spoon or melon baller to form a cup.  Fill with hummus.

 

Stuffed celery.  Cut in chunks and stuff with peanut butter and/or soft cheese.

 

Nuts.

 

gluten-free pretzels.  Most people love these!

 

Mini crustless quiches.  Basically eggs or egg product (like Egg beaters) mixed with shredded cheese, chopped meat and/or vegetables.  You can bake these in cupcake tins.  Sorry, I don't have the recipe offhand but there are many online.  South Beach has one such recipe.