Gluten Free Thanksgiving

[SAHM2one]

This is going to be mine and my son's first holiday gluten free and my family has agreed to an entire gluten free meal. My job is to come up with recipes for the dishes. We always have the same things so I am trying really hard to find things that will wow them and not turn them away from gluten foods.

If anyone can help me find recipes I would be very grateful. I have found some but they don't have reviews so I just don't know if they are good or not.

On the menu every year is:

Red Velvet cake

Pumpkin Pie

Fried Turkey nuggets (homemade nuggets from a turkey breast)

cranberry sauce (they like jelled and not whole)

gravy

a stuffing or a wild rice

rolls

Also do Turkey's have gluten? Is there a national brand that I need to look for that is safe??

[Amyleigh0007]

This will be my son's and my first gluten free major holiday too. I am very nervous. We travel over 2 hours to a relative's home for Thanksgiving and I am not comfortable enough with that part of the family (my husbands side and we only see them on Thanksgiving) to request gluten free stuff. I guess I will have to pack some food for us, things that will hold up on a long car ride. I would be interested in some tested recipes too.

[SAHM2one]

This will be my son's and my first gluten free major holiday too. I am very nervous. We travel over 2 hours to a relative's home for Thanksgiving and I am not comfortable enough with that part of the family (my husbands side and we only see them on Thanksgiving) to request gluten free stuff. I guess I will have to pack some food for us, things that will hold up on a long car ride. I would be interested in some tested recipes too.

I understand! We are not having Christmas dinner this year with my ILs because I am just really uncomfortable with what they would fix. At 2 Jackson doesn't get why he can't have cake or gravy. I don't want everyone Holiday ruined because of a temper tantrum over food. We are just going to go over after dinner.

[celiac-mommy]

I am doing Thanksgiving this year, my 1st totally gluten-free holiday. I have been pouring over cookbooks and this is what I've come up with so far:

roasted turkey-stuffed with celery, carrots, garlic(for flavor), turkey gravy made with cornstarch

stuffing-cooked outside the bird, made the day before (gluten-free bread and cornbread) Open Original Shared Link

orange sweet potatoes, made the day before Open Original Shared Link

(the oatmeal cookies I will make a few days before)

steamed veggies

rolls-Lorka's flax bread recipe, made the day before

pie crusts I will make the weekend before and freeze, wil fill and bake pies the day before

Traditional Libby's pumpkin pie, gluten-free crust

Ginger apple pie-this is my FAVORITE Open Original Shared Link

Pecan caramel pie-I don't like pecan pie, but I make this every year and it's really good Open Original Shared Link

[sharps45]

To Amy- The two biggest worries about thanksgiving are the stuffing and the gravy. Offer to bring the turkey, stuff it with some of the gluten-free stuffings found in the forum, and make your own gravy with sweet rice flour (not the regular, this kind is much finer) or cornstarch. We too travel, and I've always found it easier to just make what I know is safe and take it with me. Of course if you're flying...?

To SAHM2one- Make the gravy as explained above. Pumpkin pie is easy. Just use a gluten-free pie crust (there are many very good ones in the forum, like the perfect pie crust), and read the ingredients on the filling can carefully. For rolls, I have a recipe for them but it's not like mom used to make, so I always take cornbread. Turkeys just check the labels- they have to list what's in or on them.

It's really not that tough, and I've taken my own pies and no one can tell the difference in the taste.

[GFqueen17]

My mother and I have both been gluten free for four years now so we always have completely gluten free dinners at our house, including thanksgiving. Since your family has agreed to have the entire meal gluten free, it shouldnt be a problem at all. We still make all the same recipes that we made before going gluten free...we just have to use substitutes now.

The stuffing is my favorite. We use a delicious recipe but use rice bread instead of wheat bread...tastes exactly the same in the end. Mashed potatoes are just potatoes, soy milk, and butter. My dad makes a delcious sweet potato casorole...i dont know the recipe exaclty but i know it has yams, walnuts, brown sugar, and probably other spices and things. Then the vegetables and turkey are naturally gluten free of course...seasoned with gluten free seasonings.

The gravy is the tougher part. My dad used to use different gluten free flours stirred into the drippings from the turkey. It tasted pretty good, not bad at all. Recently we found an organic gravy that does not contain any gluten. So maybe check the health food store if you have one near you.

At my house, the thanksgiving dinner tastes exactly the same now as it did before we went gluten free. I bet that just about any recipe that you used to make could still be made using gluten free substitutes. good luck!

[SAHM2one]

Thank you for the suggestions and recipes. I am going to look at them all tomorrow.

[JennyC]

We bring our own food, just to be safe. I like to cook my own anyway, so that we can have leftovers. Here are some recipes that I love:

Sweet potato souffle

Open Original Shared Link

Scalloped Yukon gold and sweet potatoes

Open Original Shared Link

Raspberry & white chocolate cheesecake (I use Kinnikinnick graham crackers crumbs, coca powder and sugar for the crust.)

Open Original Shared Link

I also brine my turkeys. It makes a fabulous turkey!!!

I brine the turkey overnight, then I cook it upside down for for about half the time then flip it. (Gravity forces the juices downward toward the breast.)

1/2 gallon apple cider

2-32 oz containers chicken broth

1 cup Kosher salt

fresh garlic, rosemary, sage, thyme, and savory.

[Sweetfudge]

I am so excited for the holidays. My first Thanksgiving gluten-free terrified me! This year I'm gonna have to make a few more adjustments, as I am now DF as well. But I'm up for it! Here are a few of my favorite recipes:

Stuffing, made with Lorka's flax bread:

Open Original Shared Link

Turkey, roasted, maybe w/ some veggies. I'm opting for just getting a turkey breast this year, I don't really like peeling meat off bones.

Gravy, made w/ pan drippings from the turkey.

I just throw a couple tbsp margarine or oil in a pan, add a couple scoops of featherlight flour mix (Open Original Shared Link) and whisk until blended well. Then, I throw in a bit of salt and pepper, and a cup or so of pan drippings, and a cup of soy/rice/almond milk, and whisk until it thickens.

Mashed potatoes w/ a little soy/rice/almond milk and some DF margarine, and a little shredded goat cheese. (Make extra gravy to go all over these too!)

Rolls - gonna try Rachelle's suggestion, and make them w/ Lorka's flax bread. Haven't had a ton of success w/ rolls in the past.

Haven't tried this recipe, but this sounds easy enough and so yummy for green bean casserole:

Open Original Shared Link

For dessert this year, I would love to come up with a DF chocolate cream pie, but doubt I will be able to do it. I'm probably going to make a strawberry rhubarb pie (using Open Original Shared Link for pie crust), a lemon cream coffeecake, or pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes (both based on recipes by CeliacCollette).

Here's an awesome recipe for a pumpkin roll that I would make if I could still eat cream cheese. Made it for a gluten-free dessert party w/ the local GIG and they loved it! Open Original Shared Link

Wow, typing all this got me totally pumped up! I might have to go out and get a turkey for a pre-thanksgiving dinner this week

[ang1e0251]

Oh man, you guys are getting me in the mood!

For your chocolate cream pie, the filling is easy. Make gluten-free chocolate pudding and as part of the liquid add about a tablespoon of strong coffee. Coffee brings out the flavor of the chocolate, enhancing it and giving it a richer depth.

I think gravy made with cornstarch is excellant.

Making your stuffing outside the bird is safer anyway.

My husband worked for a fancy hotel once and the chef taught him to cook the turkey this way. It's so delicious we've eaten it that way ever since!

The night before about 10- 11 p.m., place a pound of bacon strips on the top of the turkey which is sitting in your roaster. Just criss cross them until all are used. THen HEAVILY coat the bacon with pepper. Put on the roasting lid and bake in a slow oven all night, temp s/b 230 - 250 degrees. No basting, the bacon does that for you. In the morning you'll be starving because the whole house will smell like perfect turkey! At this point, remove the lid and turn up the heat to 350. In an hour or two, it should be browned to perfection. We then remove the bird from the oven and fight over the bacon! This timing works if you eat at noonish. If you eat in the evening, adjust accordingly. This turkey always turns out perfect, Juicy and flavorful with very little effort.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

[celiac-mommy]

The night before about 10- 11 p.m., place a pound of bacon strips on the top of the turkey which is sitting in your roaster. Just criss cross them until all are used. THen HEAVILY coat the bacon with pepper. Put on the roasting lid and bake in a slow oven all night, temp s/b 230 - 250 degrees. No basting, the bacon does that for you. In the morning you'll be starving because the whole house will smell like perfect turkey! At this point, remove the lid and turn up the heat to 350. In an hour or two, it should be browned to perfection. We then remove the bird from the oven and fight over the bacon! This timing works if you eat at noonish. If you eat in the evening, adjust accordingly. This turkey always turns out perfect, Juicy and flavorful with very little effort.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

That sounds amazing!!!

[RissaRoo]

Whoa! That bacon-encrusted turkey sounds *amazing*!

We always brine ours....turns out great, but I am loving the bacon idea....maybe we'll try it this year!

[ang1e0251]

I've also made the bacon turkey as a breast only in the "season" and it is just as good! Just a shorter cooking time. Don't you love Thanksgiving food?

[Wonka]

I also brine my turkeys. It makes a fabulous turkey!!!

[photobabe42]

Last week I was craving Thanksgiving food after reading some posts here. I made a turkey breast, cornbread, cranberry sauce (ok that was from the can), a corn-grits-cheese casserole that someone posted here, and double-cinnamon apple crisp for dessert. It was delicious and easy! I had company and they exclaimed over everything. I should cook Thanksgiving dinner at least once a month

The apple crisp recipe was from Gluten Free Gobsmacked and it was really terrific. I added about 1/4 cup of candy red-hots for extra "kick." Very easy, and works with gluten-free, CF diets. I did not use the oats in the topping.

Open Original Shared Link

[Phyllis28]

I make pumpkin tarts without any crust. Simply make the pumpkin pie filling, pour into single serving foil tart pans and bake. I find the foil tart pans in the grocery store with the other foil baking pans.

[Sweetfudge]

The night before about 10- 11 p.m., place a pound of bacon strips on the top of the turkey which is sitting in your roaster. Just criss cross them until all are used. THen HEAVILY coat the bacon with pepper. Put on the roasting lid and bake in a slow oven all night, temp s/b 230 - 250 degrees. No basting, the bacon does that for you. In the morning you'll be starving because the whole house will smell like perfect turkey! At this point, remove the lid and turn up the heat to 350. In an hour or two, it should be browned to perfection. We then remove the bird from the oven and fight over the bacon! This timing works if you eat at noonish. If you eat in the evening, adjust accordingly. This turkey always turns out perfect, Juicy and flavorful with very little effort.

This really does sound incredible! I'm totally bustin' out the bacon to cover my "pre-thanksgiving" turkey dinner this sunday! Thanks for the idea!

I should cook Thanksgiving dinner at least once a month

I think this is a great plan! I'm totally with ya!

[Live2BWell]

This is a great thread! This will be my first gluten free holiday as well, luckily I have great leeway over what I cook/eat because I don't really go to anyone's house for Thanksgiving, my partner and I have Thanksgiving together. I'll be certain to look over some of these recipes!

[Sweetfudge]

So, we had our pre-thanksgiving dinner last night. It totally rocked! I took ang1e0251's idea of covering the turkey breast with bacon strips, then threw it in the crock pot w/ a cup of chicken broth, some onion powder, and lots of pepper. It was so tender after 8 hrs on low that the meat fell right off the bones. I did flip it once, halfway through. We couldn't really taste the bacon though. It was very good. I also made some gluten-free Bob's Red Mill Bread (cuz I was out of my regular flours), which turned out okay, but was amazing dipped in gravy. I also made green beans (w/ cheese on for DH), mashed potatoes for DH and mashed sweet potatoes for me. It was great, and even better for lunch today

Although, the sweet potato wasn't a very good mashed potato substitute (I'm trying to avoid potatoes). So I think I'll stick to making a sweet potato dessert, or maybe some sweet potato cornbread muffins (this recipe rocks, by the way: Open Original Shared Link.

So, I'm hooked on cooking my turkey in the crockpot now!

[Donna F]

Oh man, you guys are getting me in the mood! The night before about 10- 11 p.m., place a pound of bacon strips on the top of the turkey which is sitting in your roaster. Just criss cross them until all are used. THen HEAVILY coat the bacon with pepper. Put on the roasting lid and bake in a slow oven all night, temp s/b 230 - 250 degrees. No basting, the bacon does that for you. In the morning you'll be starving because the whole house will smell like perfect turkey! At this point, remove the lid and turn up the heat to 350. In an hour or two, it should be browned to perfection. We then remove the bird from the oven and fight over the bacon! This timing works if you eat at noonish. If you eat in the evening, adjust accordingly. This turkey always turns out perfect, Juicy and flavorful with very little effort.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

How many pounds of turkey do you cook for that long? Does it matter? I'd like to try this, This is my first turkey and 1st Thanksgiving I've ever done.

[ang1e0251]

How many pounds of turkey do you cook for that long? Does it matter? I'd like to try this, This is my first turkey and 1st Thanksgiving I've ever done.

We usually cook the biggest turkey we can find cuz we really like leftovers!! But I don't think it matter much because you are cooking at such a low temp. When you turn it up, you're going to keep an eye on it, mostly because you are dying to eat all that bacon! If you're cooking just a breast, then I wouldn't leave it in overnight. I'm trying to remember how long I cooked a breast once. I think I put in before lunch and we had it for dinner. It is a pretty loose recipe, watch your pop-up thingee or meat thermometer for doneness. Let us know how much you love it!!!

[purple]

We usually cook the biggest turkey we can find cuz we really like leftovers!! But I don't think it matter much because you are cooking at such a low temp. When you turn it up, you're going to keep an eye on it, mostly because you are dying to eat all that bacon! If you're cooking just a breast, then I wouldn't leave it in overnight. I'm trying to remember how long I cooked a breast once. I think I put in before lunch and we had it for dinner. It is a pretty loose recipe, watch your pop-up thingee or meat thermometer for doneness. Let us know how much you love it!!!

I was curious too so I looked it up and got this:

Turkey breast in the crock pot

about 6 lbs. 4 1/2 hours on high

" 6 lbs. 5-7 hours

" 6 lbs. 3 hours

" 6 lbs. 4 hours, 1 on high+3 on low

7 1/2 lbs. 6 hours, 1 on high+5 on low

7 lbs. 7 hours

6 lbs. in a 5 Quart crock pot

8-10 hours on low or 4 hours on high

some people said it got done before they planned.

google it on recipezaar.com

My questamation is 6 lbs for 4 hours on high for a thawed breast

pick and choose

[Wonka]

Although, the sweet potato wasn't a very good mashed potato substitute (I'm trying to avoid potatoes).

Have you every tried subbing cauliflower and making a mash? It is actually quite good.

This is the recipe that I like to use. Not skinny food though.

Basic Cauliflower Mash

2 lbs cauliflower, trimmed

sea salt

1/4 cup whipping cream

4 Tbsp unsalted butter

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup cream cheese (I've done these with chevre goat cheese and it was pretty darn good too)

Cut cauliflower, including the core, into 1 inch pieces. Bring a large pot of water to a boil adn salt lightly. Add the cauliflower and cook over medium heat until completely tender, 20 to 30 minutes.

Drain the cauliflower in a colander. With a bowl or small plate, press on the cauliflower to remove all the water. Toss the cauliflower and continue pressing out the water. This step is very important to the texture of the dish.

Transfer the cauliflower to a food processor. Add the cream adn puree until completely smooth. If you like a chunkier texture, mash by hand, adding the cream after the cauliflower is mashed. Return to the pot.

When you are ready to serve the puree, heat over low heat, stirring constantly. Add the butter, Parmesan and cream cheese. Stir until incorporated. Season to taste with salt, if necessary. Serve immediately.

Per serving: Effective Carbohydrates: 4.6g; Carbohydrates: 8g; Fiber:3.4g Protein: 5.4g Fat: 16.6g; Calories: 193

Source: The Low-Carb Gourmet by Karen Baraby Executive chef at The Fish House in Stanley Park

[Donna F]

We usually cook the biggest turkey we can find cuz we really like leftovers!! But I don't think it matter much because you are cooking at such a low temp. When you turn it up, you're going to keep an eye on it, mostly because you are dying to eat all that bacon! If you're cooking just a breast, then I wouldn't leave it in overnight. I'm trying to remember how long I cooked a breast once. I think I put in before lunch and we had it for dinner. It is a pretty loose recipe, watch your pop-up thingee or meat thermometer for doneness. Let us know how much you love it!!!

Will do! Thanks! I ran this by my mom today and said it sounded good, so - something different this year!

Thanks4giving it to me

[missy'smom]

How many pounds of turkey do you cook for that long? Does it matter? I'd like to try this, This is my first turkey and 1st Thanksgiving I've ever done.

My Butterball cookbook says -for cooking at 325-so you'll have to think longer times because of the lower temp. suggested by the other poster-

9-12 pounds stuffed-3 1/2- 4 hrs. unstuffed 3- 3 1/2 hrs.

12-26 pounds stuffed 4 -4 1/2 hrs. unstuffed 3 1/2 - 4 hrs.

16-20 pounds stuffed 4 1/2 -5 hrs. unstuffed 4 - 4 1/2 hrs.

20-24 pounds stuffed 5-6 hrs. unstuffed 4 1/2 to 5 hrs.

but temp is the best indicator of doneness- stuffing should be internal temp. of 160-165 and internal temp of thickest part of thigh, not touching bone should be 180-185