gluten free Thanksgiving made easy
You might call it fear of cardboard.
Preparing your first Thanksgiving dinner without gluten or including several gluten free dishes sounds daunting, but many turkey-day favorites are gluten free naturally or only require small tweaks.
“Going to someone’s house or trying to cook, (people think) I’m not going to have my stuffing, gravy and pumpkin pie,” says Nick Davis, Whole Foods’ regional executive chef for the Rocky Mountain region.
However, he says, many of those dishes can still be delicious with substitutions.
“You can work it into the plan, instead of making little bitty things just for them and singling them out,” he says. “It’s easy to make a super feast without using wheat flour.”
Already gluten free
One of the easiest ways to make Thanksgiving gluten free is to choose dishes that don’t have gluten in them anyway. When it comes to stuffing, cornbread is a great alternative, Davis says. It’s a stuffing that’s traditional in the South and requires no gluten whatsover, as long as you make sure the cornbread itself is gluten free — made only with cornmeal or with cornmeal with a gluten free flour such as rice or tapioca. When choosing cornmeal, look for one that says it’s gluten free. Some are packed on the same machinery as wheat flour and may be contaminated. Davis says Bob’s Red Mill makes gluten free cornbread mixes.
Cornbread stuffing is versatile. Some are made with bacon, others with sausage. Some lean Cajun with Andouille sausage and Louisiana’s “trinity” of celery, onion and green pepper. Others have a Southwestern flair with chilies and chorizo.
Many other dishes — squash, potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn and green beans — that frequently appear on the Thanksgiving table don’t have gluten.
Da gravy
Gravy, also, isn’t that complicated. The simplest way is to use cornstarch instead of all-purpose flour to thicken the mixture of pan drippings and stock. To use cornstarch or arrowroot, add it to cold water and make a slurry before adding to gravy. Davis says both rice flour and potato flour work well when made into a roux.
Mary Capone, Boulder cookbook author and founder of Bella Gluten Free mixes, says she likes to use tapioca or potato starch mixed with cold water as a thickener or roux made from tapioca flourand butter.
She also makes a pear gravy with marjoram that includes pear juice and dark rum along with the stock, drippings, tapioca flour and butter.
“It’s lovely,” she says.
Boulder cookbook author Elana Amsterdam makes a gravy that doesn’t require any starch as thickener. Instead, she boils onion and garlic in stock until soft and then purees them to thicken the gravy.
Bread
Here’s where it’s necessary to venture a bit into the world of those who live gluten free all the time. If you must have bread stuffing or rolls, you’ll have to go with a substitute for wheat flour. Davis of Whole Foods suggests using Denver-based Udi’s Gluten Free bread.
Capone uses her Pizza Dough, Rolls Foccacia Mix. She uses that in her mother’s Italian-influenced bread stuffing, which contains Italian sausage and parmesan cheese.
For roll lovers, she suggests an alternative: popovers made with rice and tapioca flour.
PieMaking gluten free pie crust can also be tricky. Frozen varieties are available and Capone’s Bella Gluten Free Baking Mix or other gluten free mixes can be substituted. Amsterdam of Elana’s Pantry suggests using her go-to wheat flour substitute of choice: blanched almond flour.
Amsterdam, who wrote “The Gluten Free Almond Flour Cookbook” and “Gluten Free Cupcakes,” says the flour goes nicely with desserts.
“It has a rich, sweet buttery flavor,” she says.
It’s also high in protein. She uses Honeyville almond flour, which is available in the bulk section of Whole Foods, in her recipes.
She says her tart crust made with the flour is good for pumpkin, pecan or any pie.
Hide and seek
If you’re cooking gluten free for the first time, it’s important to watch out for hidden gluten. It’s especially common in processed foods. Avoid foods with ingredients such as wheat starch or hydrolized protein. If possible, look for a product designated gluten free. Look carefully at canned broths and even the turkey itself. If you’re buying a turkey that says it has been brined with a solution, that solution may contain wheat. Better to buy a natural or organic turkey and brine it yourself. It’s simple and also allows you to serve a turkey without preservatives such as sodium benzoate, which are typically contained in pre-brined turkeys.
The secret ingredient
Most of all, remember that Thanksgiving is as much about the people gathered as the food. Inclusiveness is the whole point. If you’re making a special effort for someone, do so with a generous heart. Remember how lucky you are to be exactly where you are, in your kitchen, even amid all the chaos, feeding people you love. Infuse your food with gratitude and it will taste just fine.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Gluten Free Tart Crust
2 cups blanched almond flour
1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 egg
Directions: Place flour and salt in food processor and pulse briefly. Add coconut oil and egg and pulse until mixture forms a ball.
Press dough into a 9-inch metal tart pan. Place pie filling of your choice in crust.
Bake pie as directed per pie recipe
Source: Elana Amsterdam, elanaspantry.com
Herb Gravy
1 quart chicken stock
2 medium onions, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic
Pan drippings from roasted turkey
1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt
1 tablespoon thyme, chopped
Directions: In a medium saucepan, heat chicken stock, onions and garlic to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer until onions and garlic are soft, about 30 minutes.
Pour pan drippings into saucepan. Blend stock-onion-drippings mixture in a Vitamix or blender until smooth.
Place mixture back in saucepan and reheat, then season with salt and thyme.
Serve over turkey, mashed cauliflower, or anything else.
Source: Elana Amsterdam, elanaspantry.com
Cranberry Apple Stuffing
1/2 cup dried cranberries (fruit juice sweetened)
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup finely chopped celery
2 medium granny smith apples, cored and chopped into 1 inch cubes (about 2 cups)
1/2 cup finely chopped Italian parsley
1 loaf Gluten Free Bread 2.0, cut into 1-inch cubes (see recipe below)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon celtic sea salt
Directions: Soak dried cranberries in chicken broth for 1-2 hours.
Heat grapeseed oil in a large skillet, over medium heat. Saute onion until soft, about 15 minutes. Add celery and saute for 10 more minutes. Add apple and parsley and saute for 3 minutes, until apples just begin to soften. Transfer mixture to a very large bowl.
Bake bread cubes on a parchment paper lined baking sheet for 5-10 minutes at 350 degrees.
Cool bread cubes for 20 minutes after removing from oven. Stir bread cubes into vegetable mixture. Whisk eggs and salt into cranberry-chicken broth mixture. Add egg-cranberry mixture to stuffing, tossing to combine. Transfer stuffing to a 9-by-13- inch glass baking dish.
Bake stuffing at 350 degrees uncovered until cooked through and browned on top, about 40 minutes. Let stand 10-15 minutes. Serve.
Source: Elana Amsterdam, elanaspantry.com
Bread 2.0
11/2 cups blanched almond flour
3/4 cup arrowroot powder
1/4 cup golden flaxseed meal
1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
4 eggs
1 teaspoon agave nectar
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Directions: In a medium bowl, combine almond flour, arrowroot, flax meal, salt and baking soda .
In a larger bowl, blend eggs 3-5 minutes until frothy. Stir agave and vinegar into eggs. Mix dry ingredients into wet.
Pour or scoop batter into a well greased 7.5-by-3.5-inch loaf pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of loaf comes out clean. Cool and serve. Makes 1 medium sized loaf.
Source: Elana Amsterdam, elanaspantry.com
Crusty Popovers
4 eggs
1 cup milk or milk alternative
1/3 cup tapioca flour
2/3 cup white rice flour
Dash of salt
Directions: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Preheat a 12-cup muffin tin for 5 minutes. This is a very important step for popovers. A warm muffin tin helps to facilitate the rising of the batter. Let the tin stay in the oven until you are ready to pour in the batter.
In a blender, add eggs and milk and pulse just until blended. Then add the tapioca flour, white rice flour and salt and pulse until combined.
Remove your baking tin (remember, it will be hot.) Lightly grease with cooking spray. Pour in the batter, filling each muffin cup, 3/4 full. Fill any empty muffin cups with water to ensure even baking.
Bake 25 minutes, or until popovers are puffed high and are a rich, golden brown. For puffiest popovers, avoid opening the oven door before 25 minutes. Serve immediately.
Variations:
Garlic and herb popovers: Mix in after salt: 2 tablespoons fresh herbs (such as rosemary, basil, thyme, sage or a combination), stemmed and chopped fine, and 1 clove minced garlic.
Parmesan cheese popovers: Mix in after salt: 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese and 1 tablespoon finely chopped Italian parsley.
Yorkshire pudding popovers: Add 1 tablespoon of meat dripping to bottom of muffin cups before adding batter.
Makes 10
Source: Mary Capone, bellaglutenfree.com
Fresh Marjoram and Pear Gravy
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons tapioca flour
2 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 cup pan drippings
1 cup pear juice
3 tablespoons fresh marjoram
2 tablespoons dark rum
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions: Melt butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add tapioca flour and whisk 3–5 minutes until the roux is a light brown and well combined. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan bring to boil chicken broth, pan drippings (if any), pear juice and marjoram. If you do not have pan drippings, increase your broth by one cup.
Add roux, one tablespoons at a time whisking constantly until you achieve desired thickness.
Simmer over low heat until gravy reduces to 4 cups, about 10 minutes.
Add rum and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.
Makes 4 cups.
Notes: To judge the consistency of your gravy, allow a 1 or 2 minutes of whisking between each addition of the tapioca roux before adding more. Gravy is ready when it has reduced to about 4 cups and is thick enough to coat the back of your spoon. If your gravy becomes too thick, add more pan drippings or broth. If it is too thin, continue to reduce or add additional roux.
Source: Mary Capone, bellaglutenfree.com
Mama Capone’s Sausage and Parmesan Cheese Stuffing
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 cup celery, diced
1 pound gluten-free Italian sausage, casing removed
1 tablespoon fresh sage, finely chopped (or 2 teaspoon dried sage)
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, finely chopped
1/4 cup Italian flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1/4 cup pine nuts
2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon pepper, or more to taste
2 loaves gluten-free bread
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
2 eggs
Directions: Over medium heat, in a large saucepan or stockpot, add olive oil and onions and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add celery and cook for another 5 minutes.
Remove casing from the Italian sausage and add to pan. Brown sausage, breaking it up into small, bite-size pieces; add sage, thyme, parsley, pine nuts, salt and pepper.
Cut gluten-free bread into 1/2-inch chunks. Lightly dampen with water and squeeze out any moisture. Transfer to the pan. Cook over low heat to allow any excess moisture to dry out.
Add Parmesan cheese to the pan and stir, combining with the bread mixture. Remove from stove and let cool.
Place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. (Can be made the day before.) Remove 1/2 hour before stuffing your turkey and add eggs to the stuffing mixture. Mix in thoroughly. Either stuff the turkey, or cook in the oven in a covered baking dish for 2 hours along with the turkey, basting periodically with turkey drippings. Remove cover for the last hour and let brown.
Source: Mary Capone, bellaglutenfree.com
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