A Gluten-Free Thanksgiving

Do yourself a big favor and make Thanksgiving gluten free! With the exception of bread stuffing, a gluten-free Thankgiving is likely to be as easy and cost just a tiny bit more than a NGF meal. If you have any favorite gluten-free Thanksgiving recipes we'll gladly post them!

Pie
That lovely pie was made using the Perfect Pie Crust recipe that was handed out at the meeting. The dough is monkey easy to make, can be made ahead and frozen. Just be sure to roll when it's cold, very cold!

If you aren't interested in making your own pie crust, Whole Foods Gluten-Free Bakehouse now sells a frozen gluten-free pie crust. Phone first or you may be disappointed when you arrive and they are sold out.

Stuffing/Dressing
This requisite dish might be the most difficult of the Thanksgiving foods to convert because gluten-free breads tend to break down as soon as liquid is added. If your family loves stuffing you might want to give it a trial run so as not to disappoint. A couple of (possibly) useful tips from my experience, toast the bread until very, very dry and limit mixing after the liquid has been added. The more you stir, the more it breaks down and you won't be happy if you like bread cube stuffing. If you prefer a stuffing that's broken down, then by all means stir away! If any of you do stuffing trials, please let us know how they turn out.

5 Stuffing Recipes from Glutenfreeda - Including the Herbed Bread Stuffing recipe using Van's Waffles that was shared at the meeting

Gluten-Free Waffle Dressing - Sheri

Rice Bread Stuffing - Lynne D.
1 large onion, minced
1 cup diced celery
6 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons minced parsley
6 to 8 cups crumbled gluten-free bread *
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
salt to taste
*At the meeting Lynne said she uses the end pieces of gluten-free bread.

Saute onion and celery in butter until tender, add poultry seasoning and parsley. Pour this mixture over the bread in a large mixing bowl. Stir until blended, then add the broth a little at a time until the dressing is as most moist as you like. Add salt to taste.

Makes enough to stuff a 10-12 pound turkey or bake in a greased 2 1/2 quart casserole in a preheated 325 degree oven for 45 minutes.

Wild Rice, Cranberries, Walnuts Stuffing in an Acorn Squash (or not) - Tracy
The Thanksgiving Table, Diane Morgan

4 acorn or dumpling squash
Freshly ground pepper
Freshly ground nutmeg
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups wild rice [plain, no spices added]
1 3/4 cups canned GF vegetable broth
1/4 teaspoon salt, plus extra to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion (about 12 ounces), finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 large ribs celery, finely chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 tablespoon minced fresh sage
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley
1 package (6 ounces) hickory-baked tofu, cut into 1/4-inch dice [Tracy omits this]
3/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
3/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries

Tracy Notes: If serving this on Thanksgiving along with sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, etc. the acorn squash is superfluous. The wild rice mixture is great without the fancy container.

Serves 8. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Cut each squash in half crosswise. Scoop out and discard the seeds and strings. If necessary, trim the top and bottom so that the squash will sit level, and place on a rimmed baking sheet, cut side up. Sprinkle each half with a little salt, pepper, and nutmeg, to taste. Using 2 tablespoons of the butter, dot each half with some butter. Cover the pan with foil and bake the squash just until moist and tender, about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the rice, vegetable broth, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 2 cups of water, in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer, partially cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the rice is tender, about 40 minutes.

In a 10-inch sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Swirl to coat the pan and sauté the onion, garlic, celery, and carrot until slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Cover the pan, adjust the heat to medium-low, and cook the vegetables until crisp-tender, 5 minutes longer. Add the sage, thyme, and parsley and sauté 1 more minute. Remove from the heat.

In a large bowl, combine the cooked rice, sautéed vegetables, tofu, walnuts, and dried cranberries. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if desired. Mound the rice mixture into the squash halves, dividing it evenly. Cut the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter into small pieces.
Dot each stuffed squash with butter. Cover with foil. Bake at 350ºF until heated through, about 20 minutes.

Cornbread for Cornbread Stuffing/Dressing - Susan
The Gluten-Free Kitchen, Roben Ryberg
1 egg
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup oil
1/3 cup potato starch
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 teapoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon guar gum (xanthan gum can be subbed)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In medium bowl, combine egg, buttermilk and oil. Mix well. Add all other ingredients and mix well, being sure to remove any lumps. Batter will be a bit thin. Pour batter into a greased 9x9 baking ban and bake for 25-29 minutes or until cornbread tests done with a toothpick and top is lightly browned.

Springy Cornbread - Tracy's favorite

Veggies and Sides
Scalloped Corn - Sheri

Creamed Spinach - Tracy
Gourmet, December 2004
Makes 10 servings

3 pounds baby spinach [have also used frozen with good results]
1 1/4 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
2 tablespoons sweet rice flour
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Tracy Notes: I often use frozen spinach making sure to remove as much moisture as possible. Normally I only add 2/3 of the sauce to the spinach.

Cook spinach in 2 batches in 1 inch of boiling salted water in an 8-quart pot, stirring constantly, until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold running water until cool. Squeeze small handfuls of spinach to remove as much moisture as possible, then
coarsely chop.

Heat milk and cream in a small saucepan over moderate heat, stirring, until warm. Meanwhile, cook onion in butter in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Whisk in flour and cook roux, whisking, 3
minutes. Add warm milk mixture in a fast stream, whisking constantly to prevent lumps, and simmer, whisking, until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir i nutmeg, spinach, and salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring, until heated through.

Gourmet Notes: Creamed spinach can be made 1 day ahead and cooled completely, uncovered, then chilled, covered. Reheat over moderately low heat until hot.

Grean Bean Casserole Information
Funyons or thinly sliced onions dredged in rice flour and then fried in oil would be good toppers.
Progresso, Pacific and possibly Imagine make gluten-free mushroom soup. Read the label to be sure!

Traditional Creamed Spinach - Mary Bo___
about 3 pounds fresh spinach
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
3/4 cup small (1/4-inch) diced yellow onions (about 1 small onion)
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
Pinch ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

To prepare the spinach, first remove any unwanted stems or brown parts. Rinse the leaves several times in cold water until all the dirt has been rinsed off. Drain the spinach but leave some water clinging to the spinach leaves.

Heat a large pan over medium-high heat and add the wet spinach. (This step may need to be done in batches.) Turn the spinach frequently with a pair of tongs as it cooks. Once it is wilted, remove it from the pan and place it in a strainer and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. (This step is very important.) Transfer the drained spinach to a cutting board and chop coarsely. Set aside.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and add the garlic and onions. Cook until the onions are translucent and soft (about 10-15 minutes). Add the cream, parmigiano-reggiano, nutmeg, salt and black pepper and continue cooking until it is reduced a bit (about 5 minutes).

Add the spinach to the cream and mix well. Continue to cook until most of the cream has been absorbed and the dish is thick and creamy. Remove from heat and serve.