Gluten-Free Dinner

[Anonymous]

We are having friends to dinner this weekend and I am told that the DW doesn't eat bread or other gluten. I don't know if she has celiac but I am going to assume that we have to abide strictly by this.

If we do a marinated flank steak using soy sauce, I need to use gluten-free soy sauce, correct?

Menu I'm considering is:

Artichoke dip w/rice crackers for appetizer (all from Trader Joe's)
Cheese and grapes and crackers (she can skip the crackers)

Marinated flank steak, roasted red baby potatoes, green salad

Good?

Any ideas for a dessert? I like to bake, fwiw. We could do ice cream but I'd like it to be a bit more special as these friends did us a big favor recently.

Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Yes to the gluten free soy sauce.
Check the ingredients of the rice crackers - sometimes they are marinated in soy sauce.
Dessert - what about a fresh fruit parfait in a tall glass? I had ones recently that were just custard, ice cream, fresh strawberries and whipped cream. Heaven.

[Anonymous]

Yes, use the gluten-free soy sauce, which you can find at most grocery stores now (definitely WF). And if she has Celiac you’ll want to put the regular crackers on a different plate…the crumbs mixing with the cheese or grapes would be an issue.

There are also good gluten-free flour mixes that you can buy, in which you can use to substitute 1-1 for regular flour in baking recipes. Bob’s Red Mill has one that works well. Macaroons are also naturally gluten-free.

[Anonymous]

Make sure the grill is clean if you are grilling it. Corn tortilla chips are good with dip. If its a soft cheese, it will be contaminated by the crackers so your guest won't be able to eat it. They have gluten free round crackers at Giant that are good.

[Anonymous]

My friend uses King Arthur cake mixes. Also, betty crocker has gluten free cake mixes. (Giant has them) Whole foods carries great corn tortilla chips, Xotil? (i think that is how they are spelled)


we love them!

[Anonymous]

How about a flourless chocolate cake with berries and cream? Yum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How about a flourless chocolate cake with berries and cream? Yum.

Thanks - that is a great idea.

Fruit parfait is appealing, too.

Does anyone know if Trader Joe's carries GF soy sauce?

Thanks so much, all.

[Anonymous]

GF soy sauce is usually tamari.

The mixes are pretty lame. Meringue shells are easy to make from scratch and you can fill with whipped cream, lemon or any other kind of custard or ice cream. Also, jelly rolls are often flourless when made from scratch. Also pot de creme or creme brulee.

[Anonymous]

Chocolae mousse.

[Anonymous]

Corn chips--I eat tons of them. I'm also gluten free. Dessert for me is fresh berries and whipped cream. There are a lot of good gluten free products on the market. Soy sauce must be gluten free. I eat a lot of Indian and Mexican foods because they're both generally gluten free.

[Anonymous]

Gluten free cakes from a mix are hit or miss, but I had great success recently incorporating one into a trifle. The trifle hides all kinds of sins in the cake.

One box gf cake mix (I used Pamela's), made into cake, then layered with a little booze, strawberry jam, fruit, custard, whipped cream and a wee bit of grated chocolate on top.

[Anonymous]

I don't think Trader Joe's frozen artichoke dip is gluten free - double check the label.

[Anonymous]

La Choy brand soy sauce is gluten free and can be found at Giant. I agree with others to put the glutinous crackers on a separate plate from the cheeses and grapes or make your GF friend their own plate of cheese and gluten free crackers so there is no concern over cross contamination or skip the wheat crackers altogether and only serve the rice crackers. Nut thins are really tasty GF crackers and can be found in the health food aisle of Giant

One dessert idea is to make your own Tiramisu or parfait. You can find gluten free lady fingers in the health food aisle of Giant or Whole Foods. I'd be thrilled if a friend made this for me. I agree with others that most homemade GF baked goods are not all that great for wheat eaters. The only exception are GF brownies which tend to taste and feel like regular brownies of which there are many gf mixes at the Giant. Perhaps you could make an ice cream GF brownie sundae with hot chocolate.

It might be nice to save all packaging to show to your friend if they are Celiac to put their mind at ease.

[Anonymous]

Pp here. Meant to say sundae with hot fudge sauce.

[Anonymous]

If the TJ's rice crackers are Sesmark brand (the ones they have at Whole Foods), there's good news and bad news. The bad news is they make like 12 flavors and 11 of them have wheat, nuts or sesame. (Maybe nuts and sesame aren't an issue for your GF friend--they are for our DS.) You'll have to read the fine print. The good news is there's definitely a gluten free flavor, prominently labeled "Gluten Free". It's the Brown Rice flavor.

Have plenty of them--they're good with cheese too. And fig jam.

GF baking is really hard. Other than the flourless chocolate cake, I wouldn't try it for a special occasion--the first time probably won't come out well. I did see a flourless chocolate cake on a menu recently described as "Gluten Free Chocolate Cake with Berries and Cream."