The Best Gluten Free Thanksgiving

Howdy folks! It’s finally November (my favorite time of year), so we thought we would share our tried-and-true Thanksgiving day recipes. Thanksgiving has always been a big deal for my family, even before I was diagnosed with Celiac disease. My dad always deep fries our turkey, and my mom and aunt make all of our old family recipes. We also spend our Thanksgiving break at my aunt and uncle’s farm near Shiner, TX. We shoot guns, ride motorcycles and get into trouble. It’s my favorite time of the whole year.

But my first Thanksgiving being gluten free was not as fun as the rest. I really missed all of our traditional foods, especially our old family recipes. My mom and I made me a separate batch of stuffing, and a few gluten free desserts, but we were still amateurs at gluten free baking, so they didn’t satisfy my craving for the rolls and pie that everyone else was eating. But lucky for me, my mom wasn’t satisfied with this setup, and she has been working on perfecting a gluten free Thanksgiving meal ever since.  If you’ve tried any of our recipes, you know that my mom is a genius, and now we have the best Thanksgiving meal this side of the Mississippi. It’s so good, that our extended family all decided that the whole Thanksgiving meal should just be 100% gluten free, because it tastes awesome and it’s way easier!

Here are some of our favorite Thanksgiving recipes, as well as some gluten free holiday eating tips (from this post, but I thought I’d share them again):

The Main Meal:

• Gluten Free Southern Corn Bread Dressing : We often hear “this is the BEST dressing!” from gluten free people and gluten eaters alike.
• Gluten Free Soulful Green Beans: A southern favorite and just…so good.
• Gluten Free Dinner Rolls:  Our famous recipe. Easy to make, and so delicious. I cried the first time I tasted one.
• Gluten Free Gravy:  Thanksgiving would not be complete without it! I think this version is better than the old glutenous versions we used to eat.
• Gluten Free Deviled Eggs:  My mom’s famous recipe…definitely a family favorite.

Desserts:

• Gluten Free Pumpkin Sheetcake: Everyone I share this with freaks out about it. You just have to try it!
• Gluten Free Pumpkin, Carmel and Pecan Cheesecake: My mom just posted this recipe, and I think it’s going to be a new family favorite.
• Gluten Free Cheesecake: While we’re on cheesecake…this is the BEST old fashioned cheesecake recipe. My husband had this as his groom’s cake at our wedding.
• Gluten Free Old Fashioned Pound Cake: And while we’re on “old fashioned”, the best pound cake. We have it at all our family gatherings.
• Gluten Free Pecan Praline Coffee Cake:  Coffee cake. Because when it’s a holiday, you should eat cake for breakfast.

Gluten Free Holiday Eating Tips:

• If you’re going to be the only GF person at a holiday meal, offer to bring the stuffing, or other large dish that usually has gluten. I offered to make the stuffing for my mother-in-law during Thanksgiving with my husband’s family. She was happy to have one less thing to cook, and I was happy being able to eat everything. And no one even noticed it was gluten free! (Try our cornbread stuffing recipe…you’ll get the same reaction)
• If you’re staying with relatives who aren’t gluten free, pack a “snack pack” (that’s what my mom calls it! haha) My mom actually packed one for me with a few little meals such as chicken salad and crackers, peanut butter and pretzels. She also included treats like chocolate, popcorn, etc. I didn’t have to worry if my in-laws were having a meal I couldn’t eat!
• Learn a new holiday recipe this year. Look one up or try a new one. Leaving behind old gluten-ous traditions can be sad, so take this opportunity to make a new one!

Happy Holidays!

Rachel