Gluten Free Thanksgiving Guide

Swaps and suggestions for an easy feast

Hosting Thanksgiving dinner can feel like a lot to coordinate, even if you know your way around the kitchen.  From planning the menu and grocery shopping to prepping ingredients and putting it all together, there are a lot of details to think about! You’ll want to serve a delicious meal that goes off without a hitch, but also be sure it’s one that all your guests can enjoy too!  Today there are over three million Americans diagnosed with Celiac Disease and many more that suffer from gluten sensitivity, conditions that require the elimination of wheat, rye, and barley (in all forms). 

Read on for your guide to a wheat-free and gluten-free Thanksgiving that can be enjoyed by everyone. 

Some dishes that traditionally include gluten (that you may need to rethink) include stuffed mushrooms, green bean casserole, stuffing or dressing, mac and cheese, the iconic pumpkin pie, and gravy.  Here are a few we’ve revisited.  They are plant-forward and sure to please 😊

• Veggie Stuffed Mushrooms
• Turkey Dinner in a Pan
• Cheddar Chickpea Mac
• Crustless Banana Pie
• Banana Pecan Streusel Pie with Sweet Potato Crust

While we don’t have a own gluten-free gravy recipe at Dole (yet), rest assured that you can use your favorite recipe and substitute a gluten-free flour blend for traditional white flour to make your roux.  Gravy is usually made by melting butter or a dairy-free alternative while whisking in an equal amount of flour until the desired color is reached (blonde, dark or somewhere in between).  Then chicken, beef, or vegetable stock is added to give volume.  Finally, it’s brought up to a boil and then down to a simmer at which point it’s ultimately seasoned with salt and pepper once desired consistency is reached!  It’s really that simple! 

Now that the biggies have been covered, fill in the gaps with produce forward and naturally gluten-free recipes like festive drinks, brussels sprouts, roasted veggies, and of course no table would be complete without mashed potatoes!  

From our family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving! 

**These recipes are intended to provide helpful ideas to prepare foods consistent with the gluten-free diet, but the extent to which they conform to the gluten-free lifestyles will depend on the products selected.  Please consult the product labels of each ingredient used to prepare these recipes for ingredient information (including major food allergens and advisory allergen labeling such as “may contain…”).

Published November 1, 2022