Mechatanim are gluten free and sugar free

amother

Snowdrop

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 1:04 pm

amother Blushpink wrote:

Some great ideas for different foods that you mentioned. I just wanted to make you aware that rice krispies usually has different grains in and is not gluten free. I would use gluten free cornflake crumbs.

Taanug brand is gluten free and available in frum stores. Walmart brand also has no gluten ingredients in it.
But I think this really highlights why op is so overwhelmed and I want to validate that. You hear rice you assume gluten free, gluten free is a LOT to learn, I can’t relate to anyone saying it’s easier, you literally can’t use half the food in the grocery store. I’m so happy I was able to figure things out in my own time without the pressure of a simcha and the additional limitation of sugar free! I do think you can still make a beautiful simcha but it’s going to take more work and look different than your ideal.

amother

Oleander

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 2:50 pm

OP, you asked for a GF SF capon stuffing. Here's my Pesach recipe, for 16 capons. You can freeze them raw after stuffing them.

2 onions
2 zucchini
2 potatoes
2 carrots
1 small celery knob
2 Tbsp oil
2 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
pepper to taste
1/4 c. sifted potato starch - you can sub corn starch

Peel and thinly shred all vegetables. Heat the oil and saute all the veg for 15 minutes. Transfer to mixing bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix. The starch needs to be sifted over the vegetables or else it clumps.

Stuff the capons and pack tightly into the pan. You can freeze here. Otherwise, add two sliced onions plus a 1/2 cup of white wine over the capons. (I would sprinkle them with paprika and probably some garlic powder for a nice colour beforehand, since it's not Pesach.)

Regarding your fish course. If I were you, I'd make one salmon dish, GF and SF, which is really really not hard. Then I'd make your regular gefilte fish platters and just let them know not to eat those. At least your kids will have something to eat.

amother

Oleander

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 2:56 pm

I just remembered that you wrote that some don't eat potatoes either. I have a sweet potato stuffing that I use for chicken quarters, but maybe it would work for capons too:

(for eight quarters)
1 large diced onion, sauteed
2 medium sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed
1/2 tsp. soy sauce (I use tamari sauce, it's GF/SF)
1/4 c. challah crumbs (you can get GF bread crumbs)
1 tsp. dried rosemary or to taste
1 crushed clove garlic
salt and pepper

Mix everything well into the sauteed onions and stuff the chicken. Sprinkle with garlic powder and paprika

The recipe calls to bake it with duck sauce, but you can just as easily and tastily bake it in orange juice over sliced onions.

Bake tightly covered and bake for 2.5 hours at 350.

amother

Oatmeal

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 3:17 pm

amother Apricot wrote:

"If it's just mishegas & not allergy or health condition, I'd tell them to do the cooking & bring their food, or pay for you to get catered food.
It's not easy to make a simcha gluten & sugar free, & I don't think it's a reasonable expectation of someone making a simcha."

-respect people and thier choices and they will respect yours
-it's not about reasonable expectation, it's about wanting to share in the simcha in the way that they are comfortable. who cares why they eat that way? they do. end of story.
-anyone else think this is an extremely selfish attitude?????

You know why you care for a reason? Because if it’s someone with celiac for example, you need to be extremely careful to avoid cross contamination. If it’s someone who is worried about their waist size, while I agree you should respect their preferences, you don’t need to drive yourself crazy and worry that you might kill someone with your food.
I’ve been in this situation when a guest said they are GF and I was going absolutely crazy to make sure there’s not a spec of gluten anywhere and made rice as a side. And when they came they had small piece of challah to be yotzei and haven’t touched rice because it’s carbs and they need to loose weight.
So next time this happens, I’m sure going to ask the reason. Because my sanity is important too.

kiwi strawberry

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 3:34 pm

amother Jetblack wrote:

Mazel Tov OP! My daughter got married last month and BH it was beautiful, but Shabbos Sheva Brachos was definitely way more work than the chasuna itself, so I know how you are feeling.

For potato kugel, I use my Pesach recipe year round (let me know if you want it - absolutely delicious) and when I want to make it fancy we make "Potato Kugel Cups." I bake them in individual small round foil pans and then pop them out of the pans after they cool. You get a beautiful circle of kugel that is the perfect size, like a cupcake but a little straighter all around and taller. Much prettier than in a muffin tin, which can get greasy with potato kugel. 12 of these cups fit perfectly in a 9x13 pan for reheating.

Do you normally put flour in your potato kugel?

kiwi strawberry

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 3:39 pm

amother Coffee wrote:

Watch out. Most sauces are gluten free. The problem is that you also need sugar free. Sauces are loaded with sugar. A lot of sweets, sauces, candies, ices, proudly state on the label that they’re gluten free but they contain ridiculous amounts of sugar.
Gluten is a protein found in wheat and some other grains. Sugar is a type of carbohydrate that makes food taste sweet. There are different types. Sucrose is the sugar in sugar cane but there’s also lactose in milk, fructose in fruit, and glucose which is plant based. Honey has both sucrose and fructose and so does maple syrup.
People who avoid sugar are usually avoiding added sugars so your in laws will probably eat melon or berries even though they contain fructose. Bottled sauces full of sugars are off limits.
This obviously doesn’t apply to your Shabbos meals but you might want to ask if they also avoid dairy.

You're right, but this one isn't. It uses dates as the sweetener.

amother

Midnight

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 3:43 pm

amother OP wrote:

My normal Friday night sheva Brochos looks something like this:
Challah
Dips
Salads (all have some kind of sweetener in) on the table
Plated app salmon in pastry
Platters of gefilte fish on the table

Chicken soup with kneidlach

Kishke stuffed capons with sauce (has sugars in it)
Pulled beef or roast
Doughless potato kugelettes (has flour)
Mini sweet potato pies in mini pie shells
Apple kugel in muffin wrappers
Roasted veggies
White rice with diced veggies (they only eat wild rice or quinoa)

Dessert:
Warm apple pie or self saucing chocolate cake or plum cake with vanilla ice cream and toffee bark.
On the table some nuts, chocolates, fruit.
Tea

I can make some of the menus posted but do you see the difference in what my family and kids are used to?

With the challah, also serve veggie sticks.

That way all can enjoy the dips.

Salads - have some that your family likes and some that have a sign No Sugar

Plated appetizer should be salmon in pastry at some places and cubes of pretty salmon garnished with microgreens for others.

Platters of gefilte just leave as is. There's natural salmon options and they can skip the gefilte if they don't want.

Chicken soup. Knaidlach should be cooked separate. Whoever wants can have and for the others julienned zucchini dropped into to the chicken soup is delicious and pretty.

Stuffed capons. One pan with kishka and one pan with veggie sticks stuffed into the middle.

Roast is delish after being marinated in olive oil crushed garlic and salt overnight. Then laid on top of onions and baked. One pan can be served as is, the other one with a sweet sticky glaze added last half hour.

See if you can make mini potato kugelettes instead of the doughless knishes.

The apple and sweet potato pies you don't have to make a replacement. It's extra whoever wants, wants.

Roasted veggies.

One pan white rice one pan quinoa is so so easy to make in the oven.

Dessert just leave as is. And add extra fruit platters. Zehu.

Everyone can have what they're used to without too much hassle.

Mazel Tov!

amother

Apricot

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 5:16 pm

I agree that you should ask to what extent someone is gluten free so you can know the severity.

Also - just be aware that some gluten free equivalent recipes don't hold as well or come out as good which is why I prefer to stick to basic. They are more finicky especially if you are not experienced with gluten free substitutes.

I've used corn meal for schnitzel, rorie also makes a gluten free coating for schnitzel.
About the person who mentioned rice krispies - there is barley malt in them which is what makes them gluten. So anything with barley or malt in ingredients can be an issue.

Miri1

Wed, Jan 31 2024, 6:07 pm

kiwi strawberry wrote:

You're right, but this one isn't. It uses dates as the sweetener.

I would still run this by them. It could be dates boiled down to a syrup. Same with apple butter- they might not do concentrates even if they’re from fruit.
I wouldn’t try to sub things to get to your cooking style. I’d just have a few kid friendly items (and I’m sure those you could freeze ahead), and cook without the sugar and gluten.
Make sure you get a gluten free AND corn syrup free soy sauce. San-J is gf ( but still check ingredients- one of their soy sauces has sugar)
And check cornflake crumbs to make sure there’s no barley malt .
I think perhaps Gefen makes them?

I find that even if I need to make something on the day of, it helps to have the spices mixed up or the sauces mixed ahead of time.
Sometimes I’ll assemble the chicken and freeze it raw, and then defrost a day or too before -voila! No work, and you have fresh chicken!

kiwi strawberry

Fri, Feb 02 2024, 6:54 am

amother Jetblack wrote:

No, but the recipe I used when I was first married had matza meal in it, which is not GF. Then I started keeping gebroktz and had to find a new recipe, so I call this one my Pesach recipe. I guess it's really just plain old potato kugel!

Yes, I've never heard of anyone putting in any sort of flour or binder like matza meal or anything like that at all in their potato kugel, and I've actually specifically asked this a lot. Just surprised to hear it. It definitely doesn't need it, that's for sure ☺️

amother

Fri, Feb 02 2024, 8:13 am

Thanks ladies for all the help. I think what's bugging me is how to make this look pretty. To me these things just looks like regular Wednesday night dinner on a plate.
I'm also not sure about plating because different people are eating different things. It would be a bit confusing to make gluten free plates and other plates. Then I'm back to how do I make platters of these foods look pretty. I know I know I'm being immature about it, I just like to make beautiful events and I'm unsure here.
I did some digging. There is a health condition that some of them have that is managed with being off these things, they basically don't eat any processed foods. The rest of the family took on to eat this way too. There are one or two who will eat a bit more foods.

emmes

Fri, Feb 02 2024, 9:48 am

I didnt read the entire thread just a few posts here and there, so excuse me if I'm repeating anything, especially if you already answered to what I'm writing here.

I want to say just a few things that you might find helpful.
Challah: I think its okay to ask them to bring GF challah for their family. It's a big thing for them to ask you to cater to there needs and they might be happy to help. If you're not comfortable with this idea, make small challah rolls from Rories flour blends.

If they dont have celiac, you dont have to go crazy about cross contamination. That should take away some of the stress...

Crumbs for a fruit cobbler can easily be make with GF flour like,, you can add GF oats, nuts. Serve with ice cream. If just a few people wont have sugar, I think they'd be used to being served sweet stuff and they can skip whatever they dont want. Have fresh fruit for an alternative but you dont have to make a million desserts.

Pesach desserts- I'm sure you can find great pesach recipes, but they have sugar. That's okay, you'll have fruit for the others

Good luck!