Allergy-Friendly Recipes for the Thanksgiving Season

For those with food allergies, food-centric events like Thanksgiving can sometimes cause frustration because finding allergen-free or allergen-sensitive recipes can seem restrictive (or at least require a bit of planning). Fortunately, there are plenty of allergy-friendly dishes that will make for a festive, safe and delicious Thanksgiving meal. Read on for a few of our favorite recipes.

Allergy-Friendly (Dairy-Free) Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes are a classic side dish, and Food Network’s vegan garlic mashed potatoes recipe will not disappoint, maintaining their creamy flavor without dairy. The almond milk can be substituted for any plant-based milk to make the dish nut-free, too.

Ingredients:
– 4 large cloves garlic, peeled
– 3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
– 2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes (about 4 potatoes)
– 1 cup plain unsweetened almond or other plant-based milk, warm, plus more if needed
– Kosher salt
– 2 tablespoons minced chives (about 1/4 a small bunch), plus more for garnish

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the garlic on a piece of foil, drizzle with 1 teaspoon of the oil, wrap and roast until very tender, about 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, put the potatoes in a large saucepan, cover by 1 inch with cold water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are very tender, about 20 minutes. Strain and return the potatoes to the saucepan.
3. Add the roasted garlic with any juice that has collected, almond milk, remaining 2 teaspoons of oil and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt to the potatoes. Mash with a potato masher until smooth or to the desired consistency, adding additional almond milk if necessary.
4. Stir in the chives and add salt to taste. Transfer the potatoes to a serving bowl, garnish with additional chives and serve.

Allergy-Friendly Stuffing

Another Thanksgiving staple, stuffing can be gluten-, dairy- and egg-free: Cybele Pascal’s cornbread and wild mushroom stuffing proves that the stuffing does not have to be one of the most allergen-laden items on the dinner table.

Ingredients:
– 3 cups allergen-free cornbread, preferably stale so it’s dried out a bit
– 1/2 cup diced nitrite-free pancetta (optional, omit if making vegan)
– 4 tbsp. olive oil
– 5 large shallots (both halves), minced fine
– 2 large stalks celery, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
– 1/2 lb. wild mushrooms (shiitake, chanterelles or morels; quartered, or cut into eighths if very large)
– 1 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
– 1 tsp. fresh rosemary, chopped
– 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
– 1/4 tsp. pepper
– 1/4 cup white wine
– 1/4 cup rice milk
– 1/3 cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth if making vegan)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut cornbread into 1-inch-thick slices and place on baking sheet. Bake until golden brown and dried out a bit, about 10-15 minutes, turning the slices once. Keep a close eye on it, because you don’t want it to burn. Remove from oven and let cool.

2. Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Once pan is really hot, add the pancetta and cook until crispy. Remove pancetta from pan and set aside. (Skip this step if making vegan).

3. Add olive oil to skillet, then shallots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly soft, about 4 minutes. Add white wine and cook, stirring until it’s been absorbed, about 1 or 2 minutes. Add rice milk and cook about 1 minute more. Remove pan from heat.

4. Crumble the cornbread and measure out 3 heaping cups. Add to the pan. Add the crispy pancetta bits (if using). Toss gently. Oil a 9×13-inch pan (or whatever you’ve got that’s comparable) with olive oil. Spoon in the stuffing and drizzle with chicken broth or vegetable broth. Bake at 350 degrees until crusty and golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Allergy-Friendly Pumpkin Pie

What’s a Thanksgiving meal without this sweet dish to top it off? This pumpkin pie recipe boasts milk-, egg-, peanut-, soy- and nut-free ingredients, as well as an option to make it wheat-free.

Ingredients:
– 2 cups canned pumpkin
– 3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
– 1-1/2 cups water
– 6-1/2 T cornstarch
– 1 tsp. cinnamon
– 1/2 tsp. salt
– 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
– 1/2 tsp. ginger
– pie crust (To make this recipe wheat-free, use a rice-flour-based crust recipe.)
– 1/4 cup brown sugar (optional)
– 1/4 cup coconut (optional)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In medium saucepan, combine all ingredients but brown sugar and coconut.
3. Cook over medium heat until mixture begins to thicken, stirring constantly.
4. Pour into pie crust. Bake for 30 minutes or until firm.
5. If desired, sprinkle coconut and brown sugar on top. Bake 5 more minutes.

Feel free to reach out to your allergist online at www.allergyinatlanta.com or call us, so you and your child can focus on enjoying the season.