Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday. It’s possibly my favorite holiday we celebrate, even more so than Christmas. It can definitely be one that causes a lot of anxiety for food allergy families, those with Celiac Disease, or anyone with other dietary needs. The whole day centers around food. It can be so easily overwhelming on keeping your vulnerable family members safe.

Everyone does everything differently, of course, but we have found what we enjoy here at home. In 2013, we decided to change things up from our previous Thanksgivings. Instead of traveling to our family’s house to celebrate with everyone as we normally tried to do, we wanted to make it easier and so much less stressful by staying home and cooking ourselves. So, I worked hard to make it all as a traditional gluten-free Thanksgiving – turkey, rice dressing that tasted just like regular dressing, cranberry sauce, gravy, pies, etc. It was a lot of work, but I wanted my daughter to be able to eat everything at Thanksgiving that I cooked. Just because she has Celiac didn’t mean she should be left out at home. When it was all said and done, she didn’t care for much of it, but at least it was all safe for her and we didn’t have to worry about her getting glutened.

When my third child was diagnosed with an allergy to turkey at the age of 2 in 2017, it sure made things interesting to try to plan Thanksgiving. Was it really worth it to cook a whole turkey when there were members of my immediate family that couldn’t eat it?

Our decision was that it was not. That year was the first year we switched things up. We no longer cook turkey at Thanksgiving. (For those who like overly-dramatic gasps, now’s your time.) As it turns out, my husband and I didn’t actually enjoy turkey near enough to make it worth it.

So that year, we began making it a meal of our favorite foods. This was perfect for us! I like to ask the kids what their suggestions are as to what we should have. They love getting to state their favorites and seeing if it’s something I can add in. Thankfully, they are pretty nice to this momma and do not request anything outrageous. It’s usually pies or rolls that I’m already planning on making so it works out great!

Want to know our plans? Here is our full gluten-free menu, with links to the recipes I like to use if there is one:

• Grilled chicken – one of the great benefits of living in Texas is it’s not out of the question to grill outside in November
• Creamy Potato Casserole
• Deviled Eggs
• Veggie Tray
• Carrots
• Peas
• Green Beans
• Sweet Potato Fries
• Baked Diced Gold Beets
• Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Rolls (my favorite part!)
• Pumpkin Pie – this recipe makes 2 pie crusts so I use the second for Pecan Pie
• Pecan Pie
• Reddi-whip whipped cream is labeled gluten-free (they even now have 2 dairy-free options!)

We are so looking forward to taking time to focus on being thankful in what we have and spending time with family. My four year old has been talking about pumpkin pie for weeks now. :) We usually play a card game, sometimes put up our Christmas decorations, maybe watch a movie…just enjoy each other’s company! It’s so much fun and wonderful memories for us!

What do you do for Thanksgiving? Do you travel or stay home? Any special activities for the day? Do you have a traditional meal with turkey and dressing, or one more unique for your family? I’d love to hear!