Gluten Free Thanksgiving Recipes for the Whole Menu

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These Gluten Free Thanksgiving Recipes cover the whole meal, from cocktails and appetizers to stuffing, rolls, sides, and dessert.

You don't have to give up stuffing, dinner rolls, or sweet potato casserole. We never have a Thanksgiving or Christmas without a gluten free corn casserole, and nobody at the table can tell.

How to Plan a Gluten Free Thanksgiving

I start planning my Thanksgiving menu right after Halloween. Here is how I keep it simple.

1. Write down the menu first. I go with the classics (turkey, mashed potatoes, homemade cranberry sauce) and pick one or two new recipes. Then shop the pantry before you shop the store.
2. Count your guests early. When someone asks what they can bring, have an answer ready. If they don't cook, ask for flowers, ice, or paper goods.
3. Make what you can ahead. Cranberry sauce, the corn casserole, and pecan pie bars can all be made a day or two early.
4. Give gluten free dishes their own spoons. Serve them first, before anyone dips a spoon from the regular stuffing into the gluten free one.
5. Ask guests what is in their dish. Better yet, ask them to bring the label.

Which Thanksgiving Foods Are Gluten Free?

These are gluten free in their basic form.

• Plain roast turkey
• Mashed potatoes and roasted potatoes
• Sweet potatoes
• Cranberry sauce
• Roasted vegetables
• Rice and wild rice

These usually contain gluten unless you make them gluten free.

• Stuffing
• Gravy (most packets and jars are thickened with wheat flour)
• Dinner rolls and cornbread
• Pie crust
• Green bean casserole (the canned soup and the fried onions)

Check the label on turkey gravy packets, pre-basted or pre-stuffed turkeys, ham glazes, broth, sausage, and canned soup. Here is a brand-by-brand guide to whether cream of mushroom soup is gluten free.

Gluten Free Thanksgiving Cocktails and Mocktails

Set out one house drink so you don't have to mix all afternoon.

• Apple Cider Vodka Cocktail - Apple cider and vodka shaken with a spoonful of fig jam and topped with seltzer. The post shows how to make a pitcher.
• Apple Cider Sangria - Wine soaked fruit and apple cider. Make it a few hours ahead so the fruit soaks.
• Apple Cider Mocktail - Apple, orange, lime, cinnamon, and ginger, with no alcohol. Good for kids and drivers.
• Grapefruit Margarita - Fresh grapefruit, a little sweet, and not too strong.
• Limoncello Spritzer - Limoncello and fresh orange juice topped with bubbles.

Gluten Free Thanksgiving Appetizers

Someone always shows up early and parks in front of the football game. Give them something to snack on so they stay out of the kitchen.

How to Make a Cheese Platter - Swap in gluten free crackers and keep them on their own side of the board.

Baked Brie with Cranberry Sauce - Warm brie topped with cranberry sauce. Serve it with gluten free crackers.

Pomegranate Cranberry Baked Brie - Serve it warm from the oven.

Baked Brie with Cranberry Raspberry Sauce - A sweet and tart cranberry raspberry sauce over warm brie.

Baked Brie with Fig Jam - 4 ingredients and 10 minutes in the oven, with fig jam and pecans.

Pecan Cheese Ball - Ready in 20 minutes, and you can make it a day ahead.

Cranberry Slow Cooker Meatballs - 4 ingredients simmered in a cranberry chili sauce. Use gluten free frozen meatballs and check the chili sauce label.

Prosciutto Wrapped Pears with Manchego - Pears, manchego, and arugula wrapped in prosciutto. Two bites each and quick to put together.

Roasted Red Pepper Dip - A quick dip you can make ahead and set out with a cheese tray.

Gluten Free Thanksgiving Soups

A small cup of soup before dinner works well if the turkey runs late.

Instant Pot Curried Pumpkin Soup - Only a few ingredients and done in the Instant Pot.

Creamy Butternut Squash Soup - One pot with garlic, ginger, and warm spices. Ready in about 30 minutes, with no cream.

Acorn Squash Soup with Turmeric - Gluten free and dairy free.

Gluten Free Thanksgiving Main Dishes

I will not judge if you prefer ham on Thanksgiving. I actually like ham better, but I would never give up the turkey.

Herb Roasted Turkey Breast - A good choice for a smaller table.

Brown Sugar Pineapple Ham - 3 ingredients. Check the ham label and skip the glaze packet if it lists wheat.

Classic Roast Turkey - A plain roast turkey is gluten free. Skip any gravy packet that comes with the bird.

Thanksgiving Sides

Gluten Free Thanksgiving Side Dishes

All the classics. This is the section everyone fills their plate from.

• Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Casserole - Spiced sweet potatoes topped with marshmallows and pecans. It frees up the oven for the turkey.
• Roasted Maple Sweet Potatoes and Cranberries - The cranberries roast in maple syrup until they turn sweet and juicy.
• Seasoned Roasted Sweet Potatoes - Make extra. They reheat well all week.
• Green Beans with Bacon - 4 ingredients, ready in 20 minutes. Check the bacon label.
• Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Pancetta - Cooked on the stovetop with pancetta and pine nuts, so the oven stays free.
• Roasted Mini Potatoes - Garlic, salt, and pepper, roasted until the skins are crispy.
• Buttery Roasted Acorn Squash - Brushed with butter, maple syrup, and cinnamon and roasted at 400°F until the edges caramelize.
• Sausage Stuffed Acorn Squash - Stuffed with sausage, black beans, onions and cheese. Check the sausage label.
• Cauliflower Broccoli Bake with Alfredo - Cauliflower rice, broccoli, alfredo sauce, and parmesan. Use an alfredo sauce labeled gluten free.
• Gluten Free Green Bean Casserole - The classic casserole made gluten free, from Gluten Free on a Shoestring.
• Gluten Free Gravy - Use this one in place of a packet, from Gluten Free Baking.
• Gluten Free Corn Casserole - Made with a gluten free cornbread mix or from scratch. You can make it ahead or freeze it.
• Gluten Free Stuffing - From scratch with sage, rosemary, and thyme. Dry the bread cubes first so it stays moist in the middle with crisp edges.
• Gluten Free Sweet Potato Casserole - Creamy and sweet with a crunchy topping.
• Crockpot Sweet Potato Casserole - Keep your oven open and make it easily in the slow cooker.

Gluten Free Cranberry Sauce

Homemade cranberry sauce takes about 15 minutes and keeps for days in the fridge.

• Cranberry Relish - 3 ingredients, fresh cranberries, blood oranges, and coconut sugar.
• Cranberry Pomegranate Sauce - Once you make this, you won't go back to the can.

Gluten Free Thanksgiving Salads

A fresh salad gives everyone a break from the heavy dishes.

• Kale and Apple Salad - Apples, pistachios, and pomegranate arils with a maple mustard vinaigrette.
• Brussels Sprout Salad with Pear and Pomegranate - Shaved Brussels sprouts, pear and pomegranate in an apple cider vinaigrette.
• Fall Wild Rice Salad - Sweet potatoes, arugula, and grapes. Gluten free and dairy free.
• Spiced Sweet Potato and Kale Salad - Smoky roasted sweet potatoes over kale.
• Cranberry Almond Quinoa - Dried cranberries with mint and orange in the dressing.
• Arugula and Orange Salad - Oranges, pomegranate seeds, red onion, and blue cheese.
• Arugula, Orange and Pomegranate Salad - Peppery arugula with sweet orange and pomegranate.

Gluten Free Rolls and Cornbread

You need something to drag through the gravy and cranberry sauce.

• Gluten Free Dinner Rolls - Soft, fluffy rolls. Bake them the morning of and rewarm before dinner.
• Gluten Free Cornbread - Made with cornmeal, honey, and butter. Bakes in about 20 minutes.

Gluten Free Thanksgiving Desserts

Pick one dessert you can make a few days ahead and keep in the fridge.

• Gluten Free Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars - Straight from my mom's recipe book. Rich, sweet, and sticky.
• Gluten Free Apple Crisp - Honeycrisp apples under a gluten free oat and almond flour topping. No flour blend needed.
• Gluten Free Chocolate Tart - An almond and oat flour crust. Serve it with whipped cream and pomegranate arils.
• Gluten Free Chocolate Sheet Cake - Made with Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten Free Flour, with a chocolate icing.
• Gluten Free Seven Layer Bars - Chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, coconut and pecans.
• Gluten Free Banana Cake - A banana snack cake with buttercream frosting.
• Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread - Moist, not grainy, and it freezes well, so you can bake a loaf ahead.
• Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie - Also dairy free, from Meaningful Eats.
• Gluten Free Pumpkin Roll - From The Loopy Whisk.

Topping your pie with Cool Whip? Here is whether Cool Whip is safe for a gluten free diet, plus dairy free swaps.

Thanksgiving Leftovers

Leftovers are my favorite part of Thanksgiving. Here are two ways to use them that aren't another plate of turkey.

• Cranberry Chocolate Overnight Oats - Use certified gluten free oats.
• Avocado Toast with Turkey and Cranberry Sauce - Use gluten free bread.

Gluten Free Thanksgiving FAQs