 There are a few basic things to keep in mind if you're feeding people with allergies, especially if their allergies are to dairy products, gluten or wheat because these are the sorts of ingredients that can crop up throughout the meal. For example, if you're creating a dairy-free menu, remember not to put butter on the vegetables. Instead try drizzling them with extra virgin olive oil or pumpkin oil. And, if you're making gravy for coeliacs or wheat-intolerant guests, remember to use cornflour or potato flour as a thickener, not wheat flour. Although traditional Christmas pudding and mince pies are generally considered off-limits for the wheat-intolerant, the good news is that by following the recipes below, no one will have to forgo the Christmas pudding. Traditional Christmas menuStart your meal with mini helpings of the perfect winter warmer - Carrot and celeriac soup. This is also a great dish for a light Boxing Day lunch and it can be made in advance and kept in the fridge. The buckwheat noodles in the starter have a delicious slightly nutty texture of their own - and are, despite their name, totally gluten- and wheat-free. You'll find them in most delicatessens or health-food stores. If your guests are intolerant to wheat and gluten they can enjoy a traditional turkey, roasted in honey so that it caramelises to a beautiful dark colour on the outside while remaining white and tender on the inside, stuffed with a delicious Chickpea and chestnut stuffing. Finish your meal with Christmas pudding ice cream. It's a deliciously light way to end the perfect meal. You can make this ice cream with cows', goats' or sheep's yoghurt or with soya yoghurt and cream (for dairy-free diets), or even with oat cream (for those on soya and dairy-free diets) - all available from large supermarkets and health-food shops. Carrot and celeriac soup
Free from: dairy, wheat, gluten, soya, egg and nuts
Buckwheat noodles with smoked salmon and dill
Free from: wheat, gluten, egg and nuts; can be dairy and soya-free
Turkey roasted in honey
Free from: dairy, wheat and gluten; can be soya, nut and egg-free
Chickpea and chestnut stuffing
Free from: wheat, gluten, dairy, soya and egg
Christmas pudding ice cream
Free from: wheat, gluten, egg and nuts; can be dairy and soya-free
Alternative Christmas menuThe Roasted chickpeas and Seedy pastry squares can be made in advance and kept in airtight containers until Christmas Day. They're a great way to keep everyone happy with their drinks while you're preparing the celery scallops for the starter.
 The Celery scallops recipe was originally designed for people on a salicylate-free diet. Salicylate is found in a wide range of fruits and vegetables but it's especially high in apricots, oranges, plums, dried fruits and apples (except for Golden Delicious), peppers, tomatoes, courgettes, broccoli, cucumber, spinach and mushrooms. Although allergies to salicylates are fairly rare, hyperactive children react to high-salicylate foods, especially oranges. The dish is also suitable for those on dairy-free, wheat-free, gluten-free and nut-free diets.
Not everyone wants to serve turkey on Christmas Day so the Pot roast beef with red cabbage makes a spectacular and totally allergen-free alternative - one that could actually be cooked overnight to reduce the work on Christmas Day. To finish the meal, the chocolate and pear torte is a great alternative for those who don't like Christmas pudding. If you're on a dairy-free diet, there are now a number of alternative creams on the market that you can serve with it: goats' milk cream (both fresh and UHT), soya cream and oat cream. Roasted chickpeas with nuts and/or seeds
Free from: dairy, wheat, gluten, soya and egg; can be nut-free
Seedy pastry squares
Free from: wheat, gluten, soya and nuts; can be dairy and egg-free
Celery scallops
Free from: dairy, wheat, gluten, soya and nuts
Pot roast beef with red cabbage
Free from: dairy, wheat, gluten, soya, egg and nuts
Chocolate and pear torte
Free from: wheat, gluten and eggs; can be dairy, soya and nut-free
Puddings and piesThe Christmas pudding is a delicious traditional pud, stuffed with dried fruits. If any of the fruits are particularly dry, soak them for ten to 15 minutes in boiling water and then drain thoroughly. Steaming the pudding for the initial cooking produces a lighter pudding, but it can be reheated in a microwave just before you serve it.
 Save yourself time at Christmas and make the mince pie filling a few weeks or months in advance - this also allows the flavours to mature. You can store the mincemeat in sterilised jars with tight-fitting lids. Serve both these traditional desserts with a helping of dairy-free brandy butter. The fat used won't have the same flavour as a good butter so compensate by adding plenty of brandy! The recipe for Christmas cake makes a moderate sized fruitcake - if you're going to be feeding all your family and friends you might want to double the ingredients and cook for a further 30 to 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. If you or your guests can't eat eggs you can leave them out and increase the amount of baking powder to three heaped teaspoons. In this case you may need to add two to three tablespoons of fruit juice because the mixture may be too dry. Icing your cake with marzipan and royal icing shouldn't present any problems for those on gluten, wheat, dairy or soya-free diets; but for those on sugar-free diets both are definitely off the menu. If you're on a nut-free diet, royal icing is fine but marzipan is not. You might want to put a thick layer of apricot jam under the icing instead. We've got two excellent recipes for egg-free marzipan and royal icing. The royal icing makes a softer icing than that made with egg white but it tastes just as good. And if you find Christmas cake too heavy, try this lemon sultana cake. If you can find virgin coconut oil it gives a lovely hint of fresh coconut, and is a delicious fresh alternative after a day of serious eating! Christmas pudding
Free from: dairy, wheat, gluten and soya; can be egg and nut-free; no added sugar
Mince pies
Free from: wheat, gluten and nuts; can be dairy, soya and egg-free; no added sugar
'No butter' brandy butter
Free from: dairy, gluten and egg
Christmas cake
Free from: wheat, gluten and soya; can be dairy, egg and nut-free; no added sugar
Egg-free marzipan
Free from: wheat, gluten, soya, egg and dairy
Egg-free royal icing
Free from: soya, egg, dairy and nuts
Lemon sultana cake
Free from: wheat, gluten and nuts; can be dairy, egg and soya-free; no added sugar
If you want more information on entertaining people with allergies follow our advice to give you a helping hand. For more information on gluten-free cooking, see our article. You can also find out about diabetic-friendly cooking here.
|
