Party food for a coeliac child

[EggInABap]

I'm having a birthday party for my sun at a soft play this Saturday and doing the food myself- just the usual sandwiches, sausage rolls etc.

I have a little girl coming who suffers with Coeliac, I asked her mum what I could prepare for her and she said 'oh don't worry I always have to feed her at home before we go to parties'.

This made me feel so sad so I insisted I would research it all and would have a selection for her so she's not left out. However I must admit I am struggling. I spent 30 mins at the 'free from' section in Tesco yesterday feeling like my head was going to explode. Lots of things only said gluten free or wheat free. Nothing mentioned Coeliac at all. It all looked a bit dry and dire to be honest anyway so I didn't buy anything. The bread was rock hard and I still felt unsure at the lack of information on the packaging, I am fearful of making this poor girl ill!

So I am hoping someone can point me in the right direction in terms of specific items I could buy- I don't mind from what supermarket, I've got them all near to me. Also I am making sweetie cones for the kids instead of having party bags- what sweets could I put in hers? I know I have to be really careful with cross contamination etc.

I have grown a huge respect for anyone who deals with these issues day in day out- I never realised how tricky it could be.

[EggInABap]

OMG can't believe I wrote sun instead of son!

[BlinkingHeck]

Grapes, strawberries, crisps, chocolate Rice Krispie buns, marshmallows. Make buns with gluten free flour, cheese chunks, Haribo.

Obviouy check the packaging first.

[bronya]

You need gluten free for someone who is coeliac. Cakes/biscuits are easy (but don't buy Tesco own brand unless you want to check every list of ingredients for 'gluten free oat flour' which many coeliacs still react to). For sandwiches, butter is safe (so are many margarines but you have to read the ingredients carefully!), peanut butter is ok, cheese is ok (e.g. cheddar or edam, that kind of thing just not fancy cheese with added things). Ham is more risky as it's often either breaded or has wheat starch in it. You need to prepare hers first, so there's no floating breadcrumbs/flour in your kitchen, and from a freshly opened packet of filling.

[bronya]

Crisps say on the packet btw. Pom bears are safe .

[bronya]

Rice Krispies not safe btw - Kelloggs cereals make me react anyway!

[ilovepowerhoop]

seabrooks crisps are also gluten free. She will probably be used to gluten free products e.g. bread, biscuits, etc so you should be fine getting some

[Needalittleadvice]

Asda do gluten free frozen sausage rolls made by dietary specials. Pom bear crisps are gluten free. Genius gluten free bread with cheese and cucumber-helps it to not feel dry. Choc crispie cakes made using kallo natural puffed rice. Grapes, strawberries, carrot sticks. Prepare hers first, wrap securely to prevent cross contamination. for you as you are very kind!

[micah]

I did a gluten free party and managed fine, except for sandwiches which I did separately for the gluten eaters. I was told not to bother for the coeliac guest as gluten free bread mings!

Carrot, pepper sticks, hummous, dips. Fairy cakes with dives farm gluten free flour. Birthday cake a flour less choc fudge cake (ground almond, eggs, choc, butter- very simple too!)

Gluten free mini-sausages, loads of fruit, crisps. Old fashioned cheese and pineapple on sticks! Strawberries dipped in chocolate.

I just checked packaging of anything shop bought, and went as simple as possible...

[micah]

Doves farm! Not dives...

[MsRainbow]

As a parent of coeliac DCs I prefer to bring my own party food unless I know the host well. The reason is if I agree to you providing the food I then have to interrogate you to double check, I don't want to but I need to make sure.
As a pp said those biscuits/cakes may be GF but do they contain oat flour which my DCs can't have. Thanks for the chocolate rice crispie bars but can you tell me the brands of Rice Krispies and chocolate you used as many aren't GF. It's great you used GF bread to make some of the sandwiches but can I just check that the butter/ jam/ peanut butter was freshly opened and hadn't been touched by a knife that had been in contact with bread. I really appreciate that you made sure all the crisps are GF but we can't have any as that child who has just eaten a sandwich has put his hand in the bowl to take some crisps so they are now contaminated and we can't risk them.
Once I know someone better I tend to be more relaxed, not just because I can judge how well I trust you to understand GF, but also because I can question you without feeling you must think I'm OTT and neurotic.
However in your case I think it's a shame that the mum isn't providing some things, I always ask the host to text me what they are serving a couple of days before and provide my DCs with equivalents.
You could get some GF crisps (Pom bears, are GF), miss crumbles macaroons, haribo, chocolate buttons are GF, marshmallows, fruit cheese. If they are small individually wrapped packets then you don't have to worry about cross contamination.
Another thing is don't take it personally if the girl doesn't eat much, my DCs are wary of eating food provided by people they don't know. My oldest is 16 and if invited round to a friends for the evening for the first time will turn up with his own ready meal (even though he would never eat a ready meal at home).

[hellymelly]

Anything labelled as "Gluten Free" will be safe. I make fairy cakes with Doves Farm gluten free self raising flour, no child has ever noticed the difference. Meringues are easy to make and gluten free, if you have a Marks and Spencer near you their gluten free bread is nicer than the other sliced stuff around, if you wanted to make her sandwiches. They also do little millionaire's cripsy caramel things in a tub, good for a child's party, my dds love them. And mini pancakes, that sort of thing.
The main thing you have to be aware of is that for a coeliac cross-contamination when eating out is the biggest problem. It is ok avoiding food that has gluten in, but tricky when people cut cakes with the same knife used for a normal cake, or break bread near the food that is gluten free. Dipping into a communal dish of hummus is also out. So keep a few plates of gluten free food absolutely separate from the other food, cover with a tea-towel, and make sure no other children can touch it. Then give the child enough space so that other children won't scatter crumbs onto her food. Make sure any utensils you use have been very carefully washed and rinsed , that sort of thing. I have to do this all the time, luckily my dds aren't coeliac. I find eating in a new place quite stressful as I hate sounding like a fusspot ("Please don't let anyone near my cake" etc) But having had someone cut a huge birthday cake and then walk over to the gluten free version I had made for my coeliac friend, myself and a couple of others to eat, and then cut it with the same crumby knife , even after being told that our cake was separate and why, I now keep any food I am going to eat within my sight and away from everyone else!

[hellymelly]

I should have mentioned oats- some gluten free biscuits , as a pp mentioned, might have gluten free oats in. These are fine for many coeliacs as the issue is normally cross contamination with wheat during the growing /harvesting process, so GF oats are grown in strict conditions away from wheat. However some coeliacs will also react to the similar protein in oats, gliadin, so can't tolerate any oats even gluten free ones, so ask her Mum or check the ingredients list.

[Bumply]

I used to bring food for any party that DS2 went to rather than expect parents to know what was suitable.
Thankfully he isn't uber sensitive so can cope with a lot of things which say 'may contain' (He used to be on them with no symptoms before they brought in the change of regulations on labelling and his consultant said it was ok to continue eating them).
Some children are very sensitive and can't cope with even the tiniest cross contamination and avoid the risk.
Agree with MsRainbow that if you do get things make sure they are individual still wrapped packages so it's clear to parents and child that it is Gluten Free.
Avoid bread as this is the hardest thing to replicate in GF and each person has their own preference as to which they find palatable.

[LackaDAISYcal]

dietary specials do a nice gluten free frozen margherita pizza (I got it from Morrisons online). I pep it up with my choice of topping and some additional mozzarella.

I have a recipe for a wicked GF banana bread that I would challenge anyone to know wasn't GF.

Dietary specials do GF sausage rolls, chicken nuggets.

Gluten free pretzels available in most supermarkets.

You could make a GF pasta or rice salad

Agree M&S have some lovely GF cakey things, or if you are near a WAitrose, they sell honeybuns GF bars in their cafe which are to die for..millionaires shortbread and stuff; it's usually by the till.

the secret for childrens parties is to try and ensure the GF equivalent looks just like the non GF thing, so pizza and sausage rolls etc. Adults are fine with GF things that are different (as they are used to it) to everyone else, but GF children like to feel included and that no-one will realise they are being different (or in a child's eyes "difficult"). whenever I have to cater for a GF child, I tend to make up party boxes for the food, so everyone gets a box and no-one knows that any one child has something odd or different.

Well Done you for catering for the GF child though and I'm sure they and theor parents will appreciate it so much. As an adult I am well used to taking my own food; even my own family-in-law don't even try and make an effort