Gluten free treats

[Catherinezzzz]

Hi
Looking for ideas for a gluten free birthday picnic for a friend's 40th please - was thinking afternoon tea type thing but not sure if that would involve too much gluten free bread/scones etc. which I've heard bad things about and whether I would be better going for something naturally gluten free. She isn't celiac.

Nice cheese and gf crackers
Salad, crudités and gf dips
Cold meats
Honey almond and polenta cake
Frittata
Crisps
You can get decent gf breadsticks to go with the dips

Marks and Spencer’s Made Without Wheat Range is excellent. They do scones, quiche, sausage rolls, pork pies etc and their bread is on the whole quite nice compared with other brands. Their crackers and date and walnut toasts are lovely too.

And if you wanted to bake - Becky Excell’s Gluten Free Cuppa Tea blog has EXCELLENT recipes. Every one I’ve made has been outstanding.

Make a cake! Just use Dove gluten free flour instead of usual in recipe. Lemon drizzle is brilliant (better than ordinary flour I think). Crudites don't need anything glutinous. Enjoy!

Great ideas thanks so much

naturally gf is best.

Chocolate brownies work well gf, for cake-type thing.

Kettle chips (& most other premium crisp brands) are gf.

Many sausages are gf - read the label. Helen Brownings mini organic sausages are great.

Nuts, olives, etc ...

Spanish omelette/ frittatas work well cold. Doves Farm flour in any cake recipe although something with a bit of flavour is better than plain. Flapjacks.

You can't just substitute Dove's farm GF flour in a normal cake recipe. It doesn't work properly. You don't get the same texture and the ratio of liquids is different.

You need to google proper GF cake recipes.

Oh, and flapjacks are only GF if they are made with GF oats. Most oats are cross contaminated in the field and factory. That may not matter if the OP's friend is not coeliac though.

I may not speak for all Coeliacs but if you can avoid Brownies please do! It’s usually the token gluten free option at every cafe, restaurant etc and I never thought it would be possible to get fed up of them but I have! My friend’s always very kindly go to the trouble of getting them for me and I politely eat them but after 7 years of brownies every time it’s easy to get bored.

Tesco do lovely Gluten Free cakes as do M&S (the coffee and walnut cake is AMAZING!!!). M&S Made Without Wheat Millionaire’s shortbreads are also out of this world (avoid Lazy Days as they taste very synthetic).

Sorry Eleanor! DS is coeliac and brownies are my go to home made GF option ...

He rates the Tesco's GF Victoria Sponge highly too, although I could never recreate it in my own kitchen.

Agree most of the M&S Made Without Wheat range is good.

Lol, well if your DS likes them that’s the main thing!

The Tesco Victoria Sandwich IS nice. I’ve served it to non-Coeliacs who enjoyed it too (greedy buggers ).