Another Gluten Filled Cocktail Party

Picture stolen from here.

Why is everything at cocktail parties either wrapped in, or on top of, gluten?  Everything.  Except chicken on a stick.  No one likes vegetables anymore?  Cheese?  Meet and vegetables together?

Tonight I was at the same event I wrote about last year, except this year they didn't have the salmon or the tuna.  They did have chicken on a stick though.  How many pieces of dry chicken on a stick can you eat?  More than you'd like to, that's how many.

Ok, I won't complain anymore.  I had a snack before I went and a snack when I got home.  And several pieces of chicken on a stick in between.  Phew, thanks for listening.

Gluten Free Cocktail Party – Part II

A week or so ago I noticed that my post entitled Gluten Free Cocktail Party? had jumped dramatically to the number one read entry.  I found this surprising, but it occurred to me that perhaps people were looking for tips on either going to or hosting a gluten free cocktail party.

And then a few days ago, coincidentally, I found myself at another work event that started with a cocktail hour.  There were mac and cheese bites, crab cakes, fried zucchini, mini burger sliders, mini BLTs, lump crab on a cracker thing, and shrimp cocktail.  It all looked delicious, but the shrimp were the only thing I could eat – and is cocktail sauce even gluten free?

So again I was facing the problem of eating at a cocktail party, and there was no solution but to eat first, bring a snack, politely decline the waitresses on those mac and cheese bites, and enjoy the cocktails.  I wish I had better advice on attending these events, but the sad truth is that the vast majority of cocktail parties in our life will probably never cater to our gluten free needs.  (Except, I decided, my own wedding one day.  Dad, please start saving for the additional cost now.)

Less formal cocktail parties with friends or associates can be just as problematic.  If you are attending one of these events and feel comfortable, call the hostess a few days in advance to explain your allergy and see if you can bring a dish to share.  Then there will be at least one thing you know you can safely eat.  If you are a very conscientious host and want to be sure there is food for a gluten intolerant guest at your party, the best thing to do is call them first to chat.  If you do make something gluten free, make it first to prevent cross-contamination later.  If in doubt on any gluten free matter, ask.

If you are looking for a gluten free caterer in your area, do a simple google search.  I was surprised at how many I found.  Good luck.

Gluten Free Cocktail Party?

Not quite.

Tonight I volunteered at a cocktail-ish party for work.  It was pretty fun.  I only had to work for an hour and I got free food and drinks.  Sort of.  There were hors d'oeuvres in abundance, but very few of them were gluten free.  I didn't eat dinner first because I went straight from work.  I meant to stop and get a snack on my way but I was feeling a bit pressed for time.  Not stopping was a mistake.

I had never noticed how most finger foods are gluteny until I couldn't eat them.  Spring rolls, mini pizzas, pigs in a blanket (what a silly food), mini grilled cheese, mini quiche, crab cakes, filet mignon on little toasts, tuna tartare on crackers, and various other things.

The things I could eat: chicken on a stick, and smoked salmon on cucumber.  Too bad I don't like smoked salmon.  One of my coworkers apparently told one of the waiters I was gluten free because the waiter came over with the smoked salmon platter for me.  I didn't like it the first time I tried it, but it was such a nice gesture I had another one.  He then told me the chef was going to make something for me.  He came back with two spoons of the tuna tartare without the cracker.  How nice of him!

How many chicken skewers and  tuna tartare can you really eat though?  I must admit, in my state of hunger, and slight drunkenness (strong cocktail on an empty tummy - not my fault!), I cheated a little bit.  I had two of the filet mignons plucked off the toast.  This was only cheating a little because I didn't eat any gluten, but they were touching the toast before I ate them and therefore a no no.  The real cheating was the 3 mini crab cakes I ate.  Those definitely had some breadcrumbs in them.  Oops!

I left hungry and ended up making some gluten free cornmeal pancakes when I got home.  They weren't very good either.  At least I didn't get sick from the cheating though.

How to survive cocktail parties of the future?  Always eat first and stick to the cocktails.