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The time has come for the ultimate family get together of the year— Thanksgiving! It’s the smorgasbord of family recipes, high piled dishes, and desserts galore. But historically, unfortunately for those of us with allergens, corn plays a center stage in this holiday— especially in the dishes. Rather than resorting to bringing your own food to the thanksgiving potluck, we’ve compiled corn-free recipes of all the holiday classics— from gravy to pumpkin pie— for you to share with your family and friends! So you can join in on the festivities without having to worry if the sweet potatoes will cause you to break out in hives. Read on for our 6 best allergen friendly recipes.
Easy, No-Fuss Turkey Recipe
No Thanksgiving is complete without a good turkey.
Ingredients for Turkey:
- 1 12-20 pound turkey
- 1 onion, peeled and quartered
- 1 lemon, quartered
- 1 apple (your favorite kind), quartered
- .75 ounce container fresh rosemary
- .75 ounce container fresh thyme
- .75 ounce container fresh sage
Ingredients for Herb Butter:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened **Vital Farms is a great corn-free option
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 6-8 cloves garlic, minced
- fresh chopped herbs
Corn-free Gravy
Gravy is an especially tricky Thanksgiving staple as most recipes involve corn-starch as a thickening agent– here’s the exception!
Ingredients for Gravy
- 3 cup beef broth
- 6 Tablespoons flour (or arrowroot powder)
- 3 ½ Tablespoons butter
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- salt & pepper to taste
Sweet Potato Casserole w/ Homemade Marshmallows
While most store-bought marshmallows have corn syrup in them, when you make them yourself you can still enjoy the ooey-gooey-ness of a sweet potato casserole without the worry of corn derivatives!
Ingredients for Sweet Potato Casserole
- 3 lb sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
- ½ cup brown sugar (we suggest this one instead to avoid corn derivatives)
- ⅓ cup softened butter
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract (since vanilla often contains corn derivatives, either use fresh vanilla beans or buy a guaranteed corn-free option like Cooks)
- ¾ cup chopped pecans
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 cups mini marshmallows (use our homemade marshmallow recipe here instead!)
Ingredients for Homemade Marshmallows
- 2 tablespoons gelatin (2 envelopes Knox)
- 1 cup (8floz/225ml) cold water, divided
- 2 cups (16oz/450g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (11/3oz/28g) powdered sugar **Wholesome corn-free confectioner’s sugar is the way to go
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (since vanilla often contains corn derivatives, either use fresh vanilla beans or use a brand like Cook’s)
Corn-free Easy Stuffing
What is Thanksgiving without stuffing? While most allergen friendly recipes will suggest gluten-free alternatives to stuffing, gluten-free breads tend to have lots of corn derivatives, our stuffing recipe is a tasty classic!
Ingredients for Stuffing
- 18 to 24 ounces bread cubes, (1.5 loaves of bread, or about 12 to 14 cups) preferably toasted or stale - we haven’t found a store bought option so either bake your own a week in advance OR opt for a bakery that makes its bread using unenriched organic flour
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 3 cups diced sweet onion, roughly 2 large onions
- 2 cups diced celery
- kosher salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
- 2 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
- a mixture of fresh herbs for sprinkling
Classic Cranberry Sauce
Cranberry sauce is one of those “love it or hate it” additions to the Thanksgiving table, but regardless of which side you’re on— it’s a must-have! The best part? It’s naturally corn-free.
Ingredients for Cranberry Sauce
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ cup orange juice
- ½ cup water
- 12 oz fresh cranberries
- pinch of salt
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 piece of orange peel
Grandma’s Pumpkin Pie and Homemade Crust
Let’s not forget the best part of Thanksgiving— the desserts! This pumpkin pie is corn-free and we’ve even added our favorite homemade crust recipe so that you don’t accidentally buy a ready-made crust with corn-starch in it.
Ingredients for Pumpkin Pie
- 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
- 1 (14 ounce) can coconut cream or Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Homemade Crust Recipe
