Memorial Day Gluten-Free Grilling

Memorial Day is just around the corner and with it comes the season of barbeques! I love barbeques for the fun, carefree atmosphere and for all the delicious food. Freshly grilled meat, fruit salad, pasta salad…yes, pasta salad. One of my favorites is a light and refreshing Greek pasta salad. Simple to prepare and a perfect compliment to grilled chicken, shrimp or even a hot dog! I like to toss chopped plum tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, crumbled feta cheese (Boar’s Head and Organic Valley are good) and kalamata olives with 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, a few tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice, about a teaspoon of dried oregano and salt and pepper to taste. Then throw in about 8 oz (half a box) of your favorite gluten free pasta (try Mrs. Leeper’s or De Boles corn pasta or Ener-G Foods or Annie’s rice pasta) and you’ve got a beautiful, flavorful side dish.

Potatoes make great barbeque side dishes. Set up a baked potato bar with all your favorite fixins: sour cream (Organic Valley), bacon (Boar’s Head), chives and cheddar cheese (Boar’s Head) or roast potatoes in a little olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Potato salad is one of my favorites. A basic recipe needs 5 medium sized red potatoes, 2 eggs, 1/3 cup chopped onion, 1 cup chopped celery, 1 cup mayonnaise (Hellmann’s is gluten free), 2 tbl vinegar, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar and 1/4 tsp pepper. Simply cube and boil the potatoes, boil the eggs and mix the other ingredients in a bowl. Once boiled, cool and peel and chop the eggs and mix with the other ingredients and the cooled potatoes. This recipe can be jazzed up with bacon, cheese and sour cream to make baked potato salad or with red pepper flakes to make it a little spicy.

Chicken and seafood taste great on the grill, especially between chopped peppers, onions and mushrooms on a kebab, but I eat a lot of that stuff all year-round and come barbeque season I like to indulge in a hot dog every now and then. Hebrew National is my favorite brand and they are gluten free. Ball Park and Applegate Farms are also safe to eat and Applegate Farms has several delicious, all-natural, organic and gluten free products on their website. I personally love a plain hot dog, cut up with some ketchup and sauerkraut, but if you like yours on a bun, try this recipe. I originally found it online and it turned out well when I tried it:

Gluten Free Hot Dog Buns:
• Mix 3/4 cup rice flour, 1/4 cup potato starch, 1/2 cup tapioca starch, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp xanthan gum, 1/2 tsp salt and 1 tbl sugar in a bowl.
• In another bowl, mix 2 eggs, 1/3 cup oil and 1/2 cup milk
• Mix all ingredients together and spoon batter in a hot dog bun shape about 5 inches long on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for about 14 mins, or until golden brown. Cool completely, and slice a slit for the hot dog.

Have a happy holiday and lots of happy grilling from GF Delights. If you aren't in the mood to make your own food, check out the famous Blue Smoke, they have some great gluten free options including two types of slow-smoked, tasty ribs.