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I need cheap GF/DF meals for 8-10 people, please!


indigomama
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What about a beef stew with lots of veggies, or pulled pork?  Tacos with corn tortillas and toppings (you'd have to substitute or eliminate sour cream and cheese), or a baked potato bar with toppings. 

 

Gluten free noodles are more expensive than regular, but the rest of a pasta dish like spaghetti aren't too bad, and it is easy!

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Chili, roasted chicken with veggies, hard-shell tacos with rice and refried beans, beef roast with veggies, breakfast (eggs, bacon/sausage, hashbrowns, peppers, onions), dinner salads (we have one with chicken, apples, spiced walnuts, and honey mustard dressing often), Chinese fried rice, grilled hamburgers on lettuce wraps, sweet and sour chicken or meatballs over rice, build-your-own quesadillas, gumbo, red beans and rice. Just skip the cheese on any of those that normally have it.

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Turkeys are on sale during this season, so a meal of roasted turkey and oven roasted vegetables (turnips, parsnips, carrots, and yams sliced and tossed in olive oil and seasoned with salt, pepper and rosemary), could feed lots cheaply -- AND have left-over turkey for more meals for your family.

 

How about vegetable V-8 soup? A big can of V-8 plus half can of water or stock; chopped up onions, green beans, frozen corn kernels, and chunks of boiled potato, and season with basil, oregano, salt, pepper and chili powder. (The last time I made this, I had some left-over cooked beef which I sliced super thin, cut into small bite-sizes, and tossed into the pot along with the meat juice, which made for a REALLY nice rich flavor addition.) Serve a bruschetta of gluten free crackers brushed with olive oil and topped with chopped cherry tomatoes and fresh basil and parmesan -- make some without the parmesan for the dairy-free folk.

 

How about some variation on an Italian Sausage Soup?

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Well we do GF not DF around here, but a few times I've made DF for parties too.  I find classic multi-course meals work well, especially because some of our friends don't eat red meat unless it was raised humanely or hunted, and others hate fish and poultry.

 

  • Meatloaf (made with mashed potato flakes instead of bread, especially good if you dice up carrots, onions, and celery in a food processor and caramelize them before mixing with the meat - tastes like pot roast in every bite, but it does take hours to chop everything up, caramelize, and then wait for it to cool enough to make meatloaf).
  • Roasts or pork loins (whatever is on sale, cooked in crock pot with carrots, potatoes and onions, seasoned with salt and pepper).
  • Ribs (beef or pork, cooked in crock pot with gluten free barbeque sauce and a can of Coke)
  • If you have a really good BBQ restaurant near you that makes gluten free smoked meat, you might check to see if you can buy smoked meats by the pound.  I've done that for several parties and it's always been a hit, and you can usually get gfdf turkey, pork, and beef to accommodate everyone's preferences.
  • Fried catfish or chicken nuggets coated in masa (the flour used to make corn tortillas) mixed with garlic salt, pepper, and parsley (make sure the chicken is gluten free - most is injected with broth that contains gluten.  Tyson always makes me react even though it's said to have no added gluten.  Aldi's fresh chicken is specifically labeled gluten free if you have one of those near you).

 

  • Some sort of starch such as a potato dish (baked is easiest to accommodate dairy free, but many recipes will work)
  • Rice (cooked with gfdf chicken bouillon, dried parsley, and margarine OR saffron rice made in rice cooker with chicken bouillon, saffron, turmeric, onion, and margarine).
  • A variety of cooked veggies (made with margarine, salt, and pepper), the frozen varieties at Sam's club are inexpensive and VERY GOOD - every time I make the green beans steamed in the microwave everyone assumes they were made from fresh.
  • Fresh salad with a variety of bottled dressings or something homemade.
  • If you want dinner rolls or something like that, Udi's brand is amazingly good and I think it's dairy free too.  You can even order it from their website if no grocery stores in your area carry it.  GF cornbread mix is also an easy way to provide a bread that people like.

 

  • Desserts - For price I would probably opt for either an apple crisp made with a topping of gluten free oatmeal, cinnamon, sugar, and margarine OR a simple fruit cobbler made with a gluten free cake mix, a bottle of sprite, and a bag of frozen fruit. There are a million varieties of this listed online if you google.  I think cool whip is gfdf (at least it doesn't contain wheat).
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With cornbread, most has flour in it.  You can either make your own subbing in a gf flour blend, or buy a gf mix (I really like Bob's Red Mill - I bake it in a 9x13 pan, despite the recipe saying 8x8).

But its so easy to make gf.  it was my first successful bread.

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We were dairy free for years and I have many gfs whose families are df.  Some of my favorites:

stir fry (pork, chicken, shrimp, whatever)

chicken with rice and veggies

chili

soups

ham with boiled potatoes and veggies

breakfast: eggs, ham, fruit

salads

tacos

 

meats with any side dish:

coleslaw

potatoes (boiled, baked, fried, salad)

rice

tossed salad

steamed veggies

carrot/raisin salad

 

red beans and rice

pulled pork

 

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Chili over baked potatoes. You can prepare the chili in advance and bake all the potatoes in the oven so there is very little cleanup.

 

Red beans and rice. I use Emeril's red beans with sausage recipe and it can be prepared in advance. 

 

Chicken tortilla soup with avocado slices and tortilla chips.

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Thanks everyone. I was getting in a rut with the same meals over and over. And now our budget is tighter and we have company coming for a week. Two of our boys can't have dairy and it's usually not too hard to substitute, but some meals just aren't complete without regular dairy items. We've recently found too that one DS does much better behaviorally without gluten. 

 

Lots of great ideas here!

 

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Just made this for dinner:

 

Potato salad: potato wedges, steamed swiss chard shopped, kalamata olives, and red onion slices with olive oil and vinegar (put it on when potatoes and swiss chard are still hot)

Deviled eggs 

Tomato slices left to sit with salt

 

Cost me around 5 not including the dressing costs and fed 7 big eater with a bit tucked into the fridge for snacking.

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Just made this for dinner:

 

Potato salad: potato wedges, steamed swiss chard shopped, kalamata olives, and red onion slices with olive oil and vinegar (put it on when potatoes and swiss chard are still hot)

Deviled eggs 

Tomato slices left to sit with salt

 

Cost me around 5 not including the dressing costs and fed 7 big eater with a bit tucked into the fridge for snacking.

 

Sounds delicious! 

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yeah, chili and cornbread was my first thought.

Mmmmm. That's what we had for supper. And macaroons.

 

Ree had a great recipe for tortilla soup. I use leftover chicken, add a can of homing (no idea why... I love hominy in chicken soup)... And serve it with cornbread, too. Because cornbread goes with everything.

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My daughter just catered a film cast/crew of 20, every meal gluten free for ten days.  Some of the things she made were:  regular chili, white chicken chili, both chicken and veggie enchiladas with corn tortillas, meatballs with gluten-free pasta and a gravy, chicken curry over rice (although I see you don't like curry)...wish I could remember the rest.  I helped with the white chicken chili and it was very easy!

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