Hi, I'm a gluten-free cupcake! Photo by Megan Finley.
If you have guests on your list who are going gluten-free and you're confused about how to accommodate their needs, you're not alone. Increasingly, brides are dealing with gluten-intolerant or Celiac guests, whose special diets can be puzzling. The term "gluten-free" means food made without any wheat, wheat by-products, barley, rye, spelt, oats, and by-products or cross-contamination from any of those grains. This takes the traditional wedding cake off the table for these wedding-goers. While you may not want to design your whole cake around just a handful of guests, there are a few quick and easy ways to improve your gluten-free guests' experience.
First, consider the number of guests who will need an alternative to regular cake and the amount of effort you want to devote to providing other options. Many bakeries, specialty stores, and even regular grocery stores are carrying gluten-free baked goods these days, so assign a member of the wedding party to pick up a box of gluten-free cupcakes or muffins to display on the cake table.
You might be afraid a box of cupcakes will look out of place beside your gorgeous wedding cake, but never fear: gluten-free cupcakes can be just as gorgeous as your wedding cake. If you're concerned about the cupcakes matching the larger cake, buy the gluten-free cupcakes a day in advance and give them to your decorator, who can top them with icing that coordinates with the larger cake. A simpler solution is to take all of the photos first and add the gluten-free items on the side after all of the cutting and cake-in-your-face-smooshing is finished.
Homemade gluten-free baked goods can be just as tasty and look just as cute as store-bought ones, plus you'll save the cash by not paying a baker or decorator.
Another way to get gluten-free baked goods to the wedding table is to ask one of your gluten-free guests to provide some treats as their gift to you. Homemade gluten-free baked goods can be just as tasty and look just as cute as store-bought ones, plus you'll save the cash by not paying a baker or decorator.
If acquiring gluten-free baked goods seems like too much hassle, you can provide something sweet that just happens to also be gluten-free. For instance, set out special chocolate bars like the Endangered Species natural and organic chocolate or some common chocolate bars that are already gluten-free. (Snickers, Hershey bars, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, or Baby Ruth bars are just a few such sweets.)
Lastly, now that you've gone to the trouble of supplying your guests with something delicious, make sure they find it! Many people who avoid wheat won't even think to approach the dessert table, so let them know ahead of time that there will be something special provided. Then label your gluten-free desserts clearly; try a cute sign with wording like, "Goodies for Gluten-free Guests." Your guests will be delighted that they can participate in every aspect of your celebration.
About Suzanne Akerman
I am a zookeeper from the Northwest who loves writing, rock climbing, cake decorating and general nerdiness. When I'm not reading Offbeat Bride blog posts, I can be found eating sushi, reading about quantum mechanics, or watching Dr. Who.
Kenzie said
I'm really happy about this article! My mother and sister are both gluten-free, so I've been living in a no-wheat zone for awhile. I had already been planning on doing a cupcake platter instead of a traditional wedding cake, but my mother wasn't loving the idea. Hopefully when she sees how we can incorporate gluten-free cupcakes into the platter, she'll be more receptive!
Halle said
Why not add a gluten-free layer to the cake? The way cakes are stacked, you really wouldn't have to worrt about cross contaminationand you wouldn't have to have a separate plate of cupcakes.
S.B. (@iLiveinmyLab) said
I know you mean well with this suggestion, but in actuality this is a *REALLY* dangerous idea and would heavily contaminate the gluten-free layer. Just adding the gluten-free layer on the cake itself would contaminate it because the icing from the wheat-based layers would contaminate it, much less all the issues later during the cutting. It's just an absolute minefield. I know a few people who were guilted by family into doing this (against suggestions from friends and experts they knew), and they ended up pretty horribly sick at their weddings. Also I'm going to repeat again just as a PSA to help prevent any disasters – You really shouldn't send your cake to a traditional decorator unless you are the only cake they're working on in their shop at the time, they've completely cleaned out & decontaminated ALL of their equipment that will touch or be near your cake, opened fresh bags of all of their ingredients, and double checked whether or not their ingredients are gluten-free. I've seen gluten contamination be a common problem in gumpastes, as well as fondant so it is extremely important to double check by calling the company not just ready the label (Wilton's stuff is notorious for being cross contaminated….). If you want a pro to decorate your cake the best idea is to suggest they come into a gluten-free bakery (if you are buying your cake from one) and work on it there, it's just plain safer. All of the bakeries I know of in my area allow and welcome this, it's just a matter of working with your decorator.
Tiffany said
Ooooo we came up with a fun solution for our geek wedding – we're making the "bachelor cake" gluten free (although the same flavor) – we're doing the cake from portal.
jjdactyl said
I know that other folks have touched on this, but be careful about store-bought gf baked goods. Please (please, please!) don't leave that to the last minute. Often, packaged gf baked treats taste awful and have the texture of sand. Taste test a bunch of different things, look up recipes, and connect with local gf community in your area to get ideas about things that aren't just gf compliant, but taste awesome, too. I'm a gf/v baker, and my partner can't have gluten. The whole reason I got started in baking is that so much (like, almost all of it) pre-made gf stuff just tastes like utter ass.
Make the effort and look around! Your guests will thank you.
glitterpixie said
Sorry if this has already been said, but I haven't read all the posts.
If you are planning on providing for guests with allergies/intolerances, please make sure you understand the condition and requirements and make them very clear to your caterers. At our wedding we had a few vegans, someone with a pine-nut allergy, one celiac and a few others with a gluten intolerance. Despite our knowledge of the various conditions and designing a buffet menu to provide suitable options for everyone, the caterers were useless and I'm pretty sure a few people went hungry, which I feel awful about. We went up first for our food and out of the four quiches we had tasted and ordered none of them were there, ingredients had been changed, none of them were dairy or gluten free anymore and all the waitress could tell me was that they were vegetarian – thanks for the help!
It's the one bug-bear I have from our wedding. We opted for a buffet to make it easy for everyone as myself and many in my family have dietary issues and others are picky or just don't eat a lot. I wanted it to be a simple and stress-free meal for everyone, I just wish I had explained the importance of sticking exactly the the agreed menu and ingredients.
Also, as I'm sure others have said, most people who are GF or have another allergy/intolerance and quite used to bringing food with them. They will likely prefer to do so, to ensure they last the evening and don't go home with stomach ache or anything otherwise.
Drea said
I'm happy to see that this post is up (aside from its inaccuracies)!
I want to reiterate one thing for people who don't know much about Celiac… It is NOT the same as being Gluten-intollerant!!! Not even a bit! Celiac is an auto-immune disorder (not an allergy), that means that our immune systems attack gluten and thus destroy the lining of our intestines. (not a fun feeling, let me tell you!) This reaction can be triggered by the tiniest particle of gluten on a pan, fork, or in the air.
It makes us very paranoid and twitchy around food!
I'm a bride with Celiac, and I'm having a totally GF/Dairy free wedding reception. I'm so excited to be able to eat ANYTHING at a buffet!
FInding a venue was a bit challenging because I couldn't pick one that had a locked-in caterer.
The caterer we ended-up going with is bringing all of the kitchen equipment to the venue and setting-up a GF kitchen. And they've been sooo awesome and accommodating, I love them!
One other challenge to the whole wedding thing is the other meals that I'll have to share with family while they're in town. I know of *one* restaurant with an entirely GF menu, so we're going there for dinner one night. Our reception dinner is being catered, and for that I just decided to bring my own food for simplicities sake.
When it comes to going to someone's wedding, I would just bring my own food.
Cathy said
The only thing that had gluten in it at my wedding was the beer, i have celiac, and it was the first and only day in my whole life where I didn't have to question anything because I knew everything was safe and the caterers were 100% onboard and knew about contamination etc, although also having all of the food GF meant there was very little chance of that. It was so nice to feel normal for a day! it was wonderful! And because the condition runs in families, it was good for more than just me.
As for attending other people's weddings – it is so great when it goes well, I really am so touched when someone makes the effort even just for 1 person out of their guests who needs something different. Mostly I think it is the caterers who should deal with it a bit better, because they have big weddings groups all the time so there will be a few celiacs every time so you'd think they'd get a grip on it! Issues I have encountered include – very dry food, no gravy when everyone else gets gravy (1 portion of GF gravy is not that hard to make!), getting fed at lunchtime but not in the evening at all (very hungry and in a strange town…not so good!), and the perennial Fruit Salad for dessert. I don't want to sound ungrateful but I don't think fruit is a dessert, its more of a chore!! Also I've never had cake at someone else's wedding, I think it is a very lovely idea to make cupcakes available, but you do need to be careful with cross contamination (I would never ask a normal baker to decorate them! They don't understand the issues!!!! at all!! Plus crumbs everywhere…maybe just have them handed out to those individuals). Also, buffets are always an issue due to the same thing, even if some items are GF, people will be spreading the evil gluten (sorry, its a celiac thing
) just by using utensils, touching things, dropping crumbs, so safest to have plates made up for GF guests in advance. Our motto is "if in doubt, leave it out", so if a celiac guest declines something or asks a question about it, that is just what we need to do to stay safe, we're not being fussy, and sometimes i just decline food rather than question because it seems a hassle to ask questions plus it is embarrassing, so don't be offended if a food is declined.
Rachael said
My grandmother has celiac disease, so gluten-free food is something I have been around for my whole life. My fiance and I have decided to go with cupcakes instead of the tradition cake so I have been considering purchasing a few gluten-free cupcakes so she can enjoy them alongside everyone else!
We are also going to have a chocolate fountain with plenty of delicious goodies to dip in it, so I'm sure she won't have a problem finding some dessert to nosh on!