Cooking allergy free, gluten free can be a challenge, especially when hosting a party. Yesterday I posted How to Have a Summer Olympic Birthday Party, which was a success, but my guests walked away with happy bellies, which makes me feel good. Since I cook allergy free, gluten free, my guests did not miss a thing. What they didn’t know and my most popular salad, the Pumpkin Pesto Pasta was raw vegan too. These salads are also a healthy post-meal workout or if you are training for a long distance event, for a few “pre-loading” meals. Either way, you can still enjoy in small portions, whether or not you are training for an event.

German Potato Salad (Free of 8 allergens including gluten)

10 lb of potatoes peeled, boiled and drained
3 lb of nitrate free bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 chopped up green pepper
1 chopped onion

Drained potatoes, add onions, green peppers, and cooked crumbled bacon. Begin to mix by slowly adding leftover bacon grease about a 1/2 c to 2/3 c. Add the grease accordingly and stir to it slightly covers the potatoes. Salt and pepper to taste.

This is a family version of what has been passed down from my great-grandmother. The original German Potato Salad calls for flour, brown sugar and vinegar. We omit this part and out of 10lbs we made, 2 scoops were left. Not bad.

Pumpkin Pesto Pasta Salad (Raw Vegan, nut and peanut free)

1/4 cup of Nutritional Yeast
1 clove of garlic
1/4 – 1/3 cup of fresh basil
1 tsp of Celtic Salt
2/3 cup of spinach leaves
1/2 cup of shredded zucchini
1 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil plus 1/2 cup more to add slowly

Place all of the above ingredients in a food processor. Begin to blend and slowly add extra oil (if needed) to give it a smooth and sauce like texture. Mix with your favorite gluten free pasta and a 1/2 cup of shredded zucchini. We like Andean Dream Quinoa Pasta (corn free too!) Add more salt if needed.

This is my daughter’s favorite way to eat pasta. This was her request and ended up making another bag of pasta to finish off what pesto I had left over. The nutritional yeast gives it that cheesy flavor and a protein boost.

Chickpea Mediterranean Salad (Gluen, soy, corn, peanut, nut free)

2 cans of Eden’s Organic Chickpeas (they use BPA free lining)
1 cup of crumbled feta cheese. I bought a Mediterranean feta blend from Trader Joe’s, highly recommend.
1/2 cup of chopped Kalmata olives

Dressing:

2/3 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2T of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1T of oregano
1T of fresh rosemary
a few sprigs of fresh thyme
1 tsp of Celtic Salt
1 tsp of white pepper

Whisk dressing together and add to beans until well coated. Add the feta cheese and mix. Enjoy! I think I would have added some sun-dried tomatoes to this or some fresh heirloom tomatoes for some color and flavor.

There you have it, three “international” salads I served at my daughter’s Summer Olympics birthday party. Which can be enjoyed anytime of the year.