The best gluten free appetizers are the ones nobody has to be told are gluten free, and that was the only rule I used building this list. Mozzarella bites breaded in crushed Rice Chex, cauliflower breadsticks that pull apart like the real thing, baked plantain chips, sweet pepper poppers, deviled eggs made creamy with Greek yogurt and a pan of stuffed mushrooms that was never going to need flour in the first place. My own contribution to a party is usually cold smoked salmon with a lemon ginger beurre blanc, which sounds fussy and is mostly waiting around, so I have genuine sympathy for anyone staring down an empty tray at five o’clock. Every recipe here links out to the blogger who developed it, with the amounts and the step by step photos at the source. Perfect for game day, a holiday table, a potluck with one gluten free guest and a long afternoon of grazing!
1. Gluten-Free Mozzarella Bites
Six mozzarella string cheese sticks, cut into six pieces each, is where this starts, which means no shaping and no cheese slicing. The breading goes flour, egg, crumbs, then egg and crumbs again, and that second coat is the whole reason the cheese stays inside instead of leaking into your oil. Finely ground Rice Chex work beautifully in place of store bought gluten free crumbs. Chill the coated bites 20 to 30 minutes before frying. Skip that and you get a puddle.
Get the full tutorial at Iowa Girl Eats.
2. Creamy Artichoke, Leek & White Bean Hummus
This one swaps chickpeas for canned cannellini beans and builds the flavor on two leeks sauteed in olive oil for four or five minutes first. Canned artichokes, lemon juice, tahini and a clove of garlic go in after that, and the food processor does the rest. Leeks are sweeter and rounder than raw onion, so the dip tastes like spring vegetables rather than ordinary hummus. Rinse the leeks twice. Grit hides in the layers and it only takes one bite to ruin a whole bowl.
Get the full tutorial at Blissful Basil.
3. Gluten Free Chicken Satay
Chicken breast cut into half inch strips marinates two hours in lite coconut milk, lime juice, coconut sugar, curry powder, grated ginger, gluten free tamari and fish sauce, then grills four to five minutes a side. The dipping sauce uses almond butter instead of peanut butter, which is milder and slightly sweeter. Tamari is the part that matters here, because ordinary soy sauce is brewed with wheat. Soak wooden skewers first or you will be picking charred splinters off the grill.
Get the full tutorial at Abbey's Kitchen.
4. Gluten-Free Chip And Guacamole Bites
Tostitos Scoops, a rounded teaspoon of guacamole in each one, a slice of cherry tomato on top and a pinch of cilantro. That is the entire build, and you can make six or sixty depending on who is coming. Use homemade guacamole rather than the tub, because store bought runs wetter and turns the chips soggy inside ten minutes. Plenty of lime juice keeps the green from going brown. Assemble these last, right before the door opens.
Get the full tutorial at My Gluten Free Kitchen.
5. Stuffed Mushrooms
Twenty four ounces of white button mushrooms, stems popped out and chopped fine, refilled with hot pork sausage, onion, garlic, eight ounces of cream cheese, an egg yolk and three quarters of a cup of parmesan. Deglazing the sausage pan with broth or white cooking wine pulls up everything stuck to the bottom, which is where the flavor lives. Forty minutes at 350 degrees, and no breadcrumbs anywhere in it, so this was gluten free before anybody asked.
Get the full tutorial at The Girl Who Ate Everything.
6. Crispy Baked Avocado Chips
One ripe avocado and three quarters of a cup of grated parmesan, mashed together with lemon juice, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper, then spooned into thin rounds and baked at 325 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes. The parmesan is what crisps them, so do not go light on it. Leave room between the mounds and flatten each one, because crowding the pan steams them instead. Watch the last minute. They go from golden to gone very quickly.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
7. Spinach Balls
Five ingredients, one bowl and a cheesy, slightly chewy texture that makes people assume there is bread in there somewhere. There is not. This is a keto appetizer at roughly one gram of net carbs each, which also makes it gluten free without any substitution gymnastics. Spinach and garlic carry the flavor and the cheese holds everything together. Squeeze the spinach dry before it goes in. Wet spinach is the difference between a ball and a puddle.
Get the full tutorial at Sweet As Honey.
8. Tahini Glazed Chicken Wings
Wings get baked twice here, which is the trick worth taking away even if you never make the tahini glaze. The first bake is plain, with ghee or oil and salt and pepper, so the skin dries out and browns. Then they are tossed in a glaze of tahini and honey and go back in to set. Sweet, savory and genuinely crisp, with no flour and no cornstarch involved. Paleo, if that matters at your table, and gluten free either way.
Get the full tutorial at A Calculated Whisk.
9. Baked Parmesan Gluten-Free Onion Rings
No batter at all on these. A pound of sweet onion is cut into half inch rings, shaken in a bag of cornstarch, dipped in egg whites and then coated in two cups of finely grated parmesan with paprika and garlic powder. They bake at 400 degrees, so there is no pot of oil and no splatter to mop up afterward. Use whole egg whites, not the carton kind, which are too thin to grab the cheese. Marinara or melted butter for dipping.
Get the full tutorial at Cooking With Mamma C.
10. Beef And Chorizo Low Carb Empanadas
The dough is the clever part: shredded mozzarella, cream cheese, three quarters of a cup of almond flour, an egg and seasoning, melted together into a pastry that rolls and folds like the real thing. Inside goes eight ounces each of ground beef and pork chorizo with onion, garlic, tomato paste, chopped hard boiled eggs, green onion and olives. Work quickly once the dough cools, because it stiffens fast. A short spell back in the microwave makes it cooperative again.
Get the full tutorial at Peace Love and Low Carb.
11. Vegetable Fritters
Chickpea flour and half a cup of water make the batter, which means these are gluten free and vegan without anything being taken away from them. Cumin, cayenne, paprika and garlic powder season it, then red onion, red pepper, corn and parsley get folded in. Ten fritters in about 35 minutes. Test the oil with a drop of batter first, because a lukewarm pan gives you a greasy fritter instead of a crisp one. They reheat well in a hot skillet.
Get the full tutorial at Create Mindfully.
12. Baked Plantain Chips
Two green plantains, sliced as thin as you can manage, tossed with three teaspoons of melted ghee and sea salt and baked at 350 degrees. Green is the operative word, because a ripe plantain turns sweet and soft instead of crisping. Keep the slices an even thickness or half the tray will burn while the other half is still floppy. The maple bacon paleo mayonnaise that goes with them is the part people remember.
Get the full tutorial at The Movement Menu.
13. Chicken Pesto Bites
Sweet potato discs stand in for crackers here, baked at 415 degrees for 20 minutes, flipped, then given another 10 until the edges crisp. Each one gets paleo pesto, a tomato slice, shredded chicken and a little more pesto on top. It is really an assembly job once the sweet potatoes are out, which makes it a good one to hand a helper. Cut the discs the same thickness. Thin ones turn to chips while thick ones stay soft.
Get the full tutorial at The Whole Smiths.
14. Cheesy Cauliflower Breadsticks
Four cups of riced cauliflower, four eggs, two cups of mozzarella, oregano and four cloves of garlic, baked at 425 degrees and topped with another cup of cheese. The step everybody skips is the one that matters: microwave the riced cauliflower for 10 minutes, let it cool, then wring it out in a towel. Every bit of water you leave in there comes back as a soggy middle. Do it properly and these pull apart like real breadsticks.
Get the full tutorial at Jo Cooks.
15. Smoked Salmon Cucumber Bites
Fifteen minutes, no oven and ten servings. Six ounces of cream cheese, a quarter cup of Greek yogurt, garlic powder and three tablespoons of chopped dill get piped onto English cucumber slices cut a quarter inch thick on the diagonal, then topped with a folded piece of smoked salmon. The diagonal cut gives you a wider base so they sit still on a tray. A zip lock bag with a corner snipped off works fine if you have no piping bag.
Get the full tutorial at Wholesome Yum.
16. Quick Shrimp Ceviche
A pound of cooked shrimp, chopped, tossed with cherry tomatoes, two avocados, garlic, half an onion, jalapeno, parsley, cilantro and the juice of a whole lemon and a whole lime. Corn tortillas cut into triangles do the scooping, which is what keeps the whole thing gluten free. Buy the shrimp already steamed and this is genuinely a 15 minute job. Add the avocado last and stir gently, or you will end up with guacamole wearing shrimp.
Get the full tutorial at Fresh Fit Kitchen.
17. Paleo Sausage Balls
A microwaved sweet potato replaces the biscuit mix in this version, bound with a third of a cup of coconut flour, two eggs, Dijon and Italian seasoning, then mixed through a pound of pork sausage or chorizo and baked at 350 degrees. The trinity of onion, bell pepper and celery goes in with the sausage while it browns, which is where the whole thing stops tasting like a substitution. Coconut flour drinks liquid, so let the mixture sit a few minutes before rolling.
Get the full tutorial at Dr. Monica Bravo.
18. Vietnamese Spring Rolls With Peanut Sauce
Rice paper wrappers, softened in warm water, are what make these gluten free where a fried spring roll is not. Inside go bean thread noodles, carrot, red bell pepper, cucumber, green onion, mint and cilantro, with peanut sauce for dipping. The noodles are easier than they look: boil the water, turn off the heat, drop them in and leave them 20 minutes. Do not overfill a wrapper. One extra sprig of mint is how a roll splits down the side.
Get the full tutorial at Maddy's Avenue.
19. Herbed Cassava Tortilla Chips
Cassava flour tortillas get oregano, rosemary, thyme and granulated garlic kneaded straight into the dough, then are cooked, cooled, cut into six wedges each, brushed with avocado oil and baked. Roll the dough thinner than feels sensible, because thickness is the only thing standing between you and a genuinely crisp chip. Thirty five minutes and eight servings. Cassava is naturally gluten free and grain free, and these taste like a real tortilla chip rather than an apology for one.
Get the full tutorial at Downshiftology.
20. Gluten-Free Pizza Bombs
Gluten free crescent dough, cut into three inch squares and pressed into a muffin tin, filled with a tablespoon each of pizza sauce, grated zucchini and cheese, then folded shut with a pepperoni on top. Twelve to 14 minutes at 375 degrees. The grated zucchini is a quiet win, adding moisture and a vegetable nobody notices. The dough here is vegan and egg free too, so this one covers several dietary corners at once without tasting like it is trying to.
Get the full tutorial at Petite Allergy Treats.
21. Plantain Chips And Salsa
Green plantains sliced thin on the diagonal, tossed with two tablespoons of melted coconut oil and kosher salt, then baked. The salsa is the surprise: green and red bell pepper, jalapeno, avocado and a diced kiwi, which sounds odd right up until you taste it against the salt of the chips. Slicing on the diagonal gives you a bigger, sturdier chip that will not snap in the dip. Make the salsa first so the flavors have time to settle.
Get the full tutorial at Running to the Kitchen.
22. Greek Yogurt Deviled Eggs
Greek yogurt takes the place of most of the mayonnaise here, and full fat plain is the one to use if you want the filling creamy rather than thin. The savory note comes from coconut aminos, which taste like a milder, slightly sweeter soy sauce and carry no wheat at all. No aminos in the house? Tamari or Worcestershire will do. Deviled eggs are already gluten free, but this version is the one that disappears first.
Get the full tutorial at The Real Food Dietitians.
23. Bacon Egg Salad Tomato Bites
Four hard boiled eggs chopped fine with mayonnaise, ground mustard, salt and pepper, spooned into eight small tomatoes that have had their tops cut off and their insides scooped out, then finished with crumbled bacon, chives and paprika. Campari tomatoes are the right size, big enough to hold a real spoonful and small enough to eat in one go. Salt the hollowed tomatoes and turn them upside down for a few minutes first. They hold a lot of water.
Get the full tutorial at Beauty and the Foodie.
24. Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus
Three ingredients and about 15 minutes. Asparagus goes into boiling water for exactly two minutes, straight into an ice bath, then two or three spears get wrapped in prosciutto and baked at 350 degrees for seven minutes until the prosciutto crisps. The ice bath is not optional. It stops the cooking dead and keeps the spears green and snappy instead of olive drab. Lemon pepper in place of plain pepper is a good swap. Prosciutto is salty enough already.
Get the full tutorial at Dr. Monica Bravo.
25. Ginger Garlic Teriyaki Mushrooms Skewers
A pound of whole crimini mushrooms marinate 30 to 60 minutes in low sodium teriyaki with sesame oil, fresh grated ginger, three cloves of garlic and black pepper, then go onto skewers and over a medium grill. Read the teriyaki label carefully, because most bottled teriyaki is built on soy sauce and soy sauce is usually brewed with wheat. A gluten free bottle keeps the whole thing safe. Soak wooden skewers 30 minutes so they do not burn through.
Get the full tutorial at Plating Pixels.
26. Cheesy Baked Zucchini Breadsticks
Two medium zucchini, grated, then the important bit: salted in a strainer for 10 minutes so they release their water. Mix with mozzarella, two eggs, garlic powder, oregano and basil, spread onto a well oiled parchment lined sheet and bake at 400 degrees. Same idea as the cauliflower version further up, and zucchini is cheaper and faster to prep. Squeeze harder than you think you need to. Soggy is the only way this recipe fails.
Get the full tutorial at Apples for CJ.
27. Sweet Potato Risotto Baked Spring Rolls
A genuinely ambitious one: arborio rice cooked into a proper risotto with garlic, sage and white wine, then folded with roasted sweet potato, pecans, dried cranberries, diced green apple and vegan cream cheese, rolled into 24 spring rolls and baked at 400 degrees with cranberry sauce for dipping. An hour of work and a holiday appetizer that looks like it came from somewhere expensive. Keep the risotto on the firm side. Loose filling will not roll.
Get the full tutorial at Abbey's Kitchen.
28. Bacon and Goat Cheese Stuffed Sweet Pepper Poppers
Eight mini sweet peppers, halved and seeded, filled with four ounces each of goat cheese and cream cheese mixed with garlic powder, onion powder and crumbled bacon, then broiled and finished with sweet chili sauce. Sweet peppers instead of jalapenos means everyone can eat them, including the kids. Broilers are quick and unforgiving, so stay at the oven. Ninety seconds of looking away is the difference between blistered and black.
Get the full tutorial at Iowa Girl Eats.
29. Pomegranate Salsa
Two cups of pomegranate seeds, half a cup of cilantro, a third of a cup of finely chopped red onion, minced jalapeno to taste, lime juice, olive oil and a tablespoon of honey. That is it, and it holds in the fridge for days while still tasting like it was made an hour ago. Serve it with chips, spoon it over grilled chicken or pour it straight over a block of cream cheese. Double it. You will want some left for yourself.
Get the full tutorial at DIY Joy.
30. Turkey and Dill Gluten Free Pinwheel Appetizers
Four ingredients and a knife. Cream cheese mixed with fresh dill and onion salt goes onto a gluten free wrap, sliced turkey goes on top, then you roll it tight and cut it into pinwheels. Add one teaspoon of the onion salt first and taste before adding the second, because it is saltier than it looks. Chill the roll before slicing and the pinwheels hold their shape instead of unravelling on the tray. Good make ahead food.
Get the full tutorial at Eat At Our Table.
31. Spicy Crab Bites
Twelve ounces of crab meat bound with an egg, a quarter cup each of horseradish sauce and sour cream, a third of a cup of gluten free panko, Old Bay, dijon and Worcestershire, then broiled and topped with sriracha. The gluten free panko is doing real work, holding everything together without turning the crab into filler. Pick through the crab with your fingers first. One piece of shell is all it takes to spoil an otherwise excellent bite.
Get the full tutorial at A Healthy Life For Me.
32. Buffalo Chicken Celery Sticks
Half a cup of hot sauce, six tablespoons of butter, honey, garlic and salt come to a boil, then four tablespoons of cream cheese get whisked in off the heat, which is what tames the burn and makes the sauce cling. Toss it through four cups of shredded chicken and fill celery cut into two or three inch pieces. Thirty two sticks from one bunch. The celery goes from garnish to the whole point, and it stays crisp against the heat.
Get the full tutorial at Evolving Table.
33. Garlic Chilli Mushrooms
Shallots, sliced red chilli, cremini and oyster mushrooms hit a properly hot pan with olive oil, and enoki go in near the end because they need almost no time. Lemon zest and a knob of butter finish it. Twenty minutes, serves three, and no flour or thickener anywhere. Preheat the pan hard before anything touches it. A cool pan makes mushrooms stew in their own liquid, which is why most people think they do not like mushrooms.
Get the full tutorial at Cooked and Loved.
