Oh, hello...
Food is on my mind, of late. Largely because it's getting colder, and my instinct is to fatten up for the winter. Such is the way of my people.
But it gets me thinking about Feasts that I Have Known and Loved, and how challenging it can be to plan one in this day and age, what with all sorts of allergies and dietary restrictions and requirements and trends. Solving for these can be overwhelming, especially if you feel that you need to accommodate everyone's everything, which is how I landed on a useful...well, it's not really a framework so much as it's general guidelines that have stood me in fairly good stead.
1. Choose a theme
It seems kind of obvious, but by giving yourself parameters it can reduce things to merely whelming. Honestly, it doesn't really matter what the theme is - time period, location, season, colour...
2. Choose a menu
Don't try to be all things to all food issues. A good rule of thumb is to not have any one thing in too many dishes, so be thoughtful in planning your courses. Things like serving sauces for meat on the side, mixing up your garnishes, and making sure that vegetarian dishes are hearty enough to stand on their own are easy solutions. Many recipes are already gluten-free, and choosing non-dairy fats for cooking are other quick wins. An added bonus of thinking of courses in terms of allergen-avoidance is that it will by it's very nature make for a delightfully varied menu.
3. Choose your battles
After that it's entirely up to you, of course, as to how far you want to go with accommodating dietary restrictions. If you're serving a feast to a dignitary, it's good form to not accidentally kill them, so working around their issues makes sense. If it's a small feast where making special dishes isn't a hardship, going the extra step creates goodwill. A few sacrifices to authenticity aren't the end of the world, and it's always good to be inclusive.
4. Be transparent
Always, always, get your menu out in advance and have ingredient lists available, both on request and on the day. You may have made reasonable accommodation, but it's ultimately up to the feasters to manage their own diets – having full information is the least you can do so they can make their own decisions.
5. Be kind
Food isn't just food. It's heavy with connotations, judgement, triggers, pathology, emotional baggage, religion, comfort, meaning, politics, and metaphor. You never know where anyone might be on that spectrum, so if someone comes to you with a question or a request, take it at face value - they want to take part in what you're creating, and want to know whether that's possible for them. Assume the best, then do what you're able, even if it's gently suggesting that they might need to supplement the offerings so their needs are met.
Even though none of us are getting together at long tables to break bread, in these Plague Times, it's still fun to think about and plan for when we're able to meet again and shove tasty morsels into our respective gobs. Hopefully these guidelines can help you come up with some great ideas that you can put into play when it's all blown over.
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