'AITA for cooking a five-course meal for everyone except my step-niece?'

"AITA for making homemade food for everyone except my brother's stepdaughter?"

I (27F) am not a professional chef, but I have taken many cooking classes and love making elaborate meals for friends and family. About two years ago, my brother, Greg (25M), married Cheryl (34F). Cheryl has a daughter from a previous relationship (Becca, 9F) who has several health conditions, including celiac and a severe dairy allergy that requires her to carry an epi-pen.

Last weekend I hosted a dinner at my house for my parent's wedding anniversary. I made a fancy five-course dinner, and in addition to my parents, I invited four close family friends, Greg, Cheryl, and Becca, and my sister, her boyfriend, and their twins (both 8M).

Because of Becca's food restrictions, I found a restaurant that specializes in gluten-free, dairy-free (as well as other allergen-free) food and arranged for them to make a full meal for Becca that I could pick up in advance of the party.

I had made a variety of specialty meals in the past (for example, keto meals when my friend was following that diet), and I liked the challenge, but knowing how severe Becca's restrictions were, I didn't trust myself to make her meal. I have ADHD and get easily distracted, and if I even used the wrong spoon or didn't thoroughly wash some flour off a bowl, it could make her incredibly sick.

I thought the 'take out' solution was acceptable, but when I served the food, I saw Cheryl looking at Becca's plate with a stony face. For her part, Becca started eating and seemed fine. Cheryl whispered to Greg, and Greg asked if he could talk to me in the kitchen.

When we got there, he said that it was 'unbelievable' that I couldn't be bothered to make something for Becca, that they'd been bragging about what a great cook I am to her, and that he knew I'd made keto, vegan, and other complicated kinds of food in the past; now she would feel left out because she didn't get to eat what the rest of the family was eating.

He said that it was apparent that I didn't care about making his stepdaughter feel like a part of the family and that they were leaving. Greg, Cheryl, and Becca then left, which put a damper on the rest of the party. I felt like I did my best at the time, but in hindsight, I wonder if I should have tried harder to make Becca feel included since she is a relatively new addition to our family. AITA?

If you ask the internet they will respond.

aimeeruthie88 says:

For some reason, I read that and felt sad for you. I’m honestly in disbelief you thought you did something wrong. You were incredibly thoughtful in ensuring she had a meal suitable for her.

You have ADHD and are well aware that mistakes are easily made, so to ensure you didn’t seriously put this child’s health in danger, you decided the safest option was to contact a restaurant to provide something. I can’t stress this enough, but YOU ARE NTA (Not the A**hole).

makethatnoise says:

NTA. If you accidentally made a keto meal wrong, it would upset their diet. It sounds like if you made Becca's meal incorrectly, she could have a major medical issue. You're not wrong for not wanting that stress on you.

SnooRadishes8848 says:

I thought that was a great solution and honestly thought this was going another way. Other kids probably wanted to takeout.

OP, I wish my uncle would buy me takeout instead of cooking for me. You're a 10/10.