There are so many reasons why someone has to start eating a gluten free diet. Perhaps you’ve gotten a somewhat shocking diagnosis of Celiac disease, or a gluten allergy. There are other health conditions too – many autoimmune diseases, for instance – which can cause a medical professional to recommend you stop ingesting gluten altogether.
Scary, right?
Let me assure you that it’s not nearly as terrifying as it may initially feel. When I had to stop eating gluten, I found that lunch was the hardest meal for me. I could still eat gluten free oatmeal for breakfast, and milk and toppings were usually gluten free, so breakfast wasn’t a huge ordeal. (I even found gluten free bread that I love, so I make that for toast often. I wrote all about that here.)
And supper wasn’t too bad either, as long as I based meals around good gluten free pasta, or potatoes, or rice rather than typical pasta. Most proteins like chicken or fish are gluten free naturally, and of course so are veggies. But for some reason, lunch was really tricky for me! So, today, I wanted to share a few simple ideas that might inspire you to have a delicious – and entirely gluten free – lunch tomorrow.
1. SALADS: Way more than lettuce!
Once in a while I enjoy a lettuce-based salad. But it’s funny, I enjoy a more substantial lunch than that. So, recipes for chickpea salad, or hearty potato salad are more my thing. And I really love quinoa salads. Quinoa is a naturally gluten free grain that is an excellent base for a lunchtime salad, or a side dish at suppertime. My favourite way to make it is simple: Let your quinoa totally cool, then mix lemon juice and olive oil to make a simple dressing. (You can jazz this up, as I often do, with Club House Greek seasoning. It’s delicious!) Then add sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, a few olives, and feta if you’re going for the Greek salad theme.
It’s so tasty, and so easy, and you can meal prep a few days in advance.
2. Crackers for Crackers!
Breton gluten free crackers (US link) are my favourite! They really do remind me of the regular, gluten-full version of Breton crackers. (There is also a garlic and herb gluten free variety. Also good!) Of course, you can use whatever type of gluten free crackers you like.
Take a tube of crackers with you for lunch, and a container of all sorts of typical sandwich fillings: tuna salad, salmon salad, egg salad. Or, just slices of cheese and cucumber. Crackers topped with all sorts of goodies make for a satisfying lunch. Look in your supermarket’s deli section to get ideas of all sorts of other gluten free toppings to try – just make sure to check that they’re gluten free before buying them. To be safe, they should say gluten free right on the package.
3. Eggs make an excellent lunch
I love making simple omelets with lots of veggies. I used to always top them with regular, old cheddar. But, since hubs and I can’t eat dairy much anymore, I now use Daiya dairy free cheese shreds instead. (I’ll probably be trying and testing other types of vegan cheeses, and will update this if I find another I like as much. For now, I really like the Daiya Mexican cheeze shreds, because I find they have the most flavour.)
If you find a brand of gluten free pastry crust, you can also make a quiche for lunch! It’s not as complicated as it sounds, and quiche is delicious warm or cold. Search for gluten free quiche recipes to get inspired to try.
4. Soup to the rescue!
Homemade gluten free soup is really not that difficult to make – you start off with onions, celery and carrots and then add whatever else you have in your fridge! There are a variety of gluten free stocks, broths and cubes you can use to add instant flavour to the soup. Once the soup is cooked, you can use an immersion blender to smooth the soup out if you prefer a smoother soup. Or, if you like it chunky just leave it be!
The one thing to always remember is that you can’t use regular flour to thicken soup anymore, as you might have in the past. The best way to thicken a soup in a gluten-free way is to use a cornstarch slurry – a bit of cornstarch dissolved and stirred into a little water. Then you add that to the soup near the end to thicken. Add more if the soup still needs to be thicker, but don’t ever add cornstarch on its own to the soup – you’ll end up with a glumpy, gloopy mess. Ask me how I know. 🙂
Oh, and you can buy excellent premade gluten free soups too. Just make sure to check that they are certified gluten free, and you’re good to go! A quick heat up in the microwave, and your lunch is ready.
5. Smoothies for lunch! Smooth-tastic
I’m coming around to the idea for smoothies to replace a meal! Haha When you get protein-rich, gluten free smoothie powders that are also vegan then it’s a win for everyone in the family. We prefer Vega one mixes – they have an insane amount of nutrients, including greens, and use pea protein as the main protein ingredient. So, if you’re gluten free, sugar-free, vegan, vegetarian or dairy free – you can enjoy these.
I always add about half a banana to my smoothie, and a bunch of whatever frozen fruit I happen to have on hand. Frozen berries of any sort, especially blueberries, are so good!!