Eating a gluten-free diet is more difficult than many people realize. If you have recently found out that you’re sensitive to gluten, making such an abrupt change in your diet can throw your entire life off of track. This list should help you get your bearings as you start to do more research with what to eat in your life.
Breakfast
Breakfast may sound difficult for gluten-free diets. It’s easy to crave pancakes, cereals, and other grains, but there is still hope for the gluten-free if they want to enjoy the most important meal of the day.
Eggs, Eggs, Eggs
If you are someone who enjoys a cooked or hot breakfast, try to find as many recipes as you can that require eggs. Bacon, sausage, and hot cereals should be avoided (unless marked as gluten-free). Try whipping up as many egg dishes as you can.
Cereals to Try
If you like to eat cereal in the morning before heading off for the rest of your day, try some mainstream gluten-free cereals like Chex cereals. Some stores even carry gluten-free specialty cereals that you may like even more that are usually made with rice instead of grains.
Breakfast Bars for on the Go
Your usual bar may already be marked gluten-free, but if it isn’t, you may be out of luck. Switch to cereal for now – reading breakfast bar boxes may make you a little depressed.
Lunch
Lunch can be equally as hard as breakfast if you are unaware of what to stay away from. Here are a few options for lunch. People with Celiac Disease will find it hard to get away from sandwiches.
Left Overs are Easiest
If you can, microwaving left overs can save you from having to figure out an entire new dish to plan for your day. Trying to stay away from wheat and bread during lunch is pretty difficult, but if you already have another dish prepared it will your life all the more easier.
No Microwave? No Problem
Try packing fresh fruit or a salad. If you don’t feel like eating the same thing so often, you can use brown rice or quinoa and some sort of potato dish. There are still many options available for lunch, but you may need to get more creative than making a sandwich.
Dinner
This should be the easiest meal to prepare for your day. Since we don’t normally base entire meals around wheat for dinner, it’s easy to come up with something.
Meat and Greens
Preparing a simple meal based off of meat and sides of vegetables is one of your easiest options for dinner. Remember, brown or wild rice is still available, as is quinoa. This makes it very easy for sides.
It’s a jarring change, but it’s definitely not impossible. What are your favorite specific dishes that you have found when cooking gluten-free? What did you have to give up completely? It can be tiring to have to plan so much of your life around one sensitivity, but you’ll find that it soon becomes second nature.
