joannqn Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 It's been suggested that we try a GF diet for my son, and I'm starting to consider a trial period. I can figure out GF breakfasts pretty easily. I can do GF dinners as well. Lunches are the problem. We eat sandwiches for lunch pretty much EVERY day. I already cook breakfast and dinner from scratch every day so I'm not really wanting to all out cook lunch too. What do you GF people eat for lunch? We're also working towards dairy free, trial period as well. So, I'd like ideas that omit both gluten and dairy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momtoamayalilal2 Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 We are goingnto be doing the same here as well...and lunch was one of the things that has really stumped me! Will be watching this thread carefully. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Girls' Mom Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 carrots with hummus or peanut butter fresh fruit grilled chicken (grilled before hand, sliced or cubed and kept in the fridge for quick grabs) corn chips and salsa rice and beans (make them ahead and just store in the fridge to warm up) left overs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandelion Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 (edited) My DS is GFCF (plus "many-other-foods-free" like soy, peanuts, etc.)... Here are some of the things he eats for lunch: BLT on Vegan Oat bread (avail. at health food stores), spread with Earth Balance buttery spread (avail. at most grocery stores now), with nitrate-free bacon (Hormel brand - avail. almost everywhere), lettuce and tomato. Veggie slices on the side. Ham and tomato sandwich - same bread and spread as above, with nitrate-free ham (Hormel brand). Veggie slices on the side. Rice pasta with chicken and veggies - Tinkyada brand brown rice pasta (available at most health food stores and several regular grocery stores) with grilled chicken and sauteed vegetables (like sweet red peppers). GFCF pizza - GFCF pizza crust (from our local GFCF bakery - but also available in some health food stores or you can make your own), spread with marinara sauce, veggies and sausage, ham, or bacon (again, we get only the healthier meats that are nitrate-free and additive-free - we buy the sausages from our health food store) Big tossed veggie salad (I know - not all 8-year old boys would like this, but my DS does!) with GFCF dressing (several brands available at health food stores, or you can make your own - gluten is in a LOT of dressings, so make sure any dressing you buy says "gluten-free"). HTH! Edited July 15, 2011 by Dandelion added more info re: salad dressing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 I do the sandwich thing on Udi's gluten-free bread/rolls. Entirely edible. I also keep rice cakes in the house and like them with almond butter and jam, for tuna melts, with egg salad. We have nachos fairly regularly. Cheese would be a challenge there, but I know there are some really tasty vegan shreds out there (I gave up dairy when my 10yo was an infant, can't remember the good ones, but they weren't soy). Sometimes we have leftovers. GF pizza isn't as tasty cold as regular pizza, but it's good heated up. I like the Gluten-Free Goddess pizza crust recipe (and by the way, she is also dairy free, so you could probably find a whole lot on her blog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hvicker Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 You could try your sandwiches as lettuce wraps instead. Smear some hummus/avocado/etc on a leaf of lettuce and throw in a slice or two of your favorite GF lunch meat. Voila - lunch! It won't work for a PB&J, but it's pretty versatile. If you decide to add dairy back into your diets, cream cheese also makes a yummy spread for these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audrey Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 We've been eating mostly soups and salads for lunch for a long time now. Soups are nicer in winter, salads in summer. My ds's favourite lunch is shredded lettuce and carrot topped with a chicken salad made with mayo, celery and curry powder. That same chicken salad also goes nicely rolled up in a lettuce leaf. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 I knew a woman (when we were in a co-op together) who would pick up lunches for her kids from Whole Foods. She'd get them a box of sushi, a fruit, and a yogurt. Fried eggs with rice and veggies Fried rice made with leftover meats and veggies Soup Chili Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smillard00 Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 You could try your sandwiches as lettuce wraps instead. Smear some hummus/avocado/etc on a leaf of lettuce and throw in a slice or two of your favorite GF lunch meat. Voila - lunch! It won't work for a PB&J, but it's pretty versatile. If you decide to add dairy back into your diets, cream cheese also makes a yummy spread for these. Just thinking out loud here...if peanut butter is good on celery, it *might* be good on lettuce. If you have a kid that really loves it, it might be worth an experiment. Also in the peanut butter category, when I was a kid, one of my favorite lunches (and still is when I'm pregnant) was to eat a banana with a big glob of peanut butter. You might also do a search for "muffin tin meals." It's kind of an a la carte approach to lunch that gets you away from the standard sandwich. My youngest loves to eat her lunch this way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amey311 Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 We're not GF, but we do try to mix up their diets and not have bread at every meal. So, my kids will eat many things with corn tortilla chips - hummus, chicken/tuna/egg salad, leftover taco filling, etc. Costco has Udi's GF bread in the freezer section if you shop there. The boys will also eat salads, soups, eggs if they haven't had eggs for breakfast, leftover dinner (sometimes we plan for this by cooking extra the day before), lunch meat and cheese rolled up. Have you checked out any of the GF blogs? The Vegan Lunchbox blog had some good ideas, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyJoy Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 I like to eat tuna salad or chicken salad on cucumber slices or with celery rather than bread or crackers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted July 15, 2011 Author Share Posted July 15, 2011 Thanks for helping me visualize lunch. I don't know if/when we'll try it. We're still trying to get dairy out of our diet. We're almost there but the kids and I aren't thrilled about going dairy free again. If that doesn't seem to have an affect, I'm might do gluten free before putting the dairy back in. We have to avoid soy, too. I forgot that. He also have oral allergy syndrome so DS's fruits are limited. No one in our house, except DH who eats anything, likes the fresh veggies in dips that I often seen suggested. Lunch would definitely be the most challenging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted July 15, 2011 Author Share Posted July 15, 2011 I haven't checked any blogs yet. This was just a new idea that popped up because I just restarted Weight Watchers and we're eating at lot more healthy already. The kids didn't balk too much when I served lettuce wrapped burgers the other night. I could see gradually reducing the bread as part of this change...if I could get a handle on lunch. Before today, I totally balked at the idea of doing a GF trial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenvneck Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 My DS is GFCF (plus "many-other-foods-free" like soy, peanuts, etc.)... Here are some of the things he eats for lunch: BLT on Vegan Oat bread (avail. at health food stores), spread with Earth Balance buttery spread (avail. at most grocery stores now), with nitrate-free bacon (Hormel brand - avail. almost everywhere), lettuce and tomato. Veggie slices on the side. Ham and tomato sandwich - same bread and spread as above, with nitrate-free ham (Hormel brand). Veggie slices on the side. Rice pasta with chicken and veggies - Tinkyada brand brown rice pasta (available at most health food stores and several regular grocery stores) with grilled chicken and sauteed vegetables (like sweet red peppers). GFCF pizza - GFCF pizza crust (from our local GFCF bakery - but also available in some health food stores or you can make your own), spread with marinara sauce, veggies and sausage, ham, or bacon (again, we get only the healthier meats that are nitrate-free and additive-free - we buy the sausages from our health food store) Big tossed veggie salad (I know - not all 8-year old boys would like this, but my DS does!) with GFCF dressing (several brands available at health food stores, or you can make your own - gluten is in a LOT of dressings, so make sure any dressing you buy says "gluten-free"). HTH! Haven't read the entire thread, but I wanted to point out that oats (unless certified as so) are not gluten-free. If you have found certified GF oat bread I would LOVE to know where! I bake our GF bread for the most part, but occasionally splurge to buy the ($$$$) GF bread in a retail store. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momtoamayalilal2 Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 Oh great ideas! Some ideas that popped in my head as I was reading this thread over: ( we are in so cal...love mexican food! And my dc are used to having these for dinner) *Tostados ( with refried beans, avocado, lettuce, tomatos, just no cheese) or nachos with the same ( make beans in crockpot and freeze) *Tacos or fajitas *Taquitos w/ guacamole ( can make from scratch and freeze) *chili w/ gluten free cornbread *baked potatoes w/ chili on top *lentils of all kinds *homemade french fries w/ organic GF nitrate free hotdogs made into corndogs out of GF cornbread *homemade potato wedges w/lettuce wrapped burgers I think dairy is going to be harder for me to give up than gluten since i am already in atkins....now for the kids...sigh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenvneck Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 Here are some things we do for gluten-free lunches: (assume everything has veg & fruit sides!) egg salad w/ tortilla chips or GF crackers hummus w/ tortilla chips or GF crackers grilled cheese made w/ homemade GF bread or Udi's bread pizza bagels made w/ Udi's bagels leftovers peanut sauce w/ rice noodles baked sweet potato GF pasta w/ sauce and toppings nachos veggie burgers or veggie dogs on GF buns cheesy omelets + hash browns black beans, brown rice, crushed tortilla chips + toppings I could go on! Feel free to PM me w/ questions, I have been cooking vegetarian (vegan when it is the entire family) and GF for almost six years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenvneck Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 Oh great ideas! Some ideas that popped in my head as I was reading this thread over: ( we are in so cal...love mexican food! And my dc are used to having these for dinner) *Tostados ( with refried beans, avocado, lettuce, tomatos, just no cheese) or nachos with the same ( make beans in crockpot and freeze) *Tacos or fajitas *Taquitos w/ guacamole ( can make from scratch and freeze) *chili w/ gluten free cornbread *baked potatoes w/ chili on top *lentils of all kinds *homemade french fries w/ organic GF nitrate free hotdogs made into corndogs out of GF cornbread *homemade potato wedges w/lettuce wrapped burgers I think dairy is going to be harder for me to give up than gluten since i am already in atkins....now for the kids...sigh. How do you make your corndogs? Do you use a twinkie tray or fashion something out of foil? There is only one vegetarian/GF hot dog that I have found and I would LOVE to make that into a corndog. I have an amazing cornbread recipe that my family can't get enough of but in all my trials, I haven't yet discovered how to turn the (nasty, IMO) veggie dog into an edible and virtual corndog-on-a-stick. DO TELL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momtoamayalilal2 Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 How do you make your corndogs? Do you use a twinkie tray or fashion something out of foil? There is only one vegetarian/GF hot dog that I have found and I would LOVE to make that into a corndog. I have an amazing cornbread recipe that my family can't get enough of but in all my trials, I haven't yet discovered how to turn the (nasty, IMO) veggie dog into an edible and virtual corndog-on-a-stick. DO TELL! I havent actually made these since we arent gluten free yet, but..oh yum: http://glutenfreegirl.com/gluten-free-corn-dogs/ There is also another way.....cut the hotdogs and put them into the cornbread mixture in muffin tins. Basically corndog muffins ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Food4Thought Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 We are grain-, dairy-, and sugar-free. Almost every day for lunch, we have Aidell's chicken & apple sausages from Costco, sauerkraut, and apple slices. It sounds different, but we're so in the habit of it now that having a sandwich sounds strange. We sometimes do chicken salad on lettuce, tacos, meatballs, etc, and a side of fruit or veggies. Sometimes, it's apple sandwiches (apples sliced in rounds, smeared with peanut butter, topped with raisins, and then sandwiched together). Often, lunch is leftovers from dinner the night before. It sounds simple and repetitious, but we like the routine. Also, you mention no one liking veggies. No one in our house liked them either UNTIL we cut out the problem foods (and sugar was a big part of it). After that, food tasted different, and we like a ton of foods that were inedible before. Your taste buds might change as you adjust your foods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jyniffrec Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cuckoomamma Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 We gf, df, cf, sf, ef and on an on.....lol! One thing that wasn't mentioned already is using Paskesz rice cakes as "bread". They make a large square and small round rice cake. They're compressed so that they work much better as a bread than the standard rice cakes. The tiny ones are like little finger sandwiches. My older uses the big ones as a bun for her hamburger while the younger eats hers plain. We also drizzle honey on them for a snack. You can order them through amazon. As for hummus, it can take awhile to become accustomed to. Just keep offering. We eat leftovers for lunch. Canned salmon and rice, hamburgers and rice, rice pasta with veggies or meat sauce. We do a lot of grilled chicken and soups, as well. Truthfully, our breakfast, lunch and dinner look the same, lol! You could also do potato pancakes. Wishing you all the best on your path to health! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allie911 Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 I've had good luck finding inspiration at: www.glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com and www.veganlunchbox.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawn in OH Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 [quote=smillard00;2933102 You might also do a search for "muffin tin meals." It's kind of an a la carte approach to lunch that gets you away from the standard sandwich. My youngest loves to eat her lunch this way. We aren't gluten-free, but this is often what our lunches look like. We have meat, cheese, fruit, veggies, and nuts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athena1277 Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 My dd is GF. For lunch she eats sandwiches on GF bread (Udi's) and she likes "lunchables" - sliced ham, cheese, pepperoni on GF crackers (Glutino). She also likes the Bell & Evans GF chicken nuggets with fruit and yogurt on the side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 http://fedupwithlunch.com That's a blog for a woman who started by exposing how terrible the school lunches are where she teaches. But as it progressed, she started packing lunches for herself and her son, and they're all gluten and dairy free. Every week she shows pics and descriptions of what she made during the week. It's interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 We have to avoid soy, too. A friend who is GF uses Bragg's Amino Acids in place of soy sauce. It has a similar flavor. Oh, and I just remembered what she fed her kids at a cookout: hot dogs (no bun), fruit, and Lays potato chips. And another vote for tuna salad on celery. That was one of my favorite snacks as a kid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokotg Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 We've only been doing gluten free for a little over a week now, but my kids quickly decided they'd rather have just the the insides of the sandwich than eat them on gluten free bread (I haven't given up finding a GF bread they like, but it's not a big priority for me at the moment). I roll up deli meat (Boar's Head is gluten free; not all deli meat is) and serve it with cheese and fruit. We also do nachos a lot and leftovers. Here's a post from Everyday Paleo about packing (GF/dairy free/other stuff free since it's paleo) school lunches: http://everydaypaleo.com/2010/09/11/school-lunch-and-a-trader-joes-find/ Oh--I also have big plans to start making a big batch of meatballs once a week, using them first for pasta (despite my kids' bread complaints, they love tinkyada pasta) one night for dinner, then saving a bunch for lunches during the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandelion Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 (edited) Haven't read the entire thread, but I wanted to point out that oats (unless certified as so) are not gluten-free. If you have found certified GF oat bread I would LOVE to know where! I bake our GF bread for the most part, but occasionally splurge to buy the ($$$$) GF bread in a retail store. Yep, the Vegan Oat bread we get is made with certified gluten-free oat flour. In addition to being gluten-free, it's wheat-free, nut-free, casein-free, dairy-free, egg-free and soy-free (my DS can't have any of those ingredients). Despite being free of all those ingredients, the bread is VERY good (I even snack on it sometimes and I don't have to)! :) It's the best GFCF bread we've tried (and we've tried most of them). It's not cheap ($5.90 a loaf), but we think it's worth it. It's from a local dedicated gluten-free, wheat-free and nut-free bakery called "Outside The Breadbox" here in Colorado Springs. This is a family-owned bakery started up by a couple whose daughter was diagnosed with Celiac’s disease. I just checked their website and it looks like they will ship to you. Here's the link: http://www.outsidethebreadbox.com/ We've only tried the Vegan Oat bread - can't speak to their other breads, but again the one we buy is very tasty... ETA: we've found the best way to store the bread is in the freezer - when you're ready to eat it, pop it in the toaster (and use the "frozen" option on your toaster if you have that). YUM! Edited July 15, 2011 by Dandelion added info about bread storage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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