Help needed with grain free lunch ideas for kids

[edeemarie]

I really think I need to get my kids back on a grain free diet. I am on one, but they aren't mostly because I can't come up with any good ideas of what to feed them! I am pretty sure dd is at least gluten intolerant, and 3 out of 4 kids have a bumpy rash on their arms (I used to have the same thing until I went grain free). For now we are going to leave dairy in and see how that goes. But I am just at a loss for easy lunch ideas! Most days we are in the middle of school work and I need to put something together quickly for lunch. I know there are websites with fabulous recipes but I would like something that didn't take much prep time and is kid-friendly. Snacking suggestions would be appreciated too! Thanks so much!

[bettyandbob]

I used to bake and freeze chicken legs and grab them to reheat. serve with cut fruit and veg.

 

A lot of things you put in a sandwich can be served as a dip for veg stick (celery, carrot, cucumber, pepper, etc). Hummus, peanut butter, egg salad, tuna salad, chicken salad, etc. It's fun because you get to play with your food.

[Laura Corin]

I make a lot of soups - in the crock pot the night before.

 

Laura

[Momof3littles]

Yogurt-unsweetened with fruit, or a touch of sweetener if you are okay with that.

Deli meat roll ups-deli meat rolled around some cheese, or cream cheese. You can stick a sliver of pickle in the middle or a scallion, and then slice it up into "sushi" shapes. Or leave the rollups long. I like dipping mine in a mix of mayo and a touch of mustard, and then a tiny bit of stevia, so it is like honey mustard.

Agree about egg, chicken, salmon, etc. salad. Serve with celery or pepper slices to scoop.

leftovers

drumsticks

bake with almond or coconut flour-quick breads, muffins, etc. Can add a little cream cheese on a slice or on top of a muffin to make it even heartier.

agree with soups and chili

I bought these recently and you can put a smoothie in them, freeze, then let thaw in a lunchbox apparently like a gogurt. I don't use them that way, but we use them to make freezer pops out of leftover smoothies. http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-431-4-Piece-Silicone-Maker/dp/B0036B9KHO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1339334402&sr=8-1&keywords=freezer+pop+silicone

Grain free waffle made with coconut flour. Cut into strips, serve with nut butter, cream cheese, a tiny bit of syrup in a container, etc.

My kids like the natural pepperoni from WFs with slices of cheese. Kind of like a lunchable depending on presentation :)

Grape tomatoes and small mozzerella balls as a salad. Can drizzle a little Italian dressing on there or a little olive oil

slice of crustless quiche or frittata, or an "egg" muffin (egg baked with whatever breakfast meats, veggies, etc. in a muffin tin)

 

You could make big batches of anything and freeze in small portions so it is ready to go quickly.

 

eta: do they object to eating certain things cold like meatballs? You could put meatballs in sauce in a thermos and keep them hot that way, or if they are okay with their food being cold when they eat it, meatballs would work. You can also do things like a pork meatball with scallions, ginger, etc. to give it a more Asian flavor vs. Italian. Chicken sausage-spinach and feta, or apple, etc. if they don't mind it not being hot when they eat it.

Edited June 10, 2012 by Momof3littles

[edeemarie]

Wow! Thank you so much for the fantastic ideas:) That will give me a VERY good start. I'm going to make a list of all of these this evening so that I won't be stumped when it comes to meal planning and grocery list making!

[Laurie]

Grain free waffle made with coconut flour. Cut into strips, serve with nut butter, cream cheese, a tiny bit of syrup in a container, etc.

 

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Momof3littles, would you mind sharing your waffle recipe if you have time? I've been trying to figure out what to do with the can of coconut flour I bought...waffles would be great! :)

[Momof3littles]

Momof3littles, would you mind sharing your waffle recipe if you have time? I've been trying to figure out what to do with the can of coconut flour I bought...waffles would be great! :)

Sure. This is from the Lowcarbfriends forums. The ingredients sound weird but they are really good. I'm copying and pasting; these aren't my comments.

 

BETTYR'S AMAZING WAFFLES + COCONUT FLOUR = A+++

 

 

Preheat your waffle iron.

 

1 8 oz. package cream cheese, cubed

3 eggs

2 tsp. of sweetener (I use erythritol and a tiny bit of stevia, but you could sub sugar in here if you wish)

1/4 tsp. or pkt. Stevia Plus (can omit if using sugar)

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 cup coconut flour

1 tsp. cider vinegar

1/4 cup cream

1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese (or colby/jack)

1 tsp. vanilla

 

Put all ingredients into a food processor; process until smooth. Open processor and scrape down the sides with a spatula, then process another 60 seconds. The batter will be VERY thick - do NOT thin it down!

[Laurie]

Sure. This is from the Lowcarbfriends forums. The ingredients sound weird but they are really good. I'm copying and pasting; these aren't my comments.

 

Thank you!

You're right about the interesting list of ingredients but I've got everything on hand right now except for the cream. Maybe I'll try substituting coconut milk instead and see how it goes. Thanks again.