Here's what we're working with:
The less foods that need to be microwaved, the better.
We need some ideas that are quick to make (ie that would replace sandwiches).
Meals need to remain minimally processed.
I want to avoid GF bread because it's expensive. We'll probably have a loaf around every now and again, but daily sandwiches at lunch are a thing of the past.
98% of things I find on Pinterest involve lunch meat. Really? Lunch meat? The halfway healthy kind is super expensive, and the regular kind is so bad for you that I'd rather just eat gluten and remain minimally processed. I don't want to exchange gluten for nitrates. *climbs off soapbox*
We need some meat free ideas for Fridays. It seems like we're eating more meat now that we're gluten free.
I burn out on salads easily. Steven will eat them as a side dish but not as a main course.
Here's some things we've come up with so far, but most of these serve as better breakfast or dinner foods, than lunch:
Tomato soup over rice with beef. Yes, I'm just making stuff up with various gluten free ingredients.
Quinoa 'stir fry'
Tuna with hot sauce (ew.... for hubs)
Egg salad not on a sandwich, sometimes with avocado
Yogurt parfaits (gluten free oats, blueberries)
Shrimp and grits
Rice cakes with peanut butter and sometimes chocolate chips (I swore I wouldn't be that diet person who ate rice cakes, but I actually don't mind them!)
Minimally processed chicken sausage with some kind of starch (rice/quinoa)
Grilled chicken, or really any type of meat
Popcorn... more of a snack, but I've been known to make it a meal!
Eggs and bacon
None of these are particularly fast and easy, though so far they are all pretty delicious. Is making, and worse, cooking lunch the night before unavoidable when eating GF? HELP! :)
And yes, I realize we will most likely be accidentally contaminated through this process but we are going to do the best we can! Steven found an AWESOME site with local restaurants that have GF menus/options, so at least we can quit panicking about date night. We're going to try out a GF pizza place this Friday!
Check out this paelo cauliflower soup. It is really good (add salt!), and is super fast to make.
ReplyDeletehttp://pinterest.com/pin/4996249558717493/
Definitely will! Thanks!
DeleteI make a pot of soup on the weekend and eat it for lunches during the weeks. We also eat rice pasta and you can't tell the difference. It's just a lot of yogurt, eggs, meats and fruits and veggies. You can also eat chips and nachos and ice cream and m& ms and lots of other gluten free snacks :)
ReplyDeleteI totally googled "are cadbury eggs gluten free" and breathed a sigh of relief lol.
DeleteI third the soups! An easy meal is to roast a bunch of veggies on the weekend, just seasoned with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and to eat them with quinoa. We also eat tons of rice and black beans. I try to minimize wheat in my diet, though I've never gone totally gluten free (I'm such a bread lover, too), but in my observation, the healthiest, cheapest way to go is just to cut out items like bagels and rolls that have gluten, rather than to replace them with GF versions. They tend to have way more calories and sugar and be overly processed, so just sticking with other grains seems like the best way, to me, to go.
ReplyDeleteI like the rice and black bean idea! Yep we avoid processed as much add possible so the gf breads will be a treat, especially with the price.
DeleteWe did a low-carb diet for a bit, to loose some weight. Sandwiches and burgers (including salmon burgers) on big leaves of lettuce is pretty good. My wife made pizza with spinach crusts, and cauliflowers crusts.
ReplyDeleteFor lunches, leftovers were key. As were soups and salads.
Steven would totally eat salmon burgers... I will have my salad on those nights lol!
DeleteI'm trying to go gluten free too! For awhile I resisted because I just assumed there'd be a lot of things I just couldn't eat anymore, not realizing there are many good substitutions! This week I made gluten free bread and gluten free lemon meringue pie. Both slightly different tasting than the regular versions, but still really good!
ReplyDeleteGood luck in your efforts, keep us updated!
I will definitely update, at least once our trial period is over!
DeleteMy carnivore brother actually raves about pizza on riced cauliflower crusts. I hate lettuce so wraps and stuff like that on it would be a FAIL for me but it's something to consider.
ReplyDeleteYou could make something like that P.F. Chang's appetizer w/ meat and nuts and stuff inside a lettuce wrap. Using full lettuce leaves in general to wrap around something instead of bread. The crunch of it is actually nice.
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