When you are on the go a lot and on a gluten-free diet, it can feel stressful knowing what snacks to bring along with you. Especially when you are trying to stay away from unhealthy and preservative filled foods. Getting creative and finding gluten free snacks that everyone will love can be a bit of a challenge.
Having celiac disease we can’t just grab any snack on the go. Most all our food has to be planned. That’s why having a large list of gluten free snack ideas is important.
We have been spending a lot of days by the creek, at a rodeo, or just outside lately soaking up the sun. It has been so much fun but has also made me really think about what we are bringing with us to fuel our bodies. The girls get bored with the same things over and over, plus I want to make sure I have healthy snacks too.
I have compiled a comprehensive list to share of delicious snack ideas we like to bring along for a picnic, lake or creek day, or even just when I know we are going to be on the go and out of the house all day.
First, no matter where we are going if we are bringing food, I always have a small ice chest designated for food with large ice packs in it. Since I try and stay clear of preservatives when possible, most of our foods need to stay cold since they are whole foods.
Drinks always go in a separate ice chest. This way nothing gets smashed and I don’t want actual ice on our food, so it doesn’t make anything soggy. I use large flat ice packs to keep everything cool.
If you are looking for high protein snacks, make sure to check out my post on my top 5 high protein gluten free snacks.
How to plan ahead.
Planning ahead before you have to be out of the house is so important to make sure you have enough good food brought with you. It will avoid that urge to drive through fast food when everyone feels hungry.
The best tips I can give is to look at your schedule and make plan.
We have co-op on Wednesday mornings. I always pack a lunch and snacks for that day. Earlier in the week I am already thinking about what I am going to make and when I am going to make them. That way in the days leading up to Wednesday I can get everything I need made and ready to go so Wednesday morning is quick and easy!
If you can’t make things leading up to the day you need them, try just making everything the night before.
I have done this a lot too. I make what I need the night before, add them into the little containers, and pop them in the fridge. Then you are ready to go the next day when you need them.
Gluten Free Snacks:
Here is a list of great snacks that we rotate and take on the go with us. They are delicious and everyone loves them. Most of them are dairy-free snacks but you can make substitutions as needed if you need to eat dairy free.
Cold Items to be kept in a food ice chest:
- Energy Ball or energy bar (just form the ball dough into bars instead)
- String cheese or cubed cheese
- Apple slices and peanut butter
- Carrot sticks and ranch or hummus.
- Celery sticks and peanut butter or hummus
- Cottage cheese
- Yogurt and granola (or a yogurt parfait)
- Applesauce
- Hard boiled eggs
- Black or green olives
I try and avoid buying pre-made cups of anything. Instead I buy in bulk and separate out into my own small Tupperware containers for on the go. This is just a money saving tip!
Items that don’t need to stay cold:
- Homemade cheese its
- Almond crackers
- Fruit leathers
- Raisins
- Homemade graham crackers
- Beef sticks
- Fruits such as oranges, apples, peaches, and pears
- Popcorn or kettle corn
- Trail mix
- Mini muffins
- Almonds, cashews, or sunflower seeds
Sometimes I will buy a few things at the grocery store just to have on hand. Some of these items would be pirates booty, flavored mini rice cakes, veggie straws, chickpea puffs from Costco, or freeze dried apple chips. I don’t buy them all the time and when I do they are only allowed when we are on the go so they don’t get eaten right away.
These easy snacks are good for when you weren’t planning on being out, but find yourself being out of the house all day. Since it wasn’t in the plan, you couldn’t prep snacks beforehand. They are quick grab items so you and the kiddos have something to munch on while you are away.
Everything I am choosing to buy from the grocery stores, I read the ingredient label to make sure they have wholesome ingredients. This makes me feel much better when I am feeding them to my family. If I can avoid dyes and preservatives I like to.
Healthy gluten-free snacks are important when you are busy.
When you get busy, usually eating healthy is one of the first things to go. It’s harder to get a meal on the table or bring snacks with you. So you tend to do a lot more quick foods instead.
Most families will eat out more or run into the gas station or store to grab that quick snack because they didn’t plan ahead and everyone is getting hangry.
I really feel like the busy season is when it is most important to be fueling our bodies with healthy eating and good foods. When we are busy our bodies are working overtime. If we aren’t fueling them correctly that is when you are more likely get catch any sickness that comes your way.
When sickness strikes we want our immune response to be to fight it off. If we are not fueling our bodies with good foods, our body has a harder time kicking into gear.
The way to get around grabbing the convenient foods is to plan ahead. If you have a plan and can bring all your own homemade snacks your body will thank you.
The good thing is most of the ideas above don’t take very long to make and can be easily thrown together for a quick trip on the go, as long as you sort of planned ahead. It starts with buying the right ingredients from the grocery store so your pantry is stocked with the good stuff.
Sometimes we are out all day long and need to pack a lunch on the go. Not only is it important to fuel your body with healthy and tasty gluten-free snacks but it is also important to get a good lunch in your body too. Below is an added bonus of some gluten free lunch ideas for when you are out and about.
Lunch Ideas:
- Tupperware bowl of tuna, served with almond crackers or tortilla chips to dip
- Lundberg thin stackers rice cakes and add lunch meat/cheese
- Lunch meat, cheese, and almond crackers
- Turkey or any kind of lunch meat wrap, using almond flour tortillas or corn tortillas
- Sandwiches using one of my Gluten Free homemade bread
- Fruit salad
- Sliced fresh fruit
- Taco salad, Cobb salad, or any green salad of choice
- Pizza muffins
I hope that I gave you a few other healthy snack ideas on what you can bring along to a picnic, park date, or just a day out. These gluten free snacks take a little more prep work and planning than the prepackaged stuff, but they are all so much better for you!
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