My Gluten Free Kitchen

Since not being able to work and workouts being fairly very limited, I have been able to focus on some other things. Mainly easy projects around the house and meal planning to make dinner every night. Today I finally took the time to go explore an organic market (shout out to MOM’s) around our house and was pleasantly surprised– some things were a lot less expensive than at my normal grocery store. It made me very excited for the Farmer’s Markets to start opening soon.

While I was grocery shopping I realized that it can be a daunting place for people who are starting to eat gluten free or make any diet change. Trying to break away from items you always buy along with trying to find new options or alternatives can be frustrating and confusing.

Photo from Google images

Here are my top 2 tips for healthy shopping:

1. Plan ahead! Have a list and stick to it. This will help keep cost down and ensure you don’t give in to the tasty end cap items- if the junk food’s not in your house, it makes it harder to eat it.

2. Shop the outside, everyone says it because it’s true. With the exception of the spice aisle there’s very little need to shop the aisles every week.

And here are the cooking staples I keep in my gluten free kitchen…

Grains:

1. Quinoa
2. Rice (we alternate between brown and basmati)
3. Rudi’s Multi-Grain gluten free bread (freezer section)

Proteins:

1. EGGS
2. Chicken
3. Organic Andouille Chicken Sausage
4. Turkey Bacon

Produce:

1. Zucchini (it’s cheap and easy to cook in a variety of ways)
2. Green Beans (frozen or fresh depending on price)
3. Onions
4. Garlic (lots of it)
5. Bananas
6. Apples
7. Lemons

Baking:

1. Almond meal
2. Flax seed
3. Gluten Free all-purpose blend (Namaste is my favorite but hard to find)
4. Unsweetened baking coconut
5. Gluten free oats (Bob’s Red Mill is a common brand)

Oils, vinegars, and spices:

1. Olive Oil
2. Coconut Oil
3. Canola Oil Baking Spray
4. Balsamic Vinegar
5. Red Wine Vinegar
6. Basil
7. Pepper

Everything else I buy as needed or when it’s on sale, especially produce. I try to keep frozen veggies stocked as well for quick and easy sides. What staples do you keep in the house?