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Gluten-Free Snacking

Part of any gluten-free diet can include wholesome, balanced meals and snacks. There are endless possibilities for healthy gluten-free snack ideas, especially when you use your imagination. Take a look at some of the ideas below. 

Scroll down for the printable Gluten-Free Snacking List.

Remember: 
Choose grain-based products, such as cereals, breads, crackers, rice and corn cakes, snack bars and pretzels which are labeled gluten-free.

HEALTHY GLUTEN-FREE SNACK IDEAS (GF= GLUTEN-FREE)
Fresh fruits: berries, peaches, plums, apricots, bananas, melons, oranges, grapefruit, mango, papaya
Dried fruits*: (in small servings): cherries, cranberries, apples, pineapples, raisins, peaches, mango, banana chips
Plain, unsalted nuts or seeds (a handful is a serving): almonds, walnuts, cashews, soy nuts, pistachios, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds
GF dry cereals mixed with GF low fat yogurt
Air-popped (plain) popcorn or air-popped sorghum
Trail mix: experiment with a mixture of plain, unsalted nuts, dried fruits*, GF dried cereal, and GF pretzels
Tuna (mixed with lemon juice and GF yogurt) on high-fiber GF crackers
Peanut butter or other nut butters and jelly or honey on whole-grain, GF rice cakes
GF granola, snack or energy bars
GF crackers with low-fat cheese
Raw vegetables with hummus, salsa or other GF dips
Cottage cheese and pineapple chunks
GF low fat yogurt
Hard-boiled eggs
Low-fat cheese: slices, string or chunks

*Check for added ingredients, such as oat flour, in dried fruits.

Adapted from: Decher N, Parrish CR. Balanced and Delicious: A Healthy Gluten-Free Diet. Real Life with Celiac Disease: Troubleshooting and Thriving Gluten-Free . Eds. Dennis M, Leffler D. AGA Press. Bethesda, MD, 2010.

SMART SNACKS:

Follow the rows from left to right to make an increasingly healthy gluten-free snack.

IF YOU EAT THIS ADD THIS OR TRY THIS INSTEAD
GF pretzels Unsalted nuts Trail mix with GF granola, dried fruits, plain nuts and seeds
Rice cakes or rice crackers Cheese (cube or string), hummus, nut butter with banana or apple slices GF snack bar made with seeds, dried fruits and healthy GF grains (amaranth, flax, quinoa); GF high fiber snack crackers made with nuts and /or seeds
Fried corn chips Salsa and shredded cheese Baked corn chips with low-fat cheese and sour cream; popcorn
Celery sticks Peanut butter, cheese spread or low-fat cream cheese with raisins Carrot or turnip sticks, peppers, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower
GF cookie Fresh fruit or a glass of milk or enriched GF dairy substitute Add brown rice, flax or quinoa to the recipe; choose ready made cookies that are low in sugar and fat or made with non-hydrogenated oils
GF brownie Mug of warm, steamed milk or enriched GF dairy substitute GF crispy rice square (still not so nutritious, but often less fat)
GF muffin with white rice flour Chopped nuts, mashed banana, dried fruits (raisins, cranberries, apricots, dates), ground flax seed Pumpkin, pineapple, carrot or banana muffins made with some brown rice flour, almond flour or bean flour
Full-fat fruit-flavored yogurt Fresh fruit and nuts Plain low-fat yogurt with chopped fruits, nuts and small amount of sweetener

Adapted from: Case, S. Go Gluten-Free! Tips for Getting More Nutrition into the Gluten-Free Diet. http://www.glutenfreediet.ca. 

Check for added ingredients, such as oat flour, in dried fruits.

In the Mood for Something Decadent?

ON-LINE SOURCES TO FIND ADDITIONAL GLUTEN-FREE SNACK IDEAS AND RECIPES:

Revision Date: 1-2-13 
Author: Melinda Dennis, MS, RD, LDN 
Editor: Anne Lee, MSEd, RD, LD

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