TJ has been out of town the first few days of this week for a work kick off (arrives home later on this evening… after the girls go to bed) and as I sat there Monday night, unwinding from what felt like an unusually long day (I kept Camille home from school with a funky cough she got in the middle of the night… she didn’t have a shortage of energy though…), I couldn’t help reflect on the difference between when he would go out of town several years ago to now. It always felt that the days were so long, and just crept by, and that there wasn’t any rest time, since once they went to bed, I would then do all the things I needed to do for the blog. Fast forward a few years, and the girls are relatively self sufficient (Harper can get her own snacks, bathe herself, obviously dresses herself in the morning, etc…), are at school all day long… and while it’s still much more work doing it solo than when you have help… it’s a much different feeling now. One that I welcome and am happy to be entering: the phase of increased independence for the girls…
Anyway… all of that aside, I updated, and added to, my list of our favorite gluten free and dairy free products. I’ve been mostly (I’d say 98% of the time) dairy free for about 8 years now (it was recommended that I go dairy free for fertility issues when I was working with an acupuncturist) and gluten free for almost three… so I’ve had a chance to try out many of the products floating out there… and while some are downright awful, many of them are really good. So that’s the list I’m sharing below, only the good stuff.
I also wanted to add, even if you’re not DF/GF these are just some of our “favorite” food products so to say… so hopefully it’s helpful to everyone and not just a small subset.
Have a great day!
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FAVORITE PRODUCTS
SIETE PRODUCTS: I first discovered Siete products several years ago and have been hooked ever since. They are continually adding new products to their line, which I love. Our favorite items are their tortillas, grain free hard shell tacos (we have these once a week, so good, but they do get stale quickly), burrito tortillas, chips (they have nacho and ranch…. and a cinnamon churro chip which reminds me of Taco Bells churro strips…. and their oil + vinegar chips are amazing). We also love their mild Taco Seasoning (whenever it’s not available and we try a different brand they just aren’t as good)… it’s preservative free and delicious. I get mine from Whole Foods or Sprouts.
SIMPLE MILLS: Another brand that has so many products that the entire family loves… from their baking mixes to their crackers…. I haven’t met a product I don’t like. Our favorites are the sea salt crackers (Camille loves them), banana pumpkin mix (these are a huge hit in our home), and their almond flour dark chocolate bars (spread a little peanut butter on them and they’re a great afternoon snack). They also recently launched graham crackers (they’re more like morsels… in the shape of small triangles) which I love. AND their cake mixes are THE BEST (well, at least we think so)… I’ve made both the vanilla and chocolate ones for the girl’s birthdays and they’re always a hit (and when we eat a cake from a bakery, it just takes too processed and sweet)… layer on their chocolate or vanilla frosting and it’s a win win!
TOLERANT FOODS: The girls love this lentil based pasta (I do too, since it’s made from one ingredient). It’s free from common food allergies and tastes really good too. I’ve found that some lentil pastas tend to get hard pretty quickly, but this one doesn’t… I give it to the girls for lunch with some cheese on top of it. I find it at Whole Foods.
PURELY ELIZABETH: Hands down our favorite granola. We buy the Chocolate Probiotic granola in twos (since it goes that quickly)… we are also fans of her quick oats.
VIOLIFE CHEESE: I’ve tried a lot of dairy free products over the past 6 years, and some are just plain awful. Yet this dairy free cheese line is hands down the best…. and they have several different types of cheeses (colby jack, cheddar, and mozzarella) which I appreciate. It melts really well too. I’ve found it at Whole Foods and Sprouts (with limited selection).
FOLLOW YOUR HEART: Another dairy free cheese line that I really like. While I’m not a fan of their shredded cheeses, I do love their dairy free shaved parmesan and fetas… both so good. I’m not a huge sour cream fan in general, but I did purchase their sour cream to make an egg casserole over the holidays and it blended really well with the other flavors.
COCO BAKES: I have tried so many different Gluten Free bread options, and while many are good (some are downright awful…), I have to say that COCO Bakes is hands down my favorite GF sourdough bread. I get it delivered (never thought I’d be on a subscription for bread….) and it’s perfect for our weekend avocado toast breakfasts. It has that tang that you want from Sourdough bread, is thick, and toasts up so well. She also has a ton of other items… like baked goods, etc.
CHLOE: Our favorite cauliflower pizza crust comes from this brand… it’s so good and doesn’t taste like cauliflower at all… and it gets super crispy.
CAPELLOS: So many great products from their almond flour line…. they make an excellent pizza crust (that gets crispy) which the girls love, chocolate chip cookies (they are seriously so good), and all of their pastas are delicious (if you end up trying them, don’t cook them for more than 2ish minutes because they will get mushy). I get all of mine from Whole Foods.
PRIMAL KITCHEN: Primal kitchen makes so many of my favorite salad dressings, dipping sauces, and marinades. Our favorites are the ranch + caesar dressings, ketchup (spicy is the best), BBQ sauce, pasta sauce, and teriyaki sauce.
TRADER JOE’S: Trader Joe’s makes some great GF/DF products- my two current favorites being the Vegan Creamy Dill Dressing (this is one that both TJ and I LOVE) and the Norwegian Crisp Bread crackers (they’re so versatile… we love them at breakfast with mashed avocado and a poached egg…).
BIRCH BENDERS: These are our favorite pancakes (we add some Lily’s Chocolate Chips to them) and frozen waffles (great for an easy weekday breakfast).
PERFECT BAR: The girls love the kiddo option, and I love their bars as a quick way to get energy before my morning workout… or as a topping on my overnight oats. I should note here that these aren’t dairy free!
