With back to school in full swing, I’m mulling over lunch box ideas to keep things fresh for the next ten months. (Ten!) I recently posted 13 healthier versions of kids’ favorite lunchbox snacks and this week I’m sticking with snacks; specifically those made without nuts or gluten.
These snacks are great for nut-free and allergy sensitive classrooms and eaters, but the best part is that they’re tasty, too. It shouldn’t be any other way with snacks, right? -Stacie
Corn-free popcorn? How’s that for allregy-free. Mini Pops
are an allergy-free popped snack that’s remarkably like popcorn, in flavors like plain, pepper and herb, caramel, and cheddar–just
without (of all things) corn. The gluten and nut-free snack is made of
air popped sorghum grain, all of which is grown free of pesticides in
the U.S. Plus they don’t have hulls to get
stuck in your teeth. Take that, popcorn! (Find a store on the Mini Pops site.)
are an allergy-free popped snack that’s remarkably like popcorn, in flavors like plain, pepper and herb, caramel, and cheddar–just
without (of all things) corn. The gluten and nut-free snack is made of
air popped sorghum grain, all of which is grown free of pesticides in
the U.S. Plus they don’t have hulls to get
stuck in your teeth. Take that, popcorn! (Find a store on the Mini Pops site.)
{Check out 7 more awesome nut and gluten-free snacks after the jump!}
Tasty trail mix without nuts? Yes, please, and thank you! Enjoy Life Seed and Fruit Mix is a crunchy trail mix that comes in two flavors, Beach Bash and Mountain Mambo. Both are made without artificial ingredients and are vegan, kosher, gluten and casein free. In fact, all Enjoy Life products are free of all 8 of the most common allergens. They are also made in a dedicated nut-free facility. (Find a store on the Enjoy Life site.)
Trail mix isn’t the only nutty snack ditching tree nuts and gluten: granola bars are, too. At least the granola bars made by Nonuttin’, a company dedicated to making great tasting allergy-friendly snacks. Their products are peanut-free and tree nut-free, dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free and, the best part, all natural. The apple cinnamon bars are lowest in sugar, but you can also try their chocolate chip, double chocolate chunk or raisin bars. (Products available through the Nonuttin’ site.)
I was immediately drawn to Mediterranean Snacks Baked Lentil Chips–maybe because I’m Greek? Either way, they sounded like something that would be great with hummus or tzaskiki (a yogurt-cucumber dip) or even as a crunchy topping on Greek salad. Turns out that I was right about all of those things, and they’re good as a plain old snack too. Made from high protein lentils, garbanzo and adjuki beans, these lentil chips are all natural and guten free. Nut free, too, thank you very much. (Find a store on the Mediterranean Snacks site.)
I used to think that roasted seaweed was a snack that only my unusually adventurous eaters enjoyed, but lately, I’ve noticed many kids eating them so maybe they’re hitting the mainstream. And with major supermarket brand Annie Chun’s getting into the roasted seaweed snack game, it sure does seem possible. My kids like the sesame flavor, but the sweeter brown sugar and sea salt might be a way in with apprehensive eaters. All of Annie Chun’s snacks are deliciously gluten free and do not contain nuts, though check the label to ensure that they’re also made in a nut-free facility.
SeaSnax {pictured} may be a little harder to find, but they are just as tasty and guaranteed made in a dedicated nut-free seaweed facility. (You can buy seaweed snacks on the Annie Chun’s site. You can find a store or buy directly from the SeaSnax site.)
Edward & Sons makes brown rice snaps that are a favorite in my house, and we’re not even an allergy-free home. With a whole line of flavors, I bet they’ll be a favorite in yours, too. There’s something for everyone. We grab the Tamari Seaweed or Black Sesame snaps, but there are flavors like Toasted Onion and Cheddar for something more familiar. Every flavor is gluten and nut free. (Find a store on the Edward & Sons site.)
Looking for a little sweet treat to top off kiddo’s lunch? Try one of Dr. Lucy’s seven fab gluten-free, nut-free and dairy-free cookies. These treats–choose from sugar cookies, cinnamon thins, chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal cookies, ginger snaps, maple bliss cookies or good old fashion chocolate cookies–are no compromise. Dr. Lucy has been perfecting allergen-free cookies for a while now and her treats are the real deal. (Find a store on the Dr. Lucy site.)
Finding tasty nut-free and gluten-free snacks can be hard work, and there are new products coming out all the time. So confusing! If you don’t feel like thinking about allergy friendly snacks all year long, have Tasterie do it for you. The new service will send you a box of allergy free foods tailored to your dietary preferences every month. You can choose between their snack box ($15/month) or signature box ($20/month). All you have to do is become a member and wait for your good-for-you goodies.
Check out our healthier lunchbox snacks for more allergy-free snacks and our round up of peanut butter alternatives and sandwich spreads for nut and gluten free sandwich solutions.
Thank you a million times for this post! My son has Celiac and my daughter has *9* food allergies (dairy, soy, eggs, rice, potato, wheat, oats, peanuts, treenuts) I actually found snacks on this she can safely eat! Finally a break from making every darn thing from scratch!