3 Recipes for Gluten-Free Snacks for All Ages
If your child has celiac disease, and you don’t know what he or she can take with them to eat at school break time, then read on and find 3 great recipes for gluten-free snacks that they’ll love.
However, first we’ll need to clarify what gluten is and why it can be difficult for us to choose or prepare certain food.
What is gluten?
Gluten is a protein that we find in cereals such as wheat, barley, and rye. It’s found in lots of commonly consumed food products, such as bread or pasta.
When it comes to children with celiac disease, one of the most difficult things to prepare for parents are snacks.
This is partly because the classic snacks that children have around the world at break time are usually made of wheat bread, a cereal that contains gluten. Unfortunately, the gluten-free bread alternatives offered by the industry aren’t always as tasty or attractive.
In addition, the bread and cookies, which, unfortunately, have become such an integral part of children’s snacks, are also usually made from wheat flour.
Having said that, in my humble opinion, not being able to consume this type of product is an advantage that celiac children have over non-celiac children. Why? Because they only contain poor quality ingredients, which are harmful to children’s health.
For this, and other reasons, in this article we’re going to give you 3 recipes for healthy, nutritious and delicious gluten-free snacks, which aren’t at all inferior to classic snacks.
Recipes for gluten-free snacks
Seed crackers
We’re going to start with this tasty and crunchy recipe that, besides being very easy to prepare, is extremely nutritious and versatile. Take a pencil and paper, and write it all down!
Ingredients
- Half a glass of flax seeds
- A glass of assorted seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, chia and sesame seeds)
- Two-thirds of a glass of water
- A pinch of salt
- A dash of extra virgin olive oil
Method
- Mix all the seeds together in a glass, along with the water, a dash of olive oil and a pinch of salt (optional) in the blender jug.
- Let the seeds absorb the water for about ten minutes.
- After that, grind the ingredients. You don’t need to crush them 100%.
- Spread the mixture on greaseproof paper or baking parchment, making it around 2 mm thick, and cut it into a rectangular shape with a knife.
- Then place the tray in a preheated oven at 180 degrees C (350 degrees F)for approximately 30 minutes.
- After this, turn them over and bake the crackers for another 10 minutes.
- When they’re done, take them out of the oven, let them cool down, and they’ll be ready to enjoy.
You can eat them on their own, or accompanied by hummus, guacamole or fresh cheese.
Arepas
This great recipe can provide a great solution for our child’s gluten-free snacks! It comes from Colombia and Venezuela, and is made from corn flour and water, which can be filled with anything you can think of.
Ingredients
- 300 grams (12 oz) of corn flour
- 300 milliliters (10 fl oz) of warm water
- A pinch of salt
Method
- Put the water and salt in a mixing bowl
- Then add the flour progressively
- Mix it together until you get a soft dough and let it rest for 10 minutes
- Divide the dough into portions and make little balls which you then need to flatten to obtain discs about ten centimeters (4 inches) in diameter.
- Cook the dough on a grill pan for about 10 minutes on each side.
- Finally, open up the arepa and fill it with whatever you like, such as avocado, arugula, or tuna.
Chocolate bonbons, one of the best gluten-free snacks
As a final alternative for gluten-free snacks, we offer you this succulent chocolate recipe without added sugar – it’s hard to resist!
Ingredients
- Chocolate 85% cocoa
- Inflated quinoa
- Almonds
Method
- Melt the chocolate using the bain-marie method
- Then mix it with the quinoa
- Make little balls with your hands or use an ice cube tray, and place an almond in the middle of each one
- Finally, cool them in the refrigerator
So, now there’s no excuse to not get your apron out and prepare these delicious gluten-free recipes. Get your children involved making them too.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Polanco I. (2008). Libro Blanco de la Enfermedad Celiaca. Madrid: ICM.
