Just 23 (Really Good) Gluten-Free Snacks, Desserts, And Dinner Staples I Loved This Year
There's no shortage of gluten-free items on grocery store shelves these days but they're not all created equal in terms of taste, texture, and quality.
My family's kitchen is often stocked with gluten-free options. While none of us are celiac, it makes it easy for me to quickly supply allergy-friendly snacks for my 6-year-old's classroom or soccer team, or for my husband and I to host friends and family with different dietary preferences.
Along the way, I've found favorites that I find myself going back to again and again because honestly, they're delicious. Here are some of them. (And if you have a favorite I didn't list, I'd love to hear about it in the comments!)
1.Made Good Granola Minis
These granola bites come in two varieties — berry and chocolate chip — and are a great packaged snack option. For the best value or to feed allergy-friendly classrooms, I recommend snagging a bulk bag at Costco. They're usually around $9–$12 for 24 packs.
(Also, a very niche tip for fellow lunchbox-packing parents of young kiddos: These little bites are one of the few snacks I've found that fit perfectly into even the smallest bento box compartments.)
2.Banchan's Japanese Barbecue Sauce
Despite it being marketed as barbecue sauce, I've found this savory-sweet flavor booster — with ingredients like tamari, mirin, ginger, and garlic — to be much more versatile than that. It's a fast and flavorful way to pull a meal together: I've drizzled it on everything from chicken and rice bowls to sheet pan–roasted gnocchi, mushrooms, and veggies (above).
3.Tate's Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
When it comes to crispy chocolate chip GF cookies — that still retain some chew on the inside — I've yet to find a better version than Tate's.
4.And relatedly: Trader's Joe's Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies (which might just be Tate's cookies in disguise, anyway.)
My coworker Hannah did a deeper dive into these when she compared Tate's chocolate chip cookies to Trader Joe's and found them to be virtually identical in taste, texture, and looks. The only difference? The TJ's version is usually a bit cheaper!
5.Quinn Nut Butter-Filled Pretzels
Speaking of Trader Joe's, these pretzels from Quinn are the closest (and tastiest) GF version I've found to TJ's famous peanut butter pretzels. However, I'd recommend trying to find these at a retailer near you versus ordering online — as they seem to break easily in transit.
6.Lotus Foods' Organic Ramen Noodles
I first bought these at Costco without even realizing they were gluten free — but they are. These quick-cook noodles are a lifesaver when it comes to last-minute WFH lunches. And bonus: They pack 8 g of protein per serving.
My favorite preparation right now is one my coworker Ross clued me into: 5-minute miso-chili noodles. Cook the noodles in boiling water, then take some of that water and mix it with equal parts miso paste + chili crunch to create a sauce. (Sidenote: I'm obsessed with Momofuku's Extra Spicy Chili Crunch 😋.) I'll also throw some veggies into the mix — like spinach or broccoli — because the savory and spicy miso-chili sauce makes everything taste amazing.
7.Simple Mills Banana Muffin Mix
When it comes to GF baking mixes, Simple Mills is my go-to for its straight-forward ingredient lists. The banana muffin variety found its way into my family's kitchen several times this year for kid-friendly baking projects or playdates. The muffins are great as is but we've also made these with chocolate chips or nuts folded into the batter.
(Tip for other parents: These silicone baking cups were another kitchen MVP this year for things like muffins, cupcakes, or egg bites. The little pull-tabs make it easier for little hands to maneuver!)
8.Simple Mills Cocoa Cashew Crème Cookies
These taste like if Oreos and peanut butter cups had a (not-as-sweet) baby. They're so good! My only gripe is they're kind of pricey per box considering the amount you get but I'll attribute that to the cashews, which are never cheap.
9.Cascadian Farm Berry Vanilla Puffs Cereal
I learned about this cereal from my kiddo's preschool a few years ago and it's been stocked in my kitchen since. All snacks had to be gluten free due to a classroom allergy so teachers would mix these berry-vanilla puffs with regular Cheerios. The result was a not-too-sweet (but sweet enough!) cereal that the kids devoured.
10.Birch Benders Waffles
I've found GF waffles to be a bit tricky. They often have to sacrifice nutrition for taste or vice versa. But I like these from Birch Benders because they're a nice combination of the two. They taste good, toast up nicely, and the ingredient list is fairly short and recognizable. If hosting friends, I'll put out a bunch of toppings beyond plain syrup — like Greek yogurt, fruit, and seeds/nuts.
Also, as with any toast-able frozen GF products — waffles, breads, bagels — reminder that you can optimize texture a bit by warming them in the microwave just slightly before you toast them.
11.Brekki Overnight Oats
I feel like most people are either a (hot) oatmeal person or a (cold) overnight oats person and I'm the latter. I've tried a few different packaged overnight oat brands but I like Brekki most because the ingredients are super simple and beyond the oats, they in mix things like almonds and flax seeds to add texture. With 8 g of protein per cup, these are great as a quick snack or breakfast on busy mornings.
12.Whole Foods 365 Chicken Nuggets
After seeing these nuggets get top marks in BuzzFeed's chicken nugget taste test earlier this year, I snagged a bag for my kiddo and then, TBH, ended up eating a not-insignificant amount myself. LOL.
13.Siete Mexican Wedding Cookies
Siete's savory gluten-free products — like its chips and slow cooker spice mixes — have never let me down. But this was the year that a few newer sweet products, including these Mexican wedding cookies, made their way into my local Costco. They're almond flour-pecan cookies sprinkled with powdered sugar and cinnamon and they also happen to be vegan.
14.Crispy Coconut Rolls
Continuing on the Costco train: I picked up a bag of these earlier this year because I love anything coconut. And then I (and my husband, and our 6-year-old) started eating through bags with alarming speed. They're so good and snackable! They taste light and airy — with a ridiculously perfect crunch.
15.Garofalo Gluten Free Pasta
Anyone who has tried gluten-free (dry) pasta will tell you: It can be a shot in the dark — especially when it comes to taste, texture, and ease of cooking. That's why I was excited to discover this new-to-me brand on shelves at Eataly Los Angeles earlier this year. IMO, this pasta delivers on all fronts. It doesn't fall victim to the common pitfalls of other GF pastas: gummy texture, breakage when cooking, or a flavor profile that's overly chickpea or lentil adjacent.
16.Trader Joe's Gluten Free Cheese Ravioli
There are plenty of GF pastas available these days but far fewer prepared pastas, like this one. For a super-easy weeknight dinner, these are great topped with Rao's marinara or a fresh pesto. You'll just want to carefully peel them apart before cooking; otherwise they will stick together and break open.
17.Trader Joe's Gluten Free Egg Fettuccine
If you're on the hunt for a cheese-less variety, this is another affordable and reliable refrigerated option from Trader Joe's.
18.Michelle's Granola
Michele's Granola comes in several varieties but I'm partial to the almond butter kind. The granola has a perfectly crunchy and airy texture and flavor that stand in contrast to the overly sticky-sweet grit that some other prepackaged granolas can have.
19.Canyon Bakehouse Heritage Style Bread
This was the first year I saw Canyon Bakehouse's "heritage style" breads pop up at my local grocery store. You can't really tell in the photo above but the heritage slices are larger than their regular gluten-free breads, which — like most GF bread brands — tend to run smaller than regular bread because of their density.
20.Canyon Bakehouse Bagels
Similarly, Canyon Bakehouse makes my pick for GF bagels. The downside is these bagels can be pricey considering there's only four per pack so I typically stock up when they're on sale. I also suggest checking its website because it sometimes has coupons available.
21.Masienda Tortillas
If I could only eat one food for the rest of my life, it would be tacos. And I love a good store-bought corn tortilla but it wasn't until these recently popped up at my local Whole Foods that I realized store-bought corn tortillas could actually be...great.
I first grabbed these solely due to the fun packaging (LOL) but then was low-key amazed at the difference in taste, texture, and quality. These taste so fresh and perfectly chewy, and they're the most pliable corn tortillas I've come across. (Crucial when it comes to the reheat!) The blue corn variety is my favorite.
22.Costco Crunchy Rollers
These are another allergy-friendly school snack and IMO they really nail the lightly sweetened, delightfully crunchy aspect.
23.Unreal Almond Butter Cups
The dark chocolate isn't cloyingly sweet and the almond butter is actually rich and creamy versus dry and pasty. My Costco sells bags of Unreal Coconut chocolate-coconut bars — which are good too — but I'm still patiently waiting for a bulk-size package of these. 😎
