Dinner Ideas

[Kelleybean]

Hi -

This is my first post but I've been lurking for a while ... I have learned so much from you all.

We are in the process of transitioning to a gluten free diet for my 2 1/2 a half year old for his autism. I'm completely stressing over this b/c he is very sensitive to food texture. He won't eat meat (except the occasional hotdog) or veggies in whole form (i.e. he'll do baby food veggies or mashed potatoes/sweet potatoes but won't for example eat a regular carrot). Thank goodness he will eat eggs and beans and also likes Udi's bread.

Any ideas for dinner? Some of the things I make right now I can convert I think - i.e. I can use gluten free bread crumbs to make the bean patties he loves. But I really struggle with dinners right now b/c the traditional meat with veggie side isn't an option, and am worried that this is going to get tougher once we go completely gluten free. Help!

[missy'smom]

We are in the process of transitioning to a gluten free diet for my 2 1/2 a half year old for his autism. I'm completely stressing over this b/c he is very sensitive to food texture. He won't eat meat (except the occasional hotdog) or veggies in whole form (i.e. he'll do baby food veggies or mashed potatoes/sweet potatoes but won't for example eat a regular carrot). Thank goodness he will eat eggs and beans and also likes Udi's bread.

Any ideas for dinner? Some of the things I make right now I can convert I think - i.e. I can use gluten free bread crumbs to make the bean patties he loves. But I really struggle with dinners right now b/c the traditional meat with veggie side isn't an option, and am worried that this is going to get tougher once we go completely gluten free. Help!

He may have texture issues, in part because of digestive upset. I don't blame the little guy, I have texture issues with meat as well. I've trained myself to eat more and expand my horizons a bit. My thing with meat, aside from flavor is chewing. I never thought of it until someone pointed it out to me but it makes sense, I have a small jaw. I tend to like softer meats. You can make meatballs with a variety of ground meats-pork, chicken, turkey or beef. When they are simmered gently in a liquid rather than browned in a skillet, they are more tender. I make turkey meatballs and simmer them in a chicken broth for soup. Simple, gently flavored meatballs might be a good step up from hotdogs. As for hot dogs, most are gluten-free. Take it one step at a time with new foods, not too many at once, give him time to get used to the sight, smell, flavor and texture. With the veggies that he does like, maybe the next transition would be to small, well cooked cubes. Even if he doesn't go for it the first or second time, let them hang around for a while. Sometimes it helps to not think about the big picture and just set a small goal, baby first step and work towards that. When that has been reached, set the next. You're working with a situation that requires steady patience and consistancy over time. maybe setting these small goals, one at a time will help you from getting overwhelmed and trying to get ahead of yourself. With the Udi's bread you can make french toast and grilled cheese sandwiches. What other things does he eat now? Can we help you convert them to gluten-free or give you safe brand names?

[GFreeMO]

Since you said that he likes beans, how about some bean burritos with Mission corn tortillas. Does he like pasta? There are some good gluten free pastas out there. That with some sauce and cheese or mac. and cheese. How about some gluten free lasagna with veggies hidden in it like pieces of carrot or something.

[sb2178]

Does he eat soups? There are all sorts of soups that can be made gluten-free. Puree it and then there will be no lumps. Everyone else can have salad too, and bread as appropriate.

Would he also eat pureed/food milled meats? So, say you make broiled chicken breasts and greens beans for the family but mush it up for him. Often sweet potatoes will hide other foods nicely. You're still getting an extra item dirty, but it's easier than cooking a whole different meal.

Honestly, if he'll eat the beans and eggs, he'll be just fine nutritionally (probably). It's more of a nuisance factor for you though. And he may grow out of it after a while. Although I still don't eat slimy white things like mayo or sour cream!

Definitely tell us more about what he will eat. Kids are so variable.

[MacieMay]

I have picky gluten-free toddler too. I feel your pain.

She loves the Sam Mills corn pasta. We've tried the other pastas, even the tinkyada, we didn't like them.

Rice and beans, rice and taco seasoned ground meat (chicken and beef).

She LOVES tator tots and I make my own baked potatoe wedges (we call them our FF).

Right now, at dinner she is picking one thing I put in front her (out of three) and that's all she'll eat. I try to sneak in veggies and fruits at other times, since she doesn't eat them at dinner.

Good luck!

[Kelleybean]

First of all, you guys are awesome! I

[11475]

He really likes things that are “bready” (pizza, pancakes, etc.) that he can pick up with his hands. Maybe there is a way I can play with the pancake concept.

Perhaps you could make fritters - I'm not sure if you would call them something different over there, but they are like a savoury pancake, and your little boy can pick them up to eat them.

Since texture is an issue, you could pre-cook the vegetables you put in the batter to make them extra-soft, or maybe even puree them first and add to the batter as liquid ingredients? Not sure how helpful that is, but it's just a thought.

Good luck

(You can also freeze the cooked fritters if you make enough at once, to help save time in the kitchen.)

[missy'smom]

Pacific is making cream soups that are gluten-free, in shelf stable boxes. I think they are the only ones making a gluten-free cream of chicken right now. You can make your own homemade though and freeze it in batches. I used this recipe Open Original Shared Link

Most, if not all that you listed are doable gluten-free.

With the pizzas and pancakes it's just a matter of experimenting with the varity of premade, crust mixes or recipes.

We use Trader Joes brown rice pasta because it's a better value. It's similar to the Tinkyada. If he doesn't like the Tink. and it's not a matter of shape, you may want to try pasta made from a different grain. Orgran is harder to find locally but I liked it, it's made from a blend of grains often, including millet and rice.

If he liked chicken nuggets and that soft texture they have, how about homemade fish sticks? I process a loaf of EnerG bread to make soft, fresh breadcrumbs and store in a ziplock in the freezer. No defrosting or drying, just use as is. Makes the nicest light crisp breadcrumb coating. I buy fresh or frozen cod or other white fish and cut in nuggets or fingers and bread. If I am making a batch ahead of time, I lay them out on a lined baking sheet and freeze 'till firm and then transfer to storage containers.

[Juliebove]

Have you tried the jarred toddler meat sticks? They come in chicken and I think turkey. My daughter is 12 and she still eats them. They are very soft.

[Charlie's Girl]

First of all, you guys are awesome! I

[Kelleybean]

I've seen the gerber sticks on the shelf, just never occurred to me to try it for him. I think homemade fishsticks might be this week's experiment. He does love ketchup, to the point where I have to remind him that he has to eat the fry too, can't just suck the ketchup off (it's so gross!).

Zucchini bread - what an awesome idea! I'd have to figure out how to somehow use one of the mixes, like Pamela's, as a "base." At the moment I'm completely overwhelmed by all of the from scratch gluten-free baking recipes b/c of all the ingredients I'm not used to cooking with, so I'll have to work my way up to that!

Thank you all... truly I appreciate it so much!

[missy'smom]

Zucchini bread - what an awesome idea! I'd have to figure out how to somehow use one of the mixes, like Pamela's, as a "base." At the moment I'm completely overwhelmed by all of the from scratch gluten-free baking recipes b/c of all the ingredients I'm not used to cooking with, so I'll have to work my way up to that!

Thank you all... truly I appreciate it so much!

My kiddo hates zucchini but likes these muffins. Open Original Shared Link For the oat flour whirl gluten-free oats in the food processor. For the whole wheat flour, I use a sorghum blend. You can add Xanthan gum according to package directions for the amount of whole wheat flour that the recipe calls for, don't include the oat flour in that count. I may have omitted the gum. I can't remember.

[sa1937]

Zucchini bread - what an awesome idea! I'd have to figure out how to somehow use one of the mixes, like Pamela's, as a "base." At the moment I'm completely overwhelmed by all of the from scratch gluten-free baking recipes b/c of all the ingredients I'm not used to cooking with, so I'll have to work my way up to that!

Pamela's has a recipe for zucchini bread using the baking and pancake mix: Open Original Shared Link I've been meaning to try it but haven't done so yet. I do know that both the pumpkin bread and banana bread recipes turn out really well. I've made both of them a number of times. Always yummy!

[mushroom]

Zucchini fritters are great, you could even put some potato in them. You can mash carrots and parsnips together, really any root vegetable can be mashed, pureed, as well as peas, and any of these can be made into a fritter type thing too. All of these can be added in to the sweet potato mash, or with some gluten-free flour they can be made into fritters, and would be a good way to expand his palate taste in small quantities. How about sweet potato chips? if he likes sweet potato, and from there you could introduce other chips.

[Beth03456]

My kids are both somewhat picky - here are some random ideas. We make homemade chicken nuggets and fish sticks using gluten-free breadcrumbs that they like, especially with a little ketchup. Have you tried the Quinoa pasta - its my favorite kind. Does he like french fries, hash browns, latkes, sweet potato fries? My kids like plain thin-sliced chicken saute'd in butter. Corn on the cob. Plain white rice with a little butter. Frozen peas. My little one likes black olives and plain black beans with salt, but my older one doesn't. Also they like the tiny Hormel pepperoni. I would just keep trying to get him to eat stuff. Good luck.