10 Gluten-Free Breakfast Ideas – A Roundup

 

Easy and Healthy Breakfast

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, and often times, it’s the meal that I eat the most at. I try to eat a larger breakfast and taper down the portion sizes as the day goes on. I have found this not only helps maintain my energy level and blood sugar level, but also my weight.

You should always make the time to whip up breakfast in the morning. It’s not as time-consuming as people might think. No excuses – start your day off right with a healthy, gluten-free breakfast.

Here are some ideas to get you started …

A Roundup of 10 Gluten-Free Breakfast Ideas

1) Toast with sunflower seed spread and sprinkled with Spectrum Naturals Decadent Coco-Chia-Flax Mix (found at Whole Foods, Sprouts), served with fruit (pictured above, great snack also)!

2) Banana Silver Dollar Coconut Pancakes from The Spunky Coconut  ~ Loving these grain-free pancakes, highlighting banana and coconut!

3) Fresh Berry and Basil Crumble from The Healthy Apple ~ A refreshing take on a regular baked crumble. This recipe features tons of fresh fruit!

4) 1 Minute Blueberry Citrus Shake from Family Fresh Cooking ~ A super easy morning or afternoon shake, made with simple ingredients.

5) Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal from Family Fresh Cooking ~ Use gluten-free oats with this recipe, super flavorful!

6) Peanut Butter Banana Quinoa Granola from Queen of Quinoa ~ A unique take on regular granola, this one is packed with nutrients!

7) Melted Leek and Red Pepper Quiche from Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free ~ I love quiches of any kind! They are great for breakfast, lunch or dinner!

8) Kale, Sausage and Quinoa Scramble from With Style and Grace ~ You had me at Kale … (I’m a huge kale fan).

9) Paleo Breakfast Bars from Elana’s Pantry ~ Perfect for a snack on the go!

10) Gluten-Free Buckwheat Crepes from The Gluten-Free Girl and Chef ~ Buckwheat is such a wonderful gluten-free ingredient and it works great in this crepe recipe.

What do you like to eat for breakfast? Share with us in the comment section.

Cheers!

News: Locate Special Diet now has a great Pinterest board … filled with tons of recipe inspiration such as: gluten-free, vegan, paleo, dairy-free and more! Check it out here.

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We have a MOBILE APP! Enjoy dining out? Download the Locate Special Diet mobile app for iPhone and Android and let us help you find gluten-free food and drink options (vegetarian and organic available also). (Demo)

Easy Baked BBQ Chicken (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free)

Baked BBQ Chicken - Gluten-Free

Chris and I normally crave barbecue at least once a week. We normally just go out to a local barbecue joint for dinner, but now that we have the new oven (YAY); I can make my favorite baked BBQ chicken at home (no grill required).

This recipe is super simple to make. You’ll notice that the first 5 ingredients (plus olive oil), are more of a basic chicken seasoning recipe. Feel free to use that base, and switch out the sauce for something else (ex: Italian Dressing). Voila – you’ll have a whole new meal.

See the okra in the picture? Recipe coming soon, and it’s completely non-slimy … YES.

Easy Baked BBQ Chicken

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. chicken breasts (2 breasts)
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt, each side
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper, each side
  • Onion powder
  • Garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon Pickapeppa sauce
  • 1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • BBQ sauce (I used Russ and Franks)
  • Extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the chicken breasts in a small casserole or baking dish. Sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides of the chicken. Sprinkle onion powder and garlic powder, from the bottle, on both sides of the chicken. Pour Pickapeppa, Worcestershire over chicken. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil on the chicken. Mix chicken and ingredients with hands to evenly coat the chicken with sauces. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. When there is 10 minutes of cook-time left, pour BBQ sauce over chicken.

Cheers!

Don’t miss a news announcement, giveaway or recipe! Subscribe to our Feed, follow us on TwitterFacebook or Pinterest.

We have a MOBILE APP! Enjoy dining out? Download the Locate Special Diet mobile app for iPhone and Android and let us help you find gluten-free food and drink options. (Demo)

Austin Food Blogger Alliance Cookbook

Cookbook

The beautiful Austin Food Blogger Alliance Cookbook has arrived! I’m so honored to be a member of this wonderful organization, as well as having TWO gluten-free recipes in the cookbook. I must say, it is pretty neat to see your photographs and recipes in print!

Here are some of the recipes included in the cookbook:

~ Gluten-Free Olive Oil Pancakes

~ Gluten-Free Quiche

~ Grilled Lime-Paprika Broccoli

~ Coconut Sriracha Cauliflower Rice

~ And more! View the full list of recipes included here.

The cookbook is now available for purchase at participating local stores including: Whole Foods Market, Book People, Central Market and Breed and Company. You can also purchase it online through Amazon and Barnes and Noble!

Cheers!

Don’t miss a news announcement, giveaway or recipe! Subscribe to our Feed, follow us on TwitterFacebook or Pinterest.

We have a MOBILE APP! Enjoy dining out? Download the Locate Special Diet mobile app for iPhone and Android and let us help you find reliable options.

Morning Smoothie

Morning Smoothie

Morning Smoothie – filled with nutritious ingredients. Taken on Instagram.

I have been needing a mix-up of my morning breakfast routine. Eggs, toast and fruit or gluten-free oatmeal, can get old after a while. A smoothie is my answer, as of lately. It’s healthy, fast, fresh and fills you up!

We have been so busy lately! In between events (Whew! SXSW wore me out!), work and wedding planning; I feel like I haven’t been able to take a breather and relax 100%. Speaking of wedding planning, things are moving along nicely. I actually went wedding dress shopping recently and found “the ONE” in Austin at a cute local boutique. It feels real that it’s getting close and I’m thrilled.

Locate Special Diet will be making an appearance at a couple events around Texas soon. Make sure and check out the Texas VegFest coming up April 6, as well as the Dallas Mavericks Celiac Awareness Event brought to you by the good folks over at Gluten-Free Calendar. I’ll be heading north to Dallas, April 12th to attend the event. I hope to see you there!

Also, I’d like to give a shout-out to the hilarious - April Peveteaux - who recently had a book signing for her new book coming out titled ~ Gluten is my Bitch (available for pre-order on Amazon). Thanks for mentioning our mobile app, Locate Special Diet, on your SXSW panel April!

Blueberry-Banana Morning Smoothie

Serves 1

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups almond milk (or milk of choice)
  • 1 medium ripe banana
  • 2 tablespoons cashew butter (or nut butter of choice)
  • 2/3 cup frozen blueberries
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 packet stevia (optional)
  • 2 tablespoons ground chia seeds

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend to combine. Serve chilled.

Cheers!

Don’t miss a news announcement, giveaway or recipe! Subscribe to our Feed, follow us on TwitterFacebook or Pinterest.

We have a MOBILE APP! Enjoy dining out? Download the Locate Special Diet mobile app for iPhone and Android and let us help you find reliable options.

Vegetarian-Friendly Restaurants in Central Austin, South Austin and Westlake area (Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide, Part 4)

This is the FINAL post for the Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide. For those who are not from Austin, thanks for hanging tight as we finish up the city guide. We have tons of recipes lined up for the next few weeks!

This guide is for vegetarian-friendly restaurants in Central Austin, South Austin (78704), and the Westlake Hills area. Every single one of these restaurants also offers gluten-free friendly items. Many have dedicated menus. I’ll be posting links to their listings on Locate Special Diet so you can view the gluten-free tips for various restaurants. This guide is a partial listing of vegetarian-friendly establishments. If we have missed your favorite, please leave your suggestion in the comment section below!

Vegetarian Friendly Restaurants in Austin, Texas

Central Austin:

~ Wheatsville (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Spider House (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Tacodeli (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ The Steeping Room (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Mellow Mushroom (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Clay Pit (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Kerbey Lane (Locate Special Diet listing)

South Austin:

Kerbey Lane (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Tarka Indian Kitchen (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Central Market Cafe (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Soup Peddler, Juicebox (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ Mr. Natural (Locate Special Diet listing)

Westlake Hills area:

Thai Spice

~ Taco Deli 

~ zPizza (Locate Special Diet listing)

~ The Grove (Locate Special Diet listing)

Locate Special Diet Mobile Apps

For those looking to find other vegetarian restaurant options near them – we now have a mobile app for free download. Seriously! Use our app, called Locate Special Diet to help you navigate the vegetarian scene while you are visiting Austin! (available on iPhoneAndroid, and our website).

Here are some sample screenshots!

Cheers!

View other Vegetarian City Guide entries from other local bloggers:

All Annual City Guide posts: click here

Paleo Restaurant Guide to Austin, Texas

Welcome to my third installment for the Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide.

The topic for this installment is Paleo! For those who are unfamiliar with the Paleo diet (short for Paleolithic), the diet consists mainly of fish and meats (ex: grassfed meat is great), vegetables, nuts, fruits, etc. The Caveman diet (another name for it), excludes all things refined – such as sugar, processed oils (canola oil is a no-no), legumes, grains, dairy, etc.

Just like any lifestyle where you adhere to a certain type of diet – eating out might be a challenge at first. For me, I have Celiac disease so I do not adhere by a diet just because I want to. I do so by medical necessity. [Read more...]

Gluten-Free Guide to South Lamar (and 78704), Westlake Hills, Bee Caves, Lakeway, South Austin (Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide Part 2)

Welcome to the second installment of my contribution to the Austin Food Blogger Alliance City Guide. To view my first post on Gluten-Free Breakfast and Brunch Spots near downtown Austin, click here. Make sure and check out the other Guide posts (will be live March 2) – it’s a great way to see what your favorite bloggers recommend around Austin.

Speaking of AFBA – pre-order the cookbook now!

For my readers that are not from Austin, thank you for your patience. We will resume regular posting after the guide is completed (2 more posts to go!)

NOTE: Our app’s website lists helpful tips for the restaurants I mentioned, but if you would like specific recommendations, please do not hesitate to contact us. I was trying to save some space on this blog post and include more options! 

For those looking to find other gluten-free restaurant options near them – we now have a mobile app for free download. Seriously! Use our app, called Locate Special Diet to help you navigate the gluten-free scene while you are visiting Austin! (available on iPhoneAndroid, and our website). Built for the gluten-free people, by local gluten-free people. What more could you ask for?

Here are some sample screenshots!

[Read more...]

Gluten-Free Breakfast and Brunch Options near Downtown Austin, Texas (Austin Food Blogger Alliance Annual City Guide Part 1)

It’s that time of the year, folks! The annual city guides are upon us … Incoordination with the Austin Food Blogger Alliance, many of us will be sharing our picks for various genres of food around town. This year I will be writing about gluten-free, vegetarian and paleo-friendly options in Austin so stay tuned for those posts in the next two weeks. For my readers who do not live in Austin, regular posting will resume after the guide is completed!

For those looking to find other gluten-free restaurant options near them – we now have a mobile app for free download. Seriously! Use our app, called Locate Special Diet to help you navigate the gluten-free scene while you are visiting Austin! (available on iPhone, Android, and our website). Built for the gluten-free people, by local gluten-free people. What more could you ask for?

[Read more...]

Slow Cooker Butternut Squash Soup (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Vegetarian)

Rich and creamy, this butternut squash soup recipe is a keeper.

I know, I know… another crock pot or slow cooker recipe. I can’t help it. I think I might be addicted. There’s no excuses here… you just chop it up and throw it all together in the pot. It’s that simple. It’s also nice that you can come home to a house smelling delicious, from your dinner cooking all day.

I used a kitchen scale to measure the amount of squash I had. Feel free to improvise.

What’s new with us? Just working away on all of the new features we are adding soon to Locate Special Diet. We are about to expand the mobile app to include ALL 50 states! Super exciting! If you haven’t downloaded it yet, it’s free and available on iPhone and Android ~ Locate Special Diet Mobile Apps

Coming soon to the blog in the next two weeks – The Annual Gluten-Free City Guide! I’m also putting together a Vegetarian City Guide and a Paleo City Guide for Austin. If you do not live in Austin, apologies … regular posting will resume after those posts have been completed! They are in association with the wonderful organization – the Austin Food Blogger Alliance. Speaking of the AFBA, I’ve had the privilege to contribute to the first-ever Austin Food Blogger Alliance Community Cookbook! My gluten-free olive oil pancakes and grilled lime-paprika broccoli will be making an appearance. If you would like to pre-order the cookbook, you may do so by visiting this link: Pre-Order. The cookbook makes a great gift!

Butternut Squash Soup

(Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Vegetarian)

Equipment: I used a 5 quart slow cooker

Ingredients:

  • ~2.75 lb. of butternut squash (cubed). I used about 2 lb. and ~12.5 ounces.
  • 1 large white onion, rough chop
  • 3 cloves garlic, throw in whole
  • 1 can coconut milk, unsweetened
  • 8 cups water
  • 1 bunch leeks (approximately 3), white parts sliced
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon arrowroot
  • Optional garnish: Italian parsley

Directions:

Peel the butternut squash and scoop out the seeds (save for roasting later). Slice the butternut squash into medium size cubes. There is no need for this to be perfect, as you will blend this all in the end. Leeks are dirty so make sure and wash them! Slice the white parts of the leeks and place in a bowl of water. Swish the leeks around to remove dirt and drain the water. Rough chop the onion. In your slow cooker, place all of the above ingredients and mix to combine some. Cook on high for 4 hours. Depending on the strength of your slow cooker and size, you might have to cook longer or shorter. Stir every once in a while. Once the butternut squash is fork-tender, use an immersion blender to blend ingredients until smooth. Depending on the amount of butternut squash you use, you might need less water or more water. I prefer my soup slightly thicker, so I used more squash and less water. It’s hard to mess this one up :)

Prefer to cook this on the stove top instead? Sure, it’s possible. Use a large soup pot or dutch oven and use the same amount of ingredients. You will need less cooking time for this preparation.

Enjoy!

Don’t miss a news announcement, giveaway or recipe! Subscribe to our Feed, follow us on TwitterFacebook or Pinterest.

We have a MOBILE APP! Enjoy dining out? Download the Locate Special Diet mobile app for iPhone and Android and let us help you find reliable options.

LUNA HQ Trip & a Giveaway!

I’m giving away a box of LUNA Protein Mint Chocolate Chip + LUNA Protein Cookie Dough to one lucky reader!

But first, I want to share about my lovely trip to the LUNA Bar and Clif Bar HQ this past summer…

Back in June, I had the privilege to fly to one of my favorite cities in the world (San Francisco) and visit the LUNA Bar headquarters. I tell you what … LUNA is a wonderful company. I love their products, people and company culture. They are awesome! View my trip through my Instagram pictures below.

Waiting at the airport for my flight. Wearing Converse shoes, as always :)

Welcome to Clif Bar and LUNA headquarters in Berkeley, California

Lunch was catered by their company kitchen. It was awesome, and of course gluten-free and dairy-free.

A look inside their gym, they have a rock climbing wall. How awesome is that?

Grab a snack, anytime.

I’m always down for a good cup of coffee.

LUNA and Clif HQ. Check out the bikes!

Road trip to St. Helena, California to visit the Clif Family Winery. I bet you didn’t know they make wine, did you? Great wine too!

Tomatoes in the vegetable garden

Lunch at Clif Family Winery, catered by La Condesa Napa Valley!

A little bit of Austin in Napa Valley … La Condesa

Learning about Clif Family Winery and Gary’s Improv wine from Clif winemaker Bruce Regalia

Beautiful setting

Wine tasting time

 They also make nut mixes and olive oil!

Beautiful art

Having an absolute blast!

 

Clif Family Winery

 Last day LUNA yoga class … refreshing!

 Overall, my experience visiting the LUNA headquarters was wonderful. I learned many exciting things about their company and can’t wait to follow along their journey as they continue to grow. If you haven’t had a chance to try the Clif Family Winery wines, nut mixes or olive oil, do yourself a favor and buy them! Great products, from great people.

Since my background is in nutrition, I found their in-house (Tara DelloIacono Thies) dietitian’s stance on the Power of Positive Snacking very interesting. Check out the LUNA website to learn more. Also, make sure and check out some other things that make LUNA special – like Team Luna Chix, their causes they support, and LUNAfest short films.

LUNA Protein Bar GIVEAWAY!

All of the LUNA protein flavors are gluten-free and I’m giving away 1 box of LUNA Protein Cookie Dough and LUNA Protein Mint Chocolate Chip to one lucky reader! These happen to be two of my favorite flavors and I always have one in my purse.

To enter the giveaway:

*Leave a comment in the comment section and tell us: What is your favorite LUNA Bar flavor?

Giveaway ends Thursday, December 20, 2012 at 5 p.m. CST. (Giveaway now closed). Winner will be chosen using Random.org. The winner will be contacted via email so make sure and leave your email address in the comment section as well.

Good luck and Cheers!

Disclaimer: LUNA Bar provided me with a complimentary trip to California to visit their headquarters. This giveaway is sponsored by LUNA. This does not sway my opinion in any way, as I love their company and their products.