Gluten is a particular mixture of proteins including glutelins and gliadins that are found in wheat grains. These proteins are water insoluble which is what gives dough its elastic and… well doughy… texture, but unfortunately they can also be hard to digest and absorb and many people have a gluten intolerance as a result.
Thus gluten-free foods are of particular interest to many people who suffer from this problem, and particularly healthy snacks that can provide sustenance without adding fat and sugar. Snack foods typically contain a lot of gluten which can make this difficult, but here we will look at several gluten-free snacks that you can enjoy without the side effects.
Carrots and Dip
Raw carrots are a highly convenient snack that are underappreciated in my opinion. They’re very portable, very easy to eat and they last a long time. And if this isn’t satisfying your yearning for snacks then you can use a number of dips to make them even tastier. My favourite dip? Hummus by far!
Apple and Cheese
This is a snack that’s high in vitamin C, high in fibre and high in protein and it also happens to be delicious offering the wonderful contrast of sweet and savoury. Chop up some apple slices, slice up some cheese and stick them on a chopstick to enjoy later.
Oatmeal Cakes
You can make oatmeal cakes – and these make wonderful little treats that are small enough to carry around with you.
Frozen Grapes
These are surprisingly delicious and just as good as any ice lolly – except not dripping in sugar and syrup. They’re also very cheap and fun to eat.
Frozen Yogurt
Take yogurt. Put it in the freezer. Bite. It’s wonderfully simple and weirdly moreish.
Plain Yogurt With Fruit
It tastes like a desert, but the wonderful secret is that it’s actually very healthy and a great way to get your vitamins and minerals too.
Rice Cakes
Rice cakes are very tasty and light and can kill hunger pangs without making you feel guilty.
Stuffed Olives
Sometimes you just want something satisfying and rich to bite into and olives do the trick nicely – particularly if they are stuffed with something tasty.
Hard Boiled Eggs
Hard boiled eggs are a great way to get your protein up. As are soft boiled eggs for that matter or even scrambled eggs. They’re quick, they’re filling and they’re rich in protein.
Popcorn
Popcorn is surprisingly healthy particularly if you go light on the extra salt. While popcorn doesn’t actually contain any gluten in theory it’s worth seeking out specifically labelled ‘gluten-free’ popcorn just to avoid cross contamination – and especially for flavoured popcorn.