Last month, I received an email from Sandra (who recently celebrated 61 years of marriage!) asking me to share some tips for taking a meal that is both gluten-free and dairy-free. Preparing this type of meal can definitely seem overwhelming at first, but once you have a simple plan, it's really no trouble at all. Many of the meals you already make probably fit the bill or might just need a small adjustment.

Three years ago, I started cooking this way for my own family due to some health challenges we were facing. I've definitely discovered some phenomenal recipes along the way. Maureen (who often writes to you on this blog) was a huge help because she is unable to have gluten and she shared a treasure trove of tested and delicious recipes with me. You can find many of her recipes in our recipe section.

When taking a gf/df meal, it's easier to break your meal down into smaller components and choose your protein, starch, and vegetable. That way, you can think through the ingredients to make sure you are avoiding gluten and dairy. In general, avoiding gluten means you won't use flour, sauces, and other ingredients that might have wheat in them. Avoiding dairy means that milk, butter, sour cream, cheese, and other dairy products should not be used.

One idea for a lovely gf/df meal is the following:

Rice is definitely your friend when preparing a gf/df meal. It gives your meal substance when you might usually use bread or mashed potatoes. Roasting vegetables is a delicious way to prepare them and often only uses olive oil and a little salt instead of butter. If you have a favorite vegetable, you can easily search for recipes on how to roast it. Fresh seasonal fruits are good to keep in mind because they can be a side dish or dessert without any added ingredients.

If you're looking for a gf/df one-pot meal, my family really enjoys this Crowd Pleaser Mexican Soup. I hesitated to mention it because there is cheese as a topping in the photo, but it is delicious without a topping or topped with diced avocado (with a little lime juice to prevent darkening) instead of cheese.

In a prior blog post, I wrote about how taco salad is a really easy meal to accomodate all kinds of allergies and sensitivities. Maureen wrote about these Chicken Burrito Bowls that her family really appreciated!

I hope this post convinces you that taking a gf/df meal really isn't that different from what you usually might prepare. It just requires a little thinking about each component to make sure gluten or dairy are not used in the recipe or hidden in ingredients like sauces.

Happy Anniversary, Sandra! Hope this was helpful!