Gluten free food is expensive at best, particularly if you are shopping in a “specialty store” featuring gluten free food but too small to offer rock-bottom prices. One solution to this problem is to shop in major supermarkets and be on-the-lookout for gluten free items. Here are a few suggestions:

  Rice Chex Cereal. This product has been recently been reformulated, so be sure that you buy a package that that has a red check mark followed by the words “gluten free”.  Some of the older packages may still be on the shelves. By the way, Corn Chex is not gluten free and neither is Kellog’s Corn Pops.

  Nabisco Cream of Rice Hot Cereal. I’m always a trifle annoyed when I have to go into the baby and toddler food section to find this cereal. But it does help me get a good start in the morning.

  The Nature’s Path Corporation sells gluten free cold cereal through its EnviroKids division. Note that the Orangutan-Os cereal is not gluten free and that their toaster waffles are not celiac friendly even though their packaging makes them look much like the cereal.

  Van’s International  sells many brands of frozen toaster waffles that are gluten free. Be sure to check each package carefully as some varieties are inappropriate for us. Everything is clearly labeled.

  Annie’s Naturals were the celiac’s favorite salad dressings during the days when we were told to avoid all vinegar. Now most salad dressings are OK, butAnnie’s Naturals remains my personal favorite and is available in many supermarkets.

The Gluten-Free Kitchen by Robin Ryberg is a cook book that provides gluten free recipes that can be prepared using "readily accessible" (and therefore relatively inexpensive) ingredients. Click on the picture if  you might consider ordering this book from Amazon:

 Good luck. Let me know if there are other items that should be included here. E-mail me by using the button in the middle column on this page or by leaving a comment at the bottom of this article. You may be interested in checking out my article “ Celiac’s and Budget Battles” which presents a strategy for saving money on your food budget by buying gluten free food in bulk.

 Published 03/28/08

http://www.glutenfreeceliacweb.com/2008/03/15/gluten-free-bargainsceliacs-and-budget-battles/