Financial relief is here! It goes without saying: living in and eating gluten-free food in Los Angeles is expensive. Some relief is needed. And it isn’t coming from the government. Here are three ways to cut costs, eat right according to the diet, and enjoy it.
1. Eat more veggies.
Not to sound like a mother, but eating vegetables is (no-brainer) healthy and cost saving. American’s don’t like to eat their greens however. It seems 99% of the American diet is wheat based. Soups have wheat. Sauces have wheat. French fries are fried in wheat based oils. But that all changes the moment the doctor says, “Sorry, no wheat for you.” Vegetables are the answer. They are cheap, filling and fast to make. So it’s time to reintroduce the carrot to the diet.
2. Make it fresh.
Grocery stores are making strides to offer pre-made breads, muffins, buns and meals. But this article is about saving money and buying the pre-made foods adds up. So, make it fresh.
For those that aren’t big on mixing ingredients, and you want a to-die for chocolate chip cookie or a mouth-watering blueberry muffin, there’s Pamela’s Products. Pamela’s offers gourmet mixes – pancake mix, muffin mix, bread mix and more – and for most of the recipes, all that is needed is water, eggs and oil. For $6 a package of their mix makes three days worth of pancakes. Or two loaves of bread in a bread machine. Or 18 to 20 muffins. Check out Pamela’s Products site for more information.
For those looking to employ their cooking skills, there are books a plenty with recipes geared toward the gluten-free diet. Babycakes NYC has a book out with recipes for muffins, cookies, cakes, scones and much more. A few other books include: The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Foods: Creating Old Favorites with the New Flours and The Wheat-Free Cook: Gluten-Free Recipes for Everyone. For more books, see Amazon’s Gluten-Free cookbook page.
3. In-N-Out
Yes, that’s right, the fast food restaurant In-N-Out. It shouldn’t be the sole destination for food, but they are the best option when on a strict diet and in a hurry. They make their hamburgers out of fresh meat – adding nothing to them. They use fresh veggies – again with the veggies. And they cook their French fries in a gluten-free oil. Yes! Not only that, they don’t pause forever when you ask for your hamburger “protein-style”, like it is a mortal sin to avoid their hamburger buns. Respect, good service, fresh food. And cheap. A win all the way around.
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