Gluten Free Camp Snacks!
Creative Options for GF VBS Snacks
With summer comes a whole host of really fun camps for kids! Our church has a really great Vacation Bible School program (VBS for short) called HotU that starts next week. If you have signed your kids up for HotU or any other VBS/Camp this summer and you are finding that you now need to organize a snack that fits your kiddo’s dietary challenges, I have some ideas for you.
Some things to consider before shopping for snacks:
- If you are attending HotU at Christ Community Church, you should know that they have posted the snacks for the week on their website. Just click on “snack list” here to go directly to it so that you are prepared for the week!
- Remember to communicate ahead of time to someone at your VBS/Camp about your child’s dietary needs. This will help give you and your child peace of mind while they are having fun. Hopefully, you will find yourself talking with helpful individuals whose goal is to make the camp experience as stress-free and fun as possible for your child. If not, ask for the person up in the chain of command!
On to my suggestions… Over the years, I have gone to great lengths to provide a snack “in kind” for my children while they are away. This really helps with the anxiety over what they will be having. I try to get as close as possible to the actual snack that the rest of the crowd will be having… that said, it can be a tall order! Here are some ideas that have worked really well for us and are usually pretty close to the snacks other kids are having:
- Rice Krispy Bars: With plenty of GF brown rice crisp cereal available, t is easy to make your own from scratch. If you need a recipe, click the following link for my version of a great rice krispy bar with gluten free versions of traditional ingredients. You can also find these bars pre-packaged in the gluten free section of some grocery stores. Trader Joe’s has a great GF Crispy Brown Rice Bar. At this time, even though Kellogg’s makes a GF version of their Rice Krispy cereal, their ready-made bars are NOT gluten free. We can only petition them to encourage a GF version of their bars and to help them see the need!
- Chocolate Chip Cookies: Thank goodness for Enjoy Life! They have really saved the day when it comes to gluten free cookies. I keep a stash of their cookies packs (chocolate chip and snickerdoodle varieties) on hand to make it easy for my kids to grab and go when they know there will be a cookie served. Each pack has two soft, gluten free cookies. The other reason Enjoy Life is my choice for the “cookie” snack is that they offer this single serve package. That is a lot of the “issue” for our children when they have to eat against the norm. At least they can bring something in a printed package from some company with a name other than “mom’s kitchen”!
- Fruit Snacks: These are much easier to find for the gluten free kid. Either fruit snacks or fruit by the foot tend to be gluten free naturally. Even Aldi’s has a version of fruit snack that is gluten free. Double check the package. Welch’s fruit snacks are a go as they use Modified Corn Starch and none of the ingredients listed show gluten. Just remember: if an ingredient list says Modified Food Starch your best bet is to avoid the product until you have called the company to make sure of what type of starch they use. Never assume something is gluten free just because there is no statement stating “contains: gluten” underneath the ingredients.
- Oreo cookies: I have said this before, Kinnikinnick makes a great gluten free chocolate sandwich cookie, rivaling the beloved Oreo. You can find Kinnitoo’s in three flavors, chocolate, fudge and vanilla. If you cannot locate those, you might find Glutino’s brand of chocolate vanilla creme sandwich cookies which are a good stand in as well.
- Animal Cookies: Orgran makes a great gluten free mini-animal cookie in snack size packages called Mini Outback Animals. They also have a few varieties (chocolate, vanilla, and graham). Look for a package of 8 snack size servings in the gluten free aisle of your grocery store or health store.
- Pretzels: Stock up on small packs of pretzels that are easy to grab and go as well. Ener-G and Glutino have a small bag of their mini Gluten Free pretzel twists that comes in handy. Or, just be economical and purchase a larger bag and create your own mini-packs by portioning out snack size servings into zip-top plastic bags or containers. Just as easy to grab and go.
- Popcorn and Corn Chips: Pre-popped popcorn, Original Tings by Pirate Brands and individual packages of Frito’s are also great to send with your child for camp. Many times, VBS staff provide just popcorn every day for a whole week! Get some small brown or white paper bags to put your gluten free popcorn in so that your kids can enjoy the nostalgia that comes with being handed a bag of popcorn!
Sure, not all of these snack ideas are super nutritious. The key for kids at camp is to provide them with something they will feel comfortable eating around others. Their peers do not need any more “ammo” to single them out or make them feel weird about being different. Try and ease up on the nutrition requirements here and there to let your children experience a fun and stress free snack time at camp. They will tell everyone that you are the best mom (or dad) on the planet for it!
