A Gluten-Free Guide to Breakfast Cereal

Posted by A Gluten-Free Guide on August 30th, 2009

Gluten Free Cereal
When I was first diagnosed with Celiac Disease in 2004, I mourned the loss of many different gluten-ful foods.  Cereal wasn’t part of my daily routine, but suddenly the idea of not being able to scoop out a handful of Cinnamon Life cereal and nibble on the sweet squares while reading a novel seemed like a tragic loss.  I heard rumors that Fruity Pebbles were gluten-free, and while the ingredients seemed that way, there was also persistent internet chatter about contamination on the line where they are made. 

I found a few gluten-free options along the way but I knew the tide was changing when General Mills reformulated almost the entire Chex line to be gluten-free.  Now, in the latest issue of Real Simple magazine, they did a review of a slew of cereals and 4 of their top picks just happened to be gluten-free.  With our options expanding, it becomes a question of what cereal do we WANT to eat rather than what cereal CAN we eat. 

peanut butter and chocolate gluten free cereal

I received a few samples of note in the last few weeks.  EnviroKidz has added to its gluten-free product list.  This is the team behind one of my favorite gluten-free cereals that I discovered right after I was diagnosed, Gorilla Munch (similar to Kix if you haven’t tried them).  Their new Leapin’ Lemurs cereal has a mix of peanut butter and chocolate. It’s not too rich though for a morning meal – if anything, they could have souped up the choco-peanuty goodness so I could have it for dessert.

yumcat gluten free cereal mix

Me & Goji is a customized cereal with loads of gluten-free options.  They have one gluten-free base and so many gluten-free ingredients, the options are almost endless. They are going to great lengths to clean all of the lines between gluten and gluten-free runs, so I felt comfortable with their process.  I must say, it may be the best cereal I have ever tasted.  Here’s the catch – it’s a bit pricey by the time you pick all of your ingredients plus $5 shipping.  According to their Web site, the average price of a mix is $12, the least expensive is $4.90 (plus shipping) and the most expensive is $56.  One canister does give you a lot more cereal than a typical box from the grocery store, but it could still be a fun ‘special occasion’ buy. 

Last, I sampled the latest from Erewhon Foods – they make gluten-free Brown Rice Cereals similar to Rice Krispies and some gluten-free corn and amaranth cereals.  Their new Cocoa Crispy Brown Rice Cereal and the Crispy Brown Rice with Mixed Berries are my favorites.  For the recent dessert party I hosted (the occasion that called for my Strawberry Ricotta Poppyseed Tart) my friend Matt volunteered to make some gluten-free Rice “Crispy” Treats swirled with chocolate.  Even with all of the ‘fancy’ desserts being served, the marshmallow, chocolatey treats were the first thing to go. 

It’s exciting to have so many more options, I can’t wait to see what new products are in store for us. 

You guys are getting spoiled with all of these giveaways, but I have another one for you.  This time FIVE lucky readers will win.  Leave a comment below with your favorite way to enjoy cereal (mixed in a dessert? as a dry snack? or the more typical way, in a bowl with milk?).  Blog or tweet about this giveaway and link to this post and you can comment twice (be sure to put @yumcat in the tweet) which will increase your chance of winning. The five winners, selected randomly, will receive 3 boxes of the gluten-free Erewhon Cereals of their choice plus one Patagonia T-Shirt and a Erewhon Coupon Keeper with $1 off coupons.  To enter, leave a comment by 6pm Eastern on Monday September 7th, you must live in the U.S. to be eligible. 

This giveaway is over – stay tuned for the next one!

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Breakfast, giveaways, Products 35 Comments

Keegan said,

August 30, 2009 @ 11:28 pm

Yay for giveaways! I LOVE cereal. I usually mix a bunch together, like enjoy life cinnamon crunch + kay’s naturals + pb puffs with whole soy yogurt + almond milk and some rice protein powder or some drizzled PB. So delicious. I’m always dying for this when I return from bike rides!

Kathy said,

August 30, 2009 @ 11:47 pm

My own version of trail mix — cereal, raisins (or other dried fruit) plus M&M’s. Great giveaway!

Joy said,

August 31, 2009 @ 12:35 am

For me it depends on the the cereal. If it’s a more sugary cereal, like Cinnamon Chex, I eat it dry. Otherwise I eat it with milk, usually drinking all the milk about halfway through.

Jenni said,

August 31, 2009 @ 12:53 am

I like to just munch on cereal. I was so excited to see that the Chex cereals were now gluten free.

Jenn said,

August 31, 2009 @ 12:53 am

My favorite way to enjoy cereal is over yogurt with fresh fruit and topped with honey.

Great set of reviews! We also really like Trader Joe’s GF granola, and it’s pretty affordable too.

Ari- Food Intolerances Cook said,

August 31, 2009 @ 1:03 am

I love cereal anyway! Especially right out of the box or with milk!

shabadeux said,

August 31, 2009 @ 2:01 am

I love cereal! I usually like it with milk, but on its own as a snack is great. I remember eating Cinnamon Life cereal in class during college because it was “free” (part of that all-you-can-eat meal plan) and it was tasty!

I just went gluten-free recently. Got tested for celiac, was negative, but I feel so much better I’m sticking with it. Chex has been amazing to have around. I told my mom about it and she’s so excited to have something different available for breakfast because she’s gluten-intolerant, too.

Kathryn said,

August 31, 2009 @ 2:30 am

I like cereal best the traditional way with milk in a bowl, but I also love it in marshmallow treats, or peanut butter/corn syrup treats. I know, terrible for me, but oh so tasty!

Gabrielle said,

August 31, 2009 @ 2:42 am

I’ve always been a fan of eating my cereal dry, my favorite thing to do is when I just wake up I grab my box of cereal and turn on the news. It sits in my lap until I get the energy to open the box and start to munch.

Regardless of what’s being reported on the news that morning, I relish the fact that I can eat chex cereal without my tummy hurting. Good news every morning!

Jamie (Gluten Free & Healthy For Me) said,

August 31, 2009 @ 2:48 am

Cereal has probably become one of my favorite foods over the years. When i was diagnosed with celiac, I thought I wouldn’t be able to enjoy it the same way anymore. Well I was wronge. My favorite way to eat cereal is dry, but I also highly enjoy it mixed with fruit and plain greek yogurt.

brian said,

August 31, 2009 @ 3:44 am

i eat my gf cereal every morning with a sliced up banana and tons of Almond Breeze almond milk. I pour in extra because my cat likes to lap up whatever milk is left after I’ve finished.

I know, I’m a crazy person. 😉

Christine said,

August 31, 2009 @ 3:51 am

I make crispy rice treats with almonds, dried blueberries, cherries and cranberries.

Cara said,

August 31, 2009 @ 11:17 am

I love cereal for breakfast with fresh fruit and soy milk on top. Yum Yum!

Katrina (gluten free gidget) said,

August 31, 2009 @ 12:13 pm

Here’s the deal. I am a CEREAL MONSTER! My husband and I eat at least 2 bowls a day, A PIECE! I love mine with raw almond milk and he prefers skim milk (moo cow milk). He goes through a box in 2 days! My favorite time to eat cereal is at night before bed. I use to do this with my mom when I was little. It was “our time”. My husband and I could definitely use some free cereal! Pick us please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Karin said,

August 31, 2009 @ 3:15 pm

Usually just milk and cereal in a bowl, but sometimes I munch on it plain–

Kat said,

August 31, 2009 @ 4:25 pm

My preferred way to eat cereal is dry, as a snack. Cinnamon Chex is great for this!

Daniel said,

August 31, 2009 @ 4:54 pm

Cereal is wonderful. Gluten free cereal is even better!

Andi said,

August 31, 2009 @ 6:27 pm

As a parent of a 4 year old with celiac it was so hard to think about giving up cereal. Now my dtr can bring her “kix” to school for snack and not feel left out. But the best is cereal for dinner!!!!!!

Angi Karvelis said,

August 31, 2009 @ 8:42 pm

My 4yo son is the gluten free eater in my house, although all of us are reaping the benefits. his favorite way to eat cereal is dry, with a cup of milk on the side… he LOVES the crunch, cruch cruch of dry Cinnamon Chex. i wish they made them in a larger box!

Katie said,

August 31, 2009 @ 9:35 pm

My first thought as I was being told that I had Celiac disease was not of pizza, pasta or beer…it was CEREAL. I thought “OH NO! No more Kashi Heart to Heart”. I love cereal! I actually just had a bowl. I tried the new Barbara’s Bakery Multigrain puffins. It now says gluten free. Exciting! My favorite way to enjoy cereal- as a late night snack watching TV after a long day. Have you tried Perky’s Nutty Rice? Stays crunchy and is great with some greek yogurt!

Johannah B said,

August 31, 2009 @ 10:47 pm

I don’t usually eat cereal by itself because I don’t like the taste of milk…. so I always mix anything like this into my vanilla yogurt.

Rachel said,

September 1, 2009 @ 2:49 am

I love a sugary cereal for a late night snack with Almond Breeze. Fruity and cocoa pebbles are my favorites!

Rachel said,

September 1, 2009 @ 6:03 am

I usually just like it plain – but now I am thinking I need to finally try gluten free rice crispy treats! Sounds delish!

Jenn B said,

September 1, 2009 @ 6:25 pm

strawberries in rice chex covered in ice cold milk. now that strawberry season is over i need a new favorite.

dee wilson said,

September 1, 2009 @ 8:50 pm

I like totake rice chex and have it wil craisins and chocolate chips. I eat this mix all the time. Keeps me feeling like I am eating somewhat normal.

Allyson said,

September 2, 2009 @ 5:03 pm

After seeing Captain Crunch shakes at a fast food restaurant down the street from our house, I had to try to make a gluten-free version for myself. I put some Peanut Butter Panda Puffs, gf vanilla ice cream, milk, (sometimes a banana) and some ice cubes in the blender and voila! Delicious cereal shake for dessert :)

Tiffany said,

September 2, 2009 @ 6:20 pm

I’m always excited to try new cereal since I’ve been pretty limited to various flavors of Chex for awhile now. I do like to bring some Chocolate Chex to munch on at work.

CinnamonQuill said,

September 3, 2009 @ 5:19 pm

Ooooo, I’m excited about the new Erewhon cereal flavors. :) I like mixing some sweet cereal with chia seeds, for balance.

Iris said,

September 3, 2009 @ 5:56 pm

I’m a cereal and yogurt kind of girl. I love the crunch of cereal with creamy yogurt. Thanks for the giveaway!

Rich Kraft said,

September 4, 2009 @ 1:02 pm

We usually just use it as a snack food.

HollyTriedIt said,

September 5, 2009 @ 1:16 pm

I love Erewhon Rice Twice in rice milk. But it’s fabulous in rice krispie bars. I use Goya corn-free marshmallows. Mmm….

HollyTriedIt said,

September 5, 2009 @ 1:17 pm

I’m going to try using the Rice Twice as a crunchy breading on chicken and fish.

» Congratulations to the Gluten-Free Cereal Giveaway from Erewhon | A Gluten Free Guide said,

September 8, 2009 @ 1:51 am

[…] to the FIVE winners of the Erewhon Gluten-Free Cereal Giveaway.  Keegan, who mixes a few different types of gluten-free cereal together with soy yogurt and […]

Trish said,

September 8, 2009 @ 4:53 am

Yum. We love the Chex around here. Thanks for the wonderful blog – keep up the great work.

Emma said,

April 5, 2012 @ 5:48 pm

Attune Foods also has some great gluten free breakfast options, their line of Erewhon cereals are my favorite.
http://www.attunefoods.com/products/Gluten-Free-Breakfast

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