Best Meal planning service for those who hate to cook but need to do gluten free

[Anonymous]

I'd love it if dinner could just appear on the table, but apparently that's not going to happen, so am looking for plan B: a meal planning service to take some of the pain out of getting everyone fed, that will ideally also reduce food waste and save us money. Needs to make meals that appeal to small children and that are gluten free or can be easily converted (we've got a Celiac in the family), and ideally are fairly simple and quick to prepare.

Tried the Fresh 20 for a while, and while we overall loved the concept and the food, the meals took longer to prepare than I'd prefer and were frequently more adult palate focused than I need.

So would love to hear what services others have used and liked, or other bright ideas for solving the family-has-to-get-fed dilemma.

[Anonymous]

Weekends and slow cookers. Make a large pot of pasta sauce on the weekend. Meatballs if you're energetic. One night over GF spaghetti. Next night meatball sandwiches. Next night pour the pasta sauce over chicken breasts and put a layer of shredded cheese and bake. Another night with a different shape of GF pasta. Make a bagged salad each night. That's mostly boiling and microwaving during the week except the one night you have to throw one pan in the oven.

[Anonymous]

http://www.eatingwell.com/nutrition_health/weight_loss_diet_plans/diet_meal_plans/7_day_gluten_free_meal_plan


http://withstyleandgraceblog.com/2013/02/25/my-5-day-gluten-free-meal-plan/

[Anonymous]

We LOVE the fresh 20. It give you a shopping list for the week and the meals are yummy. thefresh20.com

[Anonymous]

I just came across this, and it looks good. You'd need to multiply the recipes. http://www.buzzfeed.com/christinebyrne/clean-eating-challenge

[Anonymous]

Thank you all for the suggestions. Unfortunately none of them seem like the "idiots guide to easily feeding your GF family" that I really need.

Fresh 20 comes closest I think, but I need meals that are easier / faster to prepare.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Weekends and slow cookers. Make a large pot of pasta sauce on the weekend. Meatballs if you're energetic. One night over GF spaghetti. Next night meatball sandwiches. Next night pour the pasta sauce over chicken breasts and put a layer of shredded cheese and bake. Another night with a different shape of GF pasta. Make a bagged salad each night. That's mostly boiling and microwaving during the week except the one night you have to throw one pan in the oven.

This is a good suggestion but do you have a site / recommendation for someplace that provides more week suggestions?

[Anonymous]

I am gf and usually plan like this- one night something with chicken, one night something with ground turkey, one night out, one night breakfast for dinner, one night Italian. I know this is not a meal planning service but it does help to structure the week.

[Anonymous]

What about six o clock scramble?

[Anonymous]

100 days of real food blog might have some ideas!

[Anonymous]

Leanne Ely--Saving Dinner website/weekly menu mailer has paleo options which are gluten free.

[Anonymous]

We generally have grilled meat, veggie and rice or GF pasta most nights. Occasionally mix it up with chili, meatballs and tacos.

[Anonymous]

Starches: (*cook quickly)
*rice noodles
*cellophane/mung bean noodles
*corn and it's many variations--polenta, grits, hominy
rice: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/06/rice-varieties_n_1189560.html#s593614&title=White_Rice
*rice paper wrappers
*taco shells, taco chips, soft corn tacos
potatoes
sweet potatoes
quinoa
*gluten free waffles and do breakfast for dinner with scrambled eggs

If you don't find a service, I think it's easier than you think. So many recipes are already gluten free. Know your flour thickener substitutes like cornstarch, arrowroot, tapioca and what ingredients to avoid.

PP had it right--protein, starch, vegetable. And if you don't like to cook, do double duty cooking.

Make a batch of slow cooker chili then have baked potatoes topped with chili later in the week or in the month with extra chili that you froze. Check out America Test Kitchen's slow cooker recipes--they generally use tapioca powder not flour.

Make Cuban rice and beans. Use leftovers for taco night later in the week.

Cook two pork loins. Do a Chinese 5 spice or curry rub on one and serve with rice noodles and blanched broccoli. Use the second pork loin later in the week for BBQ with corn-on-the-cob and green salad.

"One pot"/baking sheet meals:
Polenta or risotto with wilted spinach is a one-pot meal. Grits with shrimp. Roasted chicken or fish with potatoes, and veggies
Paella

[Anonymous]

OP, I wonder if looking at paleo/Atkins/low carb meal plans would be useful?

then you could adapt by adding in gluten free carbs...

[Anonymous]

Like this one....

http://thepaleomama.com/2013/11/paleo-weekly-meal-plan-4/