gluten free and nut free granola

One of they things that has really hit home for me recently is that my girls are growing up. In a few short years they will be off on their own and I will no longer be controlling what they eat.

I have already taught them to read labels, ask questions, and to never eat something they can’t trust, because even now I am not always there to help them. But some day the full responsibility of dealing with food issues will fall on them and I need to help prepare them for that.

We all know that eating gluten free can be expensive and when you add in serious food allergies the expense goes even higher.

I know I need to teach my daughters to stay safe when it comes to dealing with their food issues, but I am realizing that I need to prepare them even more by teaching them areas to save money with food issues as well.

One of those ways is to cook and make things at home.

During the month of December life was crazy and busy and time was limited. My oldest daughter kept asking me to restock our homemade granola supply. I made a small batch, but with five of us it did not last long and she was asking for more.

It is no secret that my family loves homemade granola. We loved homemade granola long before we were gluten and nut free, but once we were gluten and nut free, homemade granola quickly became a need.

My girls and I eat gluten free, but my oldest daughter also deals with a peanut, tree nut, and sesame allergy. Finding breakfast cereals that are safe for all of us is challenging and expensive.

Gluten free cereals are hard enough to find, but finding nut and peanut free also, is almost impossible. And what you can find is very expensive and not very healthy or filling.

So, last week I decided it was time to make a large batch of homemade granola to restock our supply, but this time I changed it up. I made her make it. I helped, but she did the majority of the work.

Now homemade granola is not hard to make, it takes time, but is not hard. However, she had never made it and had not really even paid attention when I made it. She really had no clue how it was made.

So, we spent some time learning how to make homemade gluten free, nut and peanut free granola. I let her choose the flavors and she choose crispy homemade granola, homemade coconut granola, and of course chocolate granola. We went to work and had a fun time in the kitchen.

I taught her about gluten free oats and why they are the better choice. We reviewed reading labels and other things as we worked.

And when we were all done I realized that by taking an hour or so out of my day, I not only taught my daughter how to make homemade granola, I taught her something that will be valuable her entire life. By teaching her how to make homemade granola I showed her something that will keep her healthier, safer, and will save her money.

I taught her a simple skill, but it is a skill that will make life with food allergies so much easier, healthier, and less expensive over the course of her life.

It is easy to overlook the simple things when dealing with food issues, but sometimes it is the simple things that are most important.

Are you spending time with your kids in the kitchen? I would love to hear how you are preparing them to live with a lifetime of food issues.