These Gluten-Free Snacks Reminded Me of How Good Food Can Still Taste With Celiac Disease

Starting with a reliable classic, Cheetos have proven to be gluten-free without any alterations to the original recipe. This has got to be one of the biggest lifesaver snacks on the market today with its cheese flavor that is not of this earth and its classic crunchy texture. It may be tough to live in a world without gluten, but it is far tougher to live in one where you can’t lick orange cheesy dust off your fingers like a wild animal after the hunt.

Unlike Cheetos, Gluten-Free Oreos do have some slight changes to the classic cookie recipe. However, I simply cannot stress to you how much they taste just like the original flavor. I genuinely would not be able to tell the difference between original Oreos and the gluten-free variety which is simply the highest mark of praise I can give any gluten-free snack. The cookies also come in the iconic Double-Stuf style as well which means you can lick all the filling out without feeling an ounce of shame.

I will be honest with you right now, these are not perfect. The Snyder’s of Hanover Gluten-Free Pretzel Sticks certainly have a slightly different taste and texture to them than the ones chock full of gluten. That being said, these ones are still pretty good. The pretzel sticks still have a good, honest crunch to them, are covered in rock salt and work well dipped in hummus. I don’t know how much more you could ever ask of a pretzel stick. Snyder’s of Hanover also has a classic mini-pretzel option as well as a larger pretzel rod option for those with truly bold pretzel beliefs.

Tate’s Bake Shop is basically royalty for the crunchy cookie community. Nearly all of their cookies at one point or another have made their way into my mouth and I can’t say that I regret a single one. The company now has three different gluten-free cookies, though without question the best of these three is the Tate's Bake Shop Gluten Free Ginger Zinger Cookies. This ginger snap-style cookie has real bits of candied ginger throughout and is genuinely a great cookie even without the gluten-free caveat. The chocolate chip and coconut crisp cookies are also worth checking out if ginger isn’t your thing.

Popcorners have been a reliable alternative to certain types of chips or crackers that are no longer on the table if you’ve gone gluten-free. What makes the chips genuinely worth it is how clearly the company put effort into the flavor. Popcorners chips come in a number of unique flavors that actually taste pretty incredible. I mean, when it comes to flavored chips, it is actually reasonable to put Popcorners in the conversation for the best overall flavors. My personal favorites are Kettle Corn and Sweet Chili.

So many breakfast bars have gluten in them which can be particularly tough if you’re trying to eat something quick as you head out the door. Fortunately, KIND Peanut Butter Breakfast Bars are your answer. There is nothing particularly special about them, but that’s sort of the point. They taste good and feel exactly the same as any other quick breakfast bar in the morning which has helped me to normalize my more restricted daily eating habits. The breakfast bars also come in several other flavors if you aren’t a big fan of peanut butter.

One of the toughest losses after going gluten-free was crackers. Nearly every gluten-free cracker I have tried since then has had the consistency and flavor of plastic that dried out in the sun. The only notable exception to this has been Simple Mills Almond Flour Crackers. These crackers are the closest thing I have tasted to a traditional wheat-based cracker. The Fine Ground Salt is probably the best of the bunch, but if you want something with a bolder flavor, the company has a number of other options.

One of the most fortunate breaks to being gluten-free is that there are still a fair number of high-quality potato chips that you can eat without fear. With a lot more flexibility in the field, it is easier to simply choose a product you like instead of just a viable replacement for a product you used to like. Zapp's New Orleans Kettle-Style Voodoo Flavor Potato Chips are really just my favorite potato chips to eat. They have a sweet yet spicy flavor and a deeply satisfying crunch that really just isn’t matched by even some of the biggest names in potato chips. If you haven’t tried them, this is your sign to do so.

For the Pringles lovers among us, you will be disappointed to hear that the original stacked potato crisp is not in fact gluten-free. However, you won’t have to go without them as The Good Crisp Company Gluten-Free Potato Chips serve as a near-identical replacement to Pringles. The Good Crisp Company also offers a variety of classic flavors including Sour Cream & Onion as well as Outback BBQ and Aged White Cheddar. Plus, it's always fun to get your chips out of the tall skinny canisters.

One of my favorite snacks for basically any time of the day, Bear Naked Dark Chocolate & Sea Salt Granola Bites can be used as a breakfast option, a midday snack or even for late-night munchies without even a second thought. The granola bites are absolutely delicious and are actually not that bad for you, so don’t feel too bad if you finish off the bag. Bear Naked has a number of granola bite flavors that are worth trying out, but there’s something about the dark chocolate & sea salt that hits just right.