I’m a pretty simple breakfast eater. Unless we’re going out or having brunch, cereal is typically my go-to first thing in the morning. It’s easy, it’s filling and I…just like it.

Back in the day, my two go-to cereals were Special K and Froot Loops (and yes that is the way it’s actually spelled). It’s a really weird combo, I know (I didn’t eat them together in the same bowl, though, if that’s what you’re thinking…that would be really weird) but I liked the healthy one for healthy days where I just needed sustenance and the sugary one for days when I wanted “a treat” for breakfast.

Being gluten-free, both of those options are gone. As is most of the cereal aisle, which is pretty unfortunate because there are some really tasty cereals in that aisle.

This may sound weird, but cereal was one of those things I had a tantrum about after I got my celiac diagnosis. It was one of those things where I was standing in the aisle at Wegmans, looking at all of the options, and realizing that 90% of those options weren’t part of my new “diet”.

I think, at this point, you realize, that was just a really bad day for me.

In my tantrum, I left the store with no cereal and just decided to eat eggs every morning because eggs won’t fail me.

That was super unrealistic of me, but I was pouting and I’m pretty irrational when I pout. Just ask Devon.

When I finally stopped pouting and decided to brave the cereal aisle again, the first section I went to was the Cheerios section because on almost every box/variety, they have a large banner that says “gluten-free”. I assumed that Cheerios had wheat in them for years, but in reality they are made without any wheat, barley, or rye ingredients; all of which contain gluten.

I was surprised. And relieved. It was one of my moments of, “I can still eat normal food” revelation. Because who doesn’t know Cheerios, or likely have a box of them in their house?

On top of that they have a ton of flavors, so it’s not like I’m limited to some random bland/tasteless cereal that I ultimately wouldn’t eat.

My top choice is the Frosted Cheerios. Essentially, they’re my replacement for my beloved Froot Loops that I can’t eat anymore (however if Kellogg’s ever wants someone to test out a gluten-free variety; give me a call) because they’re that sugary cereal I reach for when I want some extra “zing” in my morning. So I always have a box in my pantry now.

I also really like the Honey Nut Cheerios and the Maple Cheerios, too. Both of which are still a bit sweeter than most people like but, my inner child sometimes just really wants sugary cereal for breakfast. It’s fine.

Being someone who likes variety in their food, I needed to find something “healthier” and not as sugary as a sort of replacement for my Special K mornings.

That was the hard part.

I first looked at the OG cereal, Corn Flakes because I’m like…it says “Corn” right in the name, so clearly it should be fine, right?

Nope. It contains wheat.

Not a lot, but if you’re celiac, even a little bit is too much; so it’s a no-go here.

In my perusing, I came across Chex cereal, which again had that big “gluten-free” banner on pretty much all their boxes (except for Wheat Chex…because obviously)

Chex is another one of those cereal brands that has a ton of flavors/varieties, that are all gluten-free (again with the exception of the wheat variety), so you can eat something sugary or go for a more “adult” version like I did with the Corn Chex. It’s just a good, hearty cereal for those mornings that I don’t feel the need to over-sugar myself.

They also stay pretty crispy in milk, which is a weird pre-requisite for me when I’m eating cereal. I don’t like for it to get super soggy before I’m done eating it.

Chex and Cheerios pretty nicely substituted my original line-up of cereals, which is really all I want in life since being diagnosed with Celiac: gluten-free foods/products that can substitute the gluten-filled things I used to eat that taste good and don’t make me feel like I’m super different in my eating habits.

Both of these brands are delicious, relatively inexpensive and the same brands that everyone else in the house can eat and likely already eats.

While Chex and Cheerios are basically my cereal go-to’s, I can’t not mention another cereal that I’ve found in my experimenting that, while I don’t buy regularly, is great for me when I feel like I need to change up my cereal consumption a bit.

Van’s makes a line of gluten-free products that includes, granola, waffles, cereal, crackers, and other assorted things. I really like Van’s line of foods, in fact, if you’ve followed me on Instagram for awhile, you’ll remember I was obsessed with their chocolate granola. They don’t make it anymore and I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive them for that, but we’re working past it.

I’m obsessed with almost anything cinnamon, which is what made me try their Cinnamon Heaven cereal and let’s just say that the name is pretty accurate. You HAVE to love cinnamon to eat this; like you had to love Cinnamon Toast Crunch as a kid to love this. I’m not say they’re the same, because they aren’t, but it’s a similar flavor which is enough for me.

If I’m being honest, I just like snacking on this, directly out of the box, without milk.

Sometimes cereal is a good snack; don’t act like I’m the only one.

Anyway…

These are just a few cereals I’ve tried and loved since my celiac diagnosis, so I wanted to share them with all of you if you are still looking for good gluten-free options for your breakfast time routines.

Let me know if there are any cereals you’ve tried and loved!