Blending a Gluten-Free + Gluten Kitchen (and a Blended Family)

After surviving our first big family trip together and a bunch of weekend adventures with each other and the kids, Mike asked me to marry him. That was an easy YES!

Then came the next chapter, blending households. And not just any households… a gluten-free household and a gluten household under one roof.

I’ll be honest, the kitchen was a challenge and a learning experience. I cook with whole food, but I didn’t initially realize how many everyday items can create a cross-contamination risk, even when looking perfectly clean. Things like baking pans, certain pots and pans, and especially wooden cooking utensils contain trace amounts of gluten within their imperfections even after being thoroughly cleaned (think small scratches, nicks, etc.).

And it wasn’t just cookware. I had to think about ingredients too. Just because I was cooking “real food” didn’t automatically mean the seasonings and sauces I was using were gluten-free.

Even appliances can be a risk, toasters, blenders, cutting boards… it adds up fast.

The good news is I didn’t have to get rid of everything. We ended up storing the gluten toaster in an upper cabinet, so when we have guests, they can toast their bread, bagels, or pastries without contaminating the gluten-free toaster.

As for my old pots, pans, and baking sheets, I packed them into a tote and stored them away for my two older girls to use when they have their own places (or head off to college).

And the pantry? Let’s just say I tried my best to eat up everything I couldn’t take with me. While I was getting my house ready to put on the market, I definitely came up with some inventive meals! Anything I couldn’t use, especially baking items, I gave away to family and friends.

It’s been a little over a year since I moved in and got settled, and it’s actually been really fun learning how to recreate family recipes and even my own “make-it-work” meals so they’re gluten-free.

Now I’m curious, have you ever had to run a “two-diet” kitchen (gluten-free + gluten, dairy-free + dairy, picky eater + adventurous eater, etc.)? What’s the one item you had to ban, replace, or buy a duplicate of? And if you have any genius cross-contamination hacks or a favorite family recipe you’ve successfully made gluten-free drop it in the comments so I can shamelessly borrow it.