Dairy, Gluten, Nut + Soy Free Lunch Ideas for Kids

If you’re looking for dairy-free, gluten-free, peanut-free, tree nut-free, or soy-free lunch ideas, you’re in the right place!

We use a Planet Box lunchbox and these are kid-approved and allergy-friendly lunch ideas. Watch the video after Lunch #5 to see how you can make each of these lunches and insider tips on making these lunches.

Whether your child is managing food allergies or you’re in a nut-free school, this list of allergy-friendly lunches will help make lunchtime a little easier for you. Some of these kid lunchbox ideas are vegan and sugar-free too!

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ALLERGY FREE LUNCH IDEAS FOR KIDS

Although these lunch ideas are nut-free, so they are free from tree nuts and peanuts, some of these lunch ideas contain coconut, which is classified as a fruit. This can be confusing as the FDA now recognizes it as a tree nut. As always, please read ingredient labels for packaged foods yourself to ensure it’s safe for your unique allergy needs. 💙

1. TACO PIZZAS WITH CHIPS AND SALSA

How about Taco Pizzas on Taco Tuesdays for an allergy-friendly and vegan kids’ lunch?

Spread refried black beans or avocado on rice cakes then top with sliced cherry tomatoes, peppers, and black beans.

Side dishes include blue corn tortilla chips, salsa, and fresh blueberries.

💚 You can order the refried black beans and tortilla chips from Thrive Market. If you’re new to Thrive Market, SAVE 40% on your 1st order with the Food Allergy Parents’ link below.

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To make this fiesta lunch that’s dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free, you can use:

• Rice Cakes – order from Amazon or Thrive Market
• Tortilla Chips – Blue Corn or Grain Free (the grain-free chips contain coconut)
• Refried Black Beans
• Cherry Tomatoes
• Green Pepper
• Canned Black Beans
• Salsa
• Blueberries

✅ The rice cakes with the refried beans get soft if they are stored longer than a couple of hours. If your lunch needs to be packed ahead of time for school or a picnic, pack the beans and a plastic knife. Your child can spread the beans on the rice cakes at lunchtime like he’s making a lunchable pizza OR you can swap a gluten-free tortilla for a taco.

Related: 11 Peanut Free Chip Brands

2. SUNBUTTER AND JELLY RICE CAKE SANDWICH WITH ANTS ON A LOG

The classic cold lunch is a Peanut Butter + Jelly sandwich, which obviously doesn’t work for kids with peanut allergies or those attending nut-free schools.

An easy way to still enjoy this simple kids’ lunch without putting someone who has anaphylactic or contact reactions to peanuts at risk is to swap Peanut Butter for SunButter, which is made from sunflower seeds.

Ants on a log are a fun classic and a healthy snack idea for kids. Simply swap peanut butter for a safe alternative like SunButter or WOWBUTTER and top it with dried fruit.

To make this vegan, dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Rice Cakes or Gluten & Grain Free Pita Bread
• SunButter
• Jelly
• Frozen Melon and Pineapple
• Chickpeas – from a can, drained and rinsed
• Celery
• Goji Berries or Raisins

Related: Best Peanut Free Peanut Butter Substitutes

3. TURKEY BURGER WITH ROASTED VEGGIES AND FLAX SNAX

Turkey Burgers are another popular kid-approved and allergen-free lunch with lots of protein.

Add some ketchup, mustard, or avocado mayo to a small dish and kids can spread it on or dunk their turkey burger in the cup at lunch time.

This lunch has roasted broccoli, which can be eaten warm or cold, and a few easy-to-grab snacks.

To make this dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Turkey Burger – Kirkwood from Aldi or Jennie-O from Walmart
• Applesauce Cups or Pouches
• Flax Snax pictured are no longer available, but you could sub Plantain Chips
• Roasted Broccoli (leftover)
• Yellow Cherry Tomatoes
• Unsweetened Ketchup or Avocado Mayo from Amazon or Thrive Market

✅ To avoid allergens, the burgers we use are not breaded and they need to be cooked. You can cook one the night before for a cold school lunch or cook it right before lunch for meals at home.

4. HOT DOGS AND SAUERKRAUT WITH NUT-FREE TRAIL MIX

Is Wiener and Kraut Day a thing where you come from? It was a big day where I’m from and it’s the inspiration behind this allergy-friendly lunch.

Some hot dogs, sauerkraut, diced cucumbers, golden tomatoes, a clementine, and a nut-free fruit + seed mix make this an easy lunch to pack.

To make this dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Hot Dogs from Walmart or Organic, Uncured Beef Dogs from Aldi
• Sauerkraut
• Cucumber
• Golden Tomatoes
• Clementine
• Seed & Fruit Trail Mix – similar seed & fruit mix on Amazon

5. MINI SHRIMP WITH VEGGIES AND COCONUT CRISPS

Mini shrimp for lunch? Oh yeah! As long as you don’t have a shellfish allergy, this is a pretty easy cold lunch idea.

Just take some frozen cooked & peeled salad shrimp out of the bag and they’ll unthaw by lunchtime.

Healthy and allergy-friendly sides for this lunch are cauliflower and hummus, pickle cucumber, a fruit and vegetable pouch, and some sweet coconut crisps.

To make this dairy, gluten, peanut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Frozen Salad Shrimp
• Made Good Granola Minis (substitute for coconut crisps, which are no longer available)
• Fruit & Vegetable Pouch
• Cucumber
• Hummus
• Cauliflower

Related: 55 Peanut Free Facility Packaged Snacks

HOW TO MAKE THESE ALLERGY-FRIENDLY LUNCHES

Watch this video to see how each of these lunches were made and to see more details and ingredients of the products used.

6. GLUTEN AND DAIRY-FREE TUNA SALAD WRAP

Wraps are another great lunch idea, the trick is making them safe for your food allergies.

Tuna salad wraps are easy to make and frozen peas have become an easy snack to give the kids. They thaw out fairly quickly and it’s something different from our routine raw vegetables. A nut-free trail mix can be made with seeds and dried fruit.

To make this dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Coconut Wraps – Either Thrive Market Brand or NUCO Brand
• Avocado Mayo – Available on Thrive Market or a on Amazon
• Frozen Peas
• Tuna or Salmon
• Celery
• Carrots
• Hummus
• Pumpkin Seeds
• Mulberries – Navitas Brand on Amazon or Thrive Market
• Plum

✅ These coconut wraps will get soggy if stored very long. Thicker gluten-free wraps could be used instead or the tuna salad could be packed in a separate section and your child can spread it on her wrap at lunchtime.

💚 If you’re not a Thrive Market member yet, you can SAVE 40% on your 1st order with the Food Allergy Parents link below. As you can tell, we order a lot of our safe food from there.📦 💙

START FILLING YOUR ALLERGY-FRIENDLY THRIVE MARKET BOX

7. GLUTEN AND NUT-FREE SUNBUTTER + BANANA WRAP

Another wrap idea for your allergy-friendly cold lunch is a Sunbutter + Banana wrap.

We use the same Coconut Wraps as above, but this one can be a sweeter lunch by spreading SunButter on the wrap and topping it with Banana spears.

Snacks for this lunch are carrots, dairy-free ranch dressing, kiwi, seeds, and dried fruit.

To make this dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Coconut Wraps or Gluten & Grain Free Pita Bread
• SunButter
• Carrot Sticks
• Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing
• Kiwi
• Pumpkin Seeds
• Dried Mulberries – Navitas Brand on Amazon or Thrive Market

Related: SunButter – What are the Ingredients and is it any good?

8. GLUTEN FREE MUFFINS AND SUPER GREEN SMOOTHIE

Muffins and Smoothie for lunch? The kids love it!

This allergy-friendly lunch includes homemade gluten-free blueberry, zucchini and banana muffins, a super green smoothie (that I forgot to take a picture of but you can see it in the video up above), a beef stick, bell pepper slices, and frozen pineapple.

To make this dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Blueberry Zucchini Muffins – Our homemade recipe but if you need a flour mix, check out Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Muffin Mix
• Green Smoothie – with greens, celery, flaxseed, lime juice, avocado, green grapes, and banana
• Beef Stick – Mission Meats from Thrive Market or Chomps from Amazon
• Red Bell Pepper
• Frozen Pineapple

Related: Super Simple and Healthy Spinach Smoothie Recipe for Kids

9. CHICKEN SAUSAGE WITH AVOCADO

Here’s another simple high-protein lunch that’s nut-free, dairy-free, gluten-free, soy-free, and sugar-free.

Chicken Sausages, ketchup, avocado, ground cherries, and cucumbers.

Slice the avocado in half and remove the seed ahead of time so it’s easy to scoop at lunchtime (pack a spoon!)

To make this dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Chicken Sausages – Simply Nature from Aldi or similar ones at Walmart
• Unsweetened Ketchup
• Ground Cherries
• Cucumber
• Avocado

10. HARDBOILED EGGS WITH ANTS ON A BOAT AND NUT-FREE GRANOLA BAR

This last peanut-free, tree nut-free, milk-free, soy-free, and gluten free lunch for kids is colorful, easy, and healthy.

Hardboiled eggs with salt + pepper, ants on a boat (bell pepper), golden cherry tomatoes, frozen strawberries, and a nut-free granola bar.

Granola bars are such an easy food to pack in kids’ lunches, but most contain peanuts or tree nuts. Nut-free and soy-free granola bars DO exist, it usually just takes an allergy mom to show you where to find them.

To make this dairy, gluten, nut, and soy-free cold lunch, we used:

• Hard-Boiled Eggs
• Salt and Pepper – for dipping the eggs
• Bell Pepper
• SunButter
• Goji Berries or Raisins
• Frozen Strawberries
• Cherry Tomatoes
• Pumpkin Seed Granola Bar (super healthy but doesn’t taste the best) or these 88 Acres Protein Bars that more kids approve of

Related: 15 Peanut-Free Protein Bars (many gluten and dairy free too!)

TOOLS TO MAKE ALLERGY-FRIENDLY LUNCHES

As an allergy parent, you know the struggle of telling our children NO to food and food-related events a LOT.

These two simple tools can help make lunchtime with allergies more joyful and memorable for you and your kids.

1. LUNCHBOX

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Our lunchboxes are the PlanetBox Launch Stainless Steel Lunchbox.

After lots of research, we chose this lunchbox because:

• the size and compartments are just right
• we prefer stainless steel over plastic
• they’re dishwasher-safe & easy to clean

You can get lunchboxes and other accessories from the PlanetBox website or similar ones on Amazon.

CHEAPER PLANETBOX ALTERNATIVES

The PlanetBox lunchboxes are an investment that should last for many years. However, if you need a cheaper lunchbox, here are three alternatives on Amazon:

• Bentgo Kids – Plastic leakproof lunchbox with fun kid prints and five compartments for younger kids
• Bentgo Fresh – Plastic leakproof lunchbox with solid colors and four compartments for adults and kids with larger appetites
• LunchBots Large Trio – Stainless steel container with compartments for a main dish and two sides

2. SILICONE MUFFIN CUPS

These colorful silicone cups help contain food inside the lunchbox. Bonus, they make the lunch colorful and look more appealing too.

We received ours as a gift, but this set looks great on Amazon for packing lunches with both round and rectangular holders.

Related: More of our favorite kitchen tools and gadgets.

TEACHING KIDS WITH FOOD ALLERGIES ABOUT FOOD

You’ll notice there’s a lot of cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and bell peppers in this lunch. These lunches were created during the summer when our garden was producing lots of these vegetables.

Eating seasonally and teaching kids how to grow food can increase their knowledge of food, ingredients, and how they affect their bodies.

This is important for everyone, but especially critical for kids with food allergies.💙

Related: Review of 5 Children’s Books about Food Allergies

SAVE THESE ALLERGY-FRIENDLY LUNCH IDEAS FOR LATER

Would you take two seconds to share these allergy-friendly lunch ideas with other food allergy families on social media. Lunches and taking safe food on-the-go can be so hard. Share this post and make life a little easier on a fellow allergy mom today.

From one food allergy parent to another,

-Val 💙

MORE SUPPORT FOR FOOD ALLERGY PARENTS

ALWAYS CHECK LABELS YOURSELF

Ingredients and manufacturing procedures can change over time. Please recheck food labels to make sure they fit your dietary needs before eating.

I am a constantly-researching food allergy mom. However, I am not a medical professional and nothing on this blog should take the place of your doctor’s recommendations.

This post was originally published in 2020 and was updated in 2023.