At some point in most people’s lives – whether it be in college, logging long hours at the office, or living on a dishwasher’s salary in order to ski bum – frozen burritos have been a key dietary staple. Beans and cheese wrapped in a flour tortilla is not only fast and cheap, but also filling and delicious. For those with celiac disease (CD) or a gluten sensitivity, replacing these 3-minutes-to-heaven meals is obviously problematic.
Luckily someone out there was thinking, and that would be Rachel and Andy Berliner who started Amy’s Kitchen in 1987, when their daughter Amy was born. In the summer of 2010 Amy’s added two types of gluten-free burritos to their expanding product line: a bean and cheese, and a dairy-free option – both vegetarian. The tortillas reportedly took years in the making to perfect, and the final blend of organic bean and rice flours absolutely make the grade.
Now what makes these burritos stand out from their frozen competition – gluten-free or not – is that on the spectrum of healthy foods, these are pretty darn good. The company makes a “no-GMO” claim, and uses organic bell peppers and organic onions in the cheese version. No ski bum is likely to find organic vegetables in the run-of-the-mill nuke-it burrito. And while Amy’s gluten-free burritos can obviously be microwaved, I prefer to heat them in a Panini maker, and serve with a salad. Incredibly, the tortilla withstands the pressure, with minimal blow-outs. The texture is awesome; so good that you’ll probably want to eat two per sitting.
It is important to note for those with sensitive CD that these burritos are produced in a facility that also processes foods made with wheat, soy and tree nuts. Also while most all the other ingredients are organic, the cheese is not. These burritos retail at around $2.39 and can be found in the freezer section of many large grocery stores and also in health foods stores. It’s absolutely worth having a decent cache of these in the freezer for those nights when you want a really fast, tasty, and gluten-free meal, without breaking the bank.
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Jess Kelley, MNT