It can be hard to find foods your family can eat if you suddenly find yourself trying to feed someone who was just diagnosed with Celiac Disease, gluten intolerance, or a gluten allergy. I struggled so much when my Sophie was first diagnosed. It helped once I had a few recipes I had experience with and knew our family could eat. One of those recipes was a homemade Hamburger Helper recipe. I have switched it up a little over the years and found a way I prefer to cook it now. Just in case it helps anyone else, I wanted to share it.

If you do not need to be gluten-free, then this recipe will still work for you! Just use regular elbow noodles instead of gluten-free ones. For the noodles, I like to use Tinkyada brand. I can find it at Walmart, but I’ve ordered it from Vitacost as well.

If you give it a try, let me know! It’s an easy recipe that allows for some leeway on ingredients and amounts so make changes as you feel the need!

Homemade Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Hamburger Helper Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground turkey or ground beef
• 2 cups of gluten-free elbow noodles
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 12 oz of tomato purée (I buy a 24 oz jar and freeze half for the next time)
• 2.5-3 cups of water
• 1 tsp dried parsley

Directions:

1. Brown the ground turkey/beef in a pan with a lid.
2. Add noodles, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, basil, oregano, pepper, tomato purée, and water to the ground meat. Make sure there is enough water to completely cover the noodles so they’ll cook. Do not add the parsley yet. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cover.
3. Cool until the noodles are cooked. Stir during cook to try to prevent the noodles sticking.
4. If it seems too watery once the noodles are done, continue cooking on low a few minutes with the lid off the pan. Watch it closely so you don’t overcook it after the liquid is gone.
5. Stir in the parsley once you turn off the heat, then serve!