Glutenfreeda Banana Maple Oatmeal

I used to like eating oatmeal because it would leave me with a heavy feeling in my stomach.  I didn't particularly love the taste of oatmeal, but I liked that I could eat something so small and be left feeling full.


I did try to eat Quaker's instant oatmeal since going GF, but it just was not agreeing with me.  I realize oats are not glutenful per se, but mostly suffer from contamination.  The reaction I got from it was not the usual reaction, but it just was not pleasant.  So I don't think it was contamination, but honestly, I don't know what it was. 

So that's where I was before picking up Glutenfreeda's oatmeal.  I was aware of it.  I was aware of other brands, but let me be honest here:  I want to sit down and pour a single serving bowl of hot cereal.  I do NOT want to boil a whole pot of it or measure it out or find my own toppings.  I want convenience and speed.  But there just seemed to be nothing available that met those needs.  Except this.

I am not crazy about bananas.  I'll eat them, but something in the texture bothers me (which is probably why I prefer greener bananas).  I wouldn't have bought this flavor, but it was the ONLY ONE THEY HAD.  And I haven't seen this stuff anywhere else I've been.  So this very well may be the ONLY FLAVOR IN HAWAII.  I have no idea.  I can't check everywhere else, so as far as I'm concerned IT IS THE ONLY FLAVOR IN HAWAII.

I bought it and I gave it a shot, hoping it wouldn't bother my guts.  And it didn't!  It was good.  The dehydrated banana came out pretty good and you couldn't really make out the maple except for a light sweetness.  My only real problem with the oatmeal is that it's not shoved full of vitamins.  I prefer to eat foods that are shoved full of vitamins.  Most gf foods seem to be lacking that. 

It was kind of amazing after years of a heavy feeling to not have that after eating oatmeal.  I've lately determined that the heavy feeling I got eating stuff like oatmeal or pasta (I could never eat much pasta without feeling suddenly full) must have been an inflammatory response.  So I would swear that these oats are cleeeean.

I paid about $6 for a box of 6 packets.  A dollar per packet?  Kind of stupid, but it's not as if I have a choice (THE ONLY GF OATMEAL IN THE MY UNIVERSE).  I would hope to try some of the other flavors someday.  Ha.  IF THEY EXIST. 

(Seriously, if you live in Honolulu and you know where to get any other flavor ... I will figure out how to get a bus there.  I don't want to be stuck eating just banana.)