My eldest daughter is lactose intolerant and we just buy lactose free milk/cheese etc and pretty much have the same meals we always have. Fruit/ vegetables and avocado dip are good snacks or anything you make yourself using lactose free ingredients. You can also buy lots of lactose free cakes/ muffins etc it just costs a bit more.

Dairy free is generally pretty easy to work around as if a recipe calls for milk, you can substitute with soy or almond. If we’re talking soup, you can substitute cream with coconut cream. There’s loads of healthy muffins you can make or slices if you don’t want more processed foods. But there are a lot of muesli bars, etc that would be dairy free.

There are lots of baking recipes that give variations for milk/dairy that is used.

My eldest won’t drink cows milk. The other day I was buying drinks at the servo on the highway and even they had a chocolate flavoured oat milk. It was great to be able to get her something

Mine, too!
We just substitute with lactose free milk/cream/cheese/yoghurt and go about normally
Theres also lacteeze tablets /drops that you can take before consuming dairy products. Worth checking out!

I don’t have suggestions, but wanted to say good luck – I have such sympathy for parents navigating allergies.

Thankyou so much guys! I love that she isn’t going to be left feeling like she’s missing out. All your ideas will help so much!

Now a days there are so many good lactose free and diary substitutes that it’s not hard at all. The only thing you do need to do is reading the food labels

SoGood Chocolate almond milk is absolutely amazing. Hersheys brand chocolate syrup is vegan, and milo have a vegan milo too. Oat milk is the most consistent in texture as a replacement for dairy milk unless you’re going a lactose free milk. Vegan icecreams are quite nice. Barbecue shapes are dairy free.

Quite a few dips are dairy free, so just pair that with some crackers and carrots and bobs your uncle. Simple homebrand prepacked popcorn is around $3 for 10 packs is a good school snack. There are heaps of products that have lactose removed, like cream cheese, so she can still have a cob loaf.

Basically everything you can.make dairy free. All cakes you can substitute the milk for milk alternative or water, and butter for oil or dairy free margarine.
Food as well, for example, mac and cheese, substitute the milk for oat milk and dairy free cheese. The food that goes cream, you can substitute for coconut cream and/or dairy free plain yoghurt.
I’m chef in childcare and deal with allergies everyday and that’s what I do for my kids with milk intolerance/allergies

Many of the supermarkets/markets now cater for a variety of different dietary needs which is terrific; well worth spending some time getting to know what is available at your favourite supermarket or fresh food market.

There are a lot of homebrand Woolies or Aldi products that are dairy free to keep them cheap.
Homebrand table spread is dairy free and is great for cooking, and aldi has dairy free chips, “bubble” (white LCM style) bars, chicken crimpies and bbq shapes, woolies homebrand garlic bread and apple pies…

One of my grandsons has a dairy and egg free diet and it is surprising how many things are out there now. We have gotten very good at reading the ingredient’s labels. Most every day meals are lactose free, meat fish, chicken, vegies, Many recipes can be altered simply by changing the dairy products to almond milk. Looking for labels that say vegan or plant based will give you a great range but all lactose free items (Dairy with lactose removed). Lindt make a lovely dairy free chocolate. Oreos, jatz, plain chips, BBQ shapes, Chicken Crimpys. Chocolate ripples.

The health food aisle at a local supermarket should have plenty of foods. We also use the health food store at our local market; they have a good selection of snacks and foods and ideas. Investing in specific cookbooks for dairy free is always a good way to go if you like recipe books and cooking.

Crudite with hummus. Healthy, cheap, and easy to pack and run.
Home made muesli bars made with peanut butter and honey.
Stir fry and curries with rice and noodles, a lot of Asian dishes could be great. Sauces that don’t have any dairy. Currently roasting some pork belly now to make Bahn Mi rolls for dinner. Singapore noodles.
It can be hard avoiding dairy, I missed ice cream the most. Thankfully sorbet is delish.

There is a lot of snack options in the health isle at supermarkets. Things like avocado chips, beetroot chips, muesli bars. Lots more options available these days. You could even look at vegan chocolate if she is wanting something sweet.

Meals & Snacks:
Dairy-free yogurt (coconut, almond, etc.) with fruit and muesli
Smoothies made with dairy-free milk, fruits
Veggie sticks with hummus or guacamole
Chicken or tofu stir-fries with rice or noodles
Lactose-free cheese on crackers or gluten-free bread
Prepackaged Snacks:
Many brands offer dairy-free options, read labels carefully
Look for “vegan” or “lactose-free” labels
Popular choices include fruit snacks, rice cakes, pretzels, and some muesli bars