Are Ice Cream Cones Gluten-Free?

One of the most complicated parts of the gluten-free journey is figuring out which foods are safe — there are plenty of common foods that you may think are gluten-free but aren't, potentially exposing you to gluten if you're not careful. Ice cream cones certainly fall into this category, since some people may not realize the cones contain wheat flour and are therefore not gluten-free. Unless the ice cream shop specifically states they're offering gluten-free cones, their regular cones will not be safe for those with a gluten intolerance.

There are three main types of ice cream cones: sugar, cake-style, and waffle cone. Although their individual recipes vary slightly (for example, the waffle cone has the highest sugar content), they're all traditionally made with wheat flour. All recipes start as liquid waffle batter that's cooked inside a waffle iron (or a special mold for cake cones) and shaped into a cone. The process is simple ... and glutenous.

That doesn't mean that you can't enjoy a crunchy ice cream cone on a gluten-free diet, though. You can buy pre-made gluten-free cones from the store, make them yourself using a special gluten-free cone mix (that's generally sold in bulk to ice cream shops looking to provide this option for their customers), or find an ice cream shop that offers the alternative cones.

Gluten-free options for ice cream cones are not as abundant as we would like, but they do exist. Your first option is the well-known Joy brand, which also happens to sell gluten-free variations of its delicious cones. The lineup includes the Joy Gluten Free Sugar Cones and Joy Gluten Free Cake Cups. Other options include the Let's Do Gluten Free cake-style cones as well as Let's Do Gluten Free sugar cones. What about the waffle cones? To find the sweetest type of ice cream cone without gluten, your best bets are to either order them directly from a shop that makes them for their customers, like Revival Ice Cream, or purchase a waffle cone gluten-free batter mix and try your hand at making them yourself. Old Soul's professional mix offers a gluten-free option and a vegan version, too.

Despite the possible alternatives, you'll almost certainly still find yourself in a situation where you'll visit an ice cream shop and they just won't have alternative cones available. In that case, simply ask for your ice cream to be served in a cup to-go, but be sure to double-check that the ice cream itself doesn't contain any wheat (some ice cream isn't gluten-free) and, for severe intolerances, ask the employees to use a scoop that hasn't been cross-contaminated.