Plenty of people have replied that they've been happy riding steep uphills with a gear equal to or lower than your low gear. So there's your answer.

If you can't go any larger than 34 for your chainring, swap the cassette for one more narrowly spaced. Problem solved.

Or even more simply: leave everything as is and don't use that sprocket. The bike I ride most often still has a triple crankset. I've used the small ring maybe five times in the last five years.

On the other hand, I should probably get rid of my fire extinguisher since my house hasn't yet caught fire and I don't expect it ever will.