Summertime is here in the US, and with the hot summer months comes plenty of family vacations and travel, which can be a nightmare when it comes to eating healthy. Many times, vacation time also means fast food and highly packaged and processed convenience foods that can leave you with indigestion and feeling poorly! And it’s even more of a struggle if someone in your family has a food intolerance, because the most common intolerance causing ingredients are also the most common and the most difficult to avoid while eating out! We know that it can be a struggle to come up with healthy travel snack ideas, and wanted to share some ideas that can keep you from stopping at the gas station and picking out unhealthy snacks!
When traveling, the thing that can help you to stay on track with healthy eating is to pack your own snacks. This allows you to choose foods that will work best for you and your family!
Simple healthy travel snack ideas
- Fresh fruit. Summer is the perfect time for plenty of fresh fruit. Fruit, such as strawberries, blueberries and grapes are easy finger food. Cubing watermelon, pineapple or cantaloupe and storing it in a nice airtight container in your cooler will make nice, sweet refreshing treats for warm summer travel.
- Fresh vegetables. It is very simple to cut up fresh vegetables such as carrots, celery, cucumbers, broccoli, cauliflower and bell peppers for your next trip. Want something to dip your vegetables in? why not make some homemade ranch Greek yogurt dressing or hummus and store it in small containers that are dipping size. These will store nicely in your cooler until you are ready to snack!
- Nuts and seeds. Nuts and seeds that have been soaked and dehydrated are easy snacks to bring when you are traveling. Pre-portion them in small, snack sized bags for a simple grab and go snacking solution.
- Hard boiled eggs. Packed with protein, pre-peeled hard boiled eggs are a simple snack that can be easily stored in your cooler.
- Cheese. Cubes of cheese are great snacks when you’re on the road. If possible, opt for cheese made with raw milk, or organic cheese that is free from artificial coloring and additives.
- Kale chips. Find a great organic store bought version, or make a batch of homemade kale chips. You can make any flavor you’d like and they are portable too.
- Homemade trail mix. Use your favorite nuts, seeds, unsulphered and sugar free dried fruit and perhaps a handful of soy free chocolate chips.
- Dehydrated fruit. If you regularly dehydrate fruit such as apples, berries, bananas and pineapple, bring some of these along with you as snacks. You can also use these in your homemade trail mix. If you are going to look for store bought dried fruit, opt for brands that are unsulphured and that have no added sugar. Be aware that dried fruits do contain more sugar that fresh fruit, so eat in moderation.
- Popcorn. Make a batch of homemade popcorn, add the seasonings you want and put it in a container to bring with you on the road.
- Homemade crackers. Make a batch of homemade crackers to use with some nut butter, hummus or even eat with cheese cubes. The beauty of making crackers yourself is that you can make them gluten free, grain free or even Paleo, all to fit your needs.
A little planning can go a long way to help you to have plenty of healthy snack options to bring with you on the road that are better for you and your family.
