We’re off to a wedding, a birthday party, my in-laws, and then to visit my grammy (Adriana gets to meet her Great-Grammy!) over the long weekend. This means we’re going to clock a ton of hours on the road, so I am coming prepared! Even though a lot of our meals will be made for us (such as dinner Saturday and Sunday night), I like to fill in the blanks by packing some light meals and healthy snack options to have on hand.
After I made the recipes Eric said, “Whoa, that didn’t take you long at all!” – and he was right, it took me just over 1 hour to prepare 4 recipes. Granted, I was going turbo mode, but still. I purposely selected quick and easy recipes (many are from the 2-day meal plan) which I also tend to have most of the ingredients for in my fridge and pantry. And if I don’t have all the ingredients I just improvise! So when Eric commented on how quickly the packed foods came together it struck me that this would be fun to share on the blog. I hope you’ll enjoy this glimpse into what I’m packing for a weekend away. (Keep in mind this isn’t intended to cover all of your meals – just to supplement when necessary. Feel free to tweak it as you see fit.)
What I made (click the links to the brought to the recipe!):
- Chickpea Salad with butter lettuce “wraps”
- Gazpacho (amazing for summer – no cook and super refreshing)
- Energy bites – I’m still perfecting the recipe in the photo above so rather than sharing it before it’s ready, I recommend you try these amazing Dark Chocolate Cherry Energy Bites! <—a fav!
- Vegan Overnight Oats (note: I doubled this recipe, plus added 2 extra tbsp chia seeds, and 2 small chopped bananas for more volume. If the mixture gets too thick, you can thin it with a bit of almond or coconut milk)
Not shown: I’m also packing a few of my Coconut-Cardamom Overnight Oat Parfaits for the car! If I had more time I would’ve also made a batch of my Lightened Up Summer Granola.
What else I packed:
Hummus, portable fruit, homemade maple cinnamon almond butter (or store-bought), my favourite crackers, food for Adriana. Eric says he’s bringing the Vitamix to make green monsters at his parent’s house. Who is this guy? I don’t know how we’re going to fit everything in the car…especially with a stroller, baby stuff, and my shoes for every terrain (rustic, outdoor wedding!). Should be interesting…
Tips:
– These are my go-to glass storage containers. Mason jars also work lovely!
– Pack several ice packs to ensure the food stays cool and fresh. You don’t want to arrive at your destination with room temperature food.
– Pack the energy bites on top so they don’t get squished.
– You can improvise with these recipes a lot. I make all kinds of versions of Gazpacho, the energy bites, and the chickpea salad. For this chickpea salad I didn’t have any celery so I just used a whole red bell pepper (diced) instead. It’s pretty forgiving so don’t worry!
– Pack the gazpacho in a thermos if you want to save room in the cooler. Otherwise a large 2-quart mason jar will hold the batch.
Ok, now I’m turning it over to you. Which foods do you like to pack for trips? Share your favs below!
Well guys…I seriously cannot believe it’s August 1st. *still in a 2015 time warp* I hope you are enjoying the dog days of summer. Soak it up and have a fun + safe weekend!!
Packing food for trips always seems to take forever…it was inspiring to see it can be done in less than one hour!
Favorite foods to pack: popcorn (despite the messiness!), carrots + hummus, my go to breakfast of buckwheat/millet + raisins/coconut/cinnamon, fruit.
One thing that ALWAYS derails my healthy eating is traveling. I try to take healthy foods, and one time did bring my Vitamix to a weeklong family getaway at my in-laws (want everyone to think you’re crazy? Bring a blender on vacation!)
I usually just pack snacks like nuts, fruit, or granola bars or something; I never thought to actually make anything. I’m going to try that next time — starting with your energy bites and overnight oats!
I have no problems with packing snacks, emergency oatmeal packets or anything to help get my husband and I through a trip. Problems arise, specifically when we stay with family or friends. What do you say to them when you show up with a cooler full of your own food? How do you answer questions of why you packed your own food? How do you ensure you don’t come across as some elitist who is too good for their food?
These are all very scrumptious ideas for a weekend summer trip! Gazpacho is definitely one of my favs and so easy and refreshing! I’m excited to try vegan overnight oats! I always do overnight oats but never tried with chia seeds! Can’t wait to try tonight!
This is SO helpful. It can be so difficult to maintain healthy eating habits when you’re out and about and traveling on the weekends. Thanks so much for sharing!
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These are such great ideas! I haven’t made gazpacho before and can’t wait to try this. I DO make chia pudding pretty much every time I go anywhere and it travels so well! Great job on doing 4 recipes in under an hour. My hero!
Going away for a 3 day bike trip to sunshine coast this weekend. Was thinking of easy to pack food and your post couldn’t be more perfect!
Thank you!
Yummy! Thank you for sharing your travel food. We just went on a road trip and we are bug fans of fresh fruit, vege sticks (carrot, cucumber and capcicum) and home made seed cookies!
Mmmmmmm everything looks so incredible! I’ve been traveling basically every week this summer, and it definitely threw off my eating! I love that it’s all quick and easy to make, too!
Angela, I’ve been reading your blog for a couple years for healthy food inspiration, for which it is a treasure trove. I want to extend thanks more than ever now, though, as I’ve come to see how helpful it’s becoming as I try to eliminate plastic from my lifestyle. This post sent me to endurance crackers, and I can’t wait to try those, as well as your spelt flatbread. And it’s encouraging to see you traveling with these more sustainable options instead of getting take-out on the road. Thank you!
Awesome post!!
Love the chickpea salad, i make it for lunches often yet wouldn’t have thought of it to travel with. I always make some kind of energy bite/ball and i freeze them, then bring with me frozen so by the time i want them they’re still solid. Spiced roasted chickpeas, granola clusters, dry roasted edamame, raw veggies, and these seedy hearty crackers that I’m obsessed with latelyhttp://www.mynewroots.org/site/2014/07/the-life-changing-crackers/
I’m usually traveling by plane so the liquids and pudding/hummus are out but i’ve been fine with a nut butter cracker “sandwich”.
I have a little one as well and this is a great reference for packing food for a trip, thank you!
I love this post, it’s just what I needed, a look into how other people cope with going on trips and what to do about food, it’s really inspired me to be more adventurous and not just rely on fruit and nuts! Thank you!
I make energy balls too! They were inspired by the ones my mom used to make 35 years ago.
Peanut Butter Energy Balls
½ c. peanut butter, natural
1 oz dried apricots (about 4)
½ oz dates (about 3)
1 oz raisins (about 30)
½ oz sunflower seeds (about 2 T.)
½ oz almonds, chopped (about 2 T.)
½ oz walnuts, chopped (about 2 T.)
1 oz chocolate chips (about 2 heaping T.)
1 T. chia seeds
2 T. honey
½ c. crushed cereal
Blend everything except honey and crushed cereal in a medium bowl. Pour in honey and stir. Add crushed cereal and stir until thoroughly combined. Refrigerate (this helps them become less sticky). Roll into Tablespoonful-sized balls, place in a covered container, and refrigerate until eaten. They keep quite awhile.
This is so helpful. Glad I’m not he only one that travels with loads of food. Lots of inspiration here x
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I just made the gazpacho. It made it an hour chilling. This is truly my favorite recipe ever, and I swirled homemade pesto throughout. Yummy! This was perfect today after a hot Georgia day.
For the last year, I ALWAYS bring a batch of thumbprint breakfast cookies and a container of almond butter. The cookies can be breakfast, snack, or dessert. As a vegetarian who doesn’t eat soy or sugar, I hate to put out the nice folks I’m staying with with my dietary restrictions. The cookies are also fun to share – everyone I’ve shared them with asks for the recipe. Other go to foods for the road are hummus and Beanitos chips.
Great idea for packing food. I could really use what I learned from these tips whenever we go to parks or on the beach. It can save me money and my family can eat healthier food.
What a great idea! I’m a vegan travel blogger so I often have to do a lot of day trips with heaps of picnics, I’ll be sure to come back to this post in the future for inspiration and ideas!
www.wonderstruckfawns.com
That’s the link to my vegan travel blog, which is the first of its kind! I’d really appreciate it if you’d check it out and let me know your thoughts? :) Best!
Thanks so much for this post! It came at such a great time for me as I was wondering what to bring on my weekend away. I made overnight oats, peanut butter chocolate chip cookie bites (from your cookbook), humus and gazpacho. The gazpacho was amazingly refreshing and delicious! This is going to sound a bit weird, but I woke up this morning needing a little pick me up and the gazpacho hit the spot! I loved having all those veggies first thing in the morning!
Thanks so much for all your inspiration and very tasty creations! :)