Cross Country Car Food

reposted from 3-02-09

Over the past ten years, we have regularly traveled 1200 gluten-free miles, cross-country in a car with kids. Our last trip was #50 FIFTY!

As we are getting ready to go again, I've resurrected my lists from the depths of my files. I count five different ones. Either I can't ever find them in my file, or I often feel the need to reinvent the wheel.

Here is my consolidated list of travel foods that I pack or, in a pinch, purchase to minimize the mayhem as we travel.

I bake and pack homemade snacks, GF crackers and cookies. Some that travel well are:

Granola bars http://gluten-free-reality.blogspot.com/2008/09/quinoa-granola-bars.html
Ranger cookies http://gluten-free-reality.blogspot.com/2009/03/ranger-cookies.html
Peanut butter bars http://gluten-free-reality.blogspot.com/2008/09/peanut-butter-bars.html
GF Chex Mix http://www.chex.com/Recipes/CategoryView.aspx?CategoryId=447&t=5
Puff rice balls

I pack granola for me and take a box of Nature's Path Mesa Sunrise or Erewhon's brown rice as breakfast cereal for the children. I rely on the milk from the motel's breakfast bar and since we can't eat the waffles, bagles, doughnuts and bread at the continental bar, I don't feel a bit bad as we glug their juice and decimate their fresh fruit supply.

I am not always at my peak for planning and sometimes I race to the store to make fast purchases when I find that time has escaped and my 12 hour packing window has dwindled to two.

baby carrots
raw almonds
Frigo string cheese
Fritos
Cheetos
EnerG pretzels
Blue Diamond Almond Crackers
MiDel ginger snaps

We now limit our stops at Wendys along the way for select salads, potatoes and their chili and frosties after we found that fast food coupled with far distances doesn't bode well for anyone's digestion.

Good luck and I wish you safe and happy travel.

A more comprehensive list? http://gluten-free-reality.blogspot.com/2008/09/as-of-february-2007-disclaimer-verify.html