There’s nothing quite as satisfying as settling in for a summer road trip surrounded by your favourite treats. It’s easy to stock up on chips, candy, and pop but why not try a healthier route this year? These homemade road trip snacks are a better alternative to prepackaged junk.
What are we looking for in homemade road trip snack ideas?
Sure, anything can technically be a road trip snack so long as it doesn’t take up too much room. But we are specifically looking for road trip snacks that:
- are easily portable
- don’t create much waste
- non-messy and doesn’t leak
- don’t spoil quickly
- no utensils needed
- Healthy (ish)!
With saying that, let’s dive in!
DIY Trail Mix
This is one of the easiest and most filling options for a DIY road trip snack. Go to the bulk section at your grocery store and pick from their selection of nuts, pretzels, crackers, dried fruit, cereal, chocolate, candy, or anything else you want to add. You can make this snack as healthy as you want by adding more nuts and fruit and fewer sweets. You can also make each road trip guest’s baggy a bit different. If Jen loves M&Ms, add some extras to hers. If Bill hates pretzels, leave them out for him. Be sure to use reusable Tupperware or lunch baggies to keep this treat eco-friendly.
Dehydrated Fruit Pieces
You can buy these pre-made or make them yourself. We’re a fan of homemade dehydrated fruit because you can use fresh, local produce and make more for your buck. Apples, strawberries, bananas, apricots, and cherries are all popular fruits for dehydrating. You can dehydrate your fruit with a variety of tools: specialty dehydrator appliances, an air fryer, or even your oven. You can even go all out and make dehydrated fruit leather snacks!
Baked Kale or Potato Skin Chips
Potato chips and other salty fried snacks are a popular road trip treat. However, they are often over-salted and packed with bad fats. Making your own chips using kale or potato skins is a healthy alternative. Whichever you decide to use, kale or potato skins, making chips is as easy as coating them lightly in oil, adding a pinch of seasoning (salt or your choice), and popping them in the oven for a bit. Remember: these snacks might be brittle once prepared so packing them in a bag is ill-advised. Try a sturdy Tupperware container instead! A piece of paper towel at the bottom will soak up excess oil until you’re ready to eat them.
Fun Flavoured Popcorn
Popcorn is a super easy pack-and-go snack but you can make it even better by experimenting with different flavours. Try Salty Spicy Popcorn, Cinnamon Honey Popcorn, or Cheddar Cheese Popcorn. Google search “popcorn + [your favourite flavour profile]” and something will probably pop up. If not, invent it yourself! If you aren’t feeling particularly crafty you can also buy flavour shakers for your popcorn. This works particularly well if your road trip crew can’t decide on one flavour—get a few of each!
Articles you might also like:
- Simple Baking Ideas You Can Make While On Vacation
- The Best Food For Traveling
- Road Trip Checklist
- Road Trips with Kids: Travel Goodie Bag Ideas
What Are Your Best Roadtrip Tips?
Let us know using #LaCasaCottages on IG or Facebook and tag us in your post. Need help planning your BC road trip? Contact us!
