Traveling with a food allergy can be a nightmare, especially if your kryptonite is something as prevalent as peanuts or tree nuts.
Although it can be fairly easy to find meals that don’t list any type of nut as an ingredient when traveling, packing healthy snacks might pose a different issue. Why? Because many of the easy go-to snacks are made with nuts. Oy.
While you can’t ever go wrong with fresh fruits and veggies, you also need foods that won’t spoil so easily. To ensure you and your family have plenty of munchies, here are some satisfying snack ideas that’ll curb those hunger pains:
Snacks to Make Before Your Trip
- Blueberry flaxseed muffins: Muffins? That’s right, the muffin can be healthy, if made with the right ingredients.
- Nut-Free Granola: Granola doesn’t often include nuts, but consider making your own to eliminate the risk of cross-contamination in factories that create other products with nuts.
- Apple Chips: A healthy play on the average greasy potato chip, apple chips can be made with thinly sliced apples and enjoyed as is, or sprinkled with cinnamon on top.
- Homemade Trail Mix: Peanuts and almonds don’t make or break a good batch of trail mix—there are plenty of chewy substitutes to replace the nut, such as sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds
- Baked Kale Chips: If you want a salty snack, try baking your own kale chips. I promise they’re much tastier than they sound!
- Popcorn Snack Mix: Make a batch of popcorn and throw in pumpkin seed kernels and dried fruit to sweeten it up, such as dried papaya and banana chips.
- Homemade Fruit Leather: A sweet, healthy snack that you and your kids will eat up, fruit leather is a great non-perishable treat for those frequently on-the-go.
- Nut-Free Larabars: Larabars are the healthy go-to travel snack, but often contain nuts. Try making your own or look for a nut-free Larabar at your local grocery store.
- Sunbutter: This sunflower seed spread is a nice alternative to the more commonly used nut butters. Try using it as a dip for fruits and veggies and/or spreading it on crackers or rice cakes. You can purchase Sunbutter from the grocery store or make your own.
Nut-Free Snacks You Can Buy
While you should always read the ingredients and look for cross-contamination warnings on all food labels, here are some items that are generally safe and healthy for snacking:
- Triscuits
- Cereal (e.g. shredded wheat, cheerios)
- Applesauce
- Cheese
- Fruit Snacks
Photo from Australia Wide First Aid.
