Healthy Road Trip Snacks

Summer is the perfect time for a road trip with the family or a close group of friends. It gives you time to bond with people who are close to you and has the potential to become a celebration all in itself. So this summer, plan a road trip to some exciting destination, play your favorite party music, wear something extra festive (but comfortable), and pack gorgeous eats to create a party atmosphere on the road!

I know, I know. It will hurt your figure. The thing with travelling by land is that everybody seems to end up bloated by the time the destination is reached. One of the reasons for that are probably the unhealthy food ad drink options that you take with you whenever you go on a road trip. To give you some easy solutions, here are some easy recipes that you could whip up for your next road trip:

1.)    The best snacks for road trips are those that you can easily munch on because it keeps your mouth occupied ad your brain interested. People munch on a lot of things during road trips because there isn’t anything else to do. So your choice of munchies is very important. For your next road trip why not make your own easy granola? Here’s how:

a.       Preheat your oven to 150 degrees C

b.      In a bowl, stir together 4 cups of oats, 1 cup dried cranberries or raisins, and two cups of roasted nuts. I like equal parts of walnuts and almonds but you can replace them with any other nut you fancy.

c.       In another bowl combine 13 cup vegetable oil, 1 ¼ cups of honey or 1 cup of maple syrup, 2 teaspoons of vanilla, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon powder. Drizzle this liquid mixture all over your dry ingredients and mix until everything is coated with this glaze.

d.      Spread the mixture evenly on a baking sheet and bake it for 30 to 40 minutes. It gets crunchy when it cools down.

2.)    Sometimes you just crave for some sweet dessert during a road trip. Instead of stopping at a convenience store to binge on chocolates, why not make your own healthy dessert? This easy-as-pie chocolate pudding gives you a sweet taste in your mouth without being too heavy on your tummy. Here’s how you make it:

a.       In a saucepan, heat two cups of Chocolate Milk until bubbles form at the edges.

b.      Add a teaspoon of vanilla extract and slowly add in three tablespoons of corn starch while mixing well. (If you do not mix well the starch will form lumps)

c.       Continue stirring until the mixture thickens.

d.      Place in single serve cups that come with lids and pop in the refrigerator overnight.

e.       Take these dessert cups with you during your road trip and keep them chilled in a cooler with your beverages.

3.)    One of the biggest health mistakes people commit when travelling is taking some sugar-filled beverage with them. Sodas and bottled iced teas are not the way to go when it comes to travelling healthily. Instead, whip up this easy (and arguably most refreshing) beverage, the Cucumber Calamansi-ade:

a.       Grab a cucumber, slice it in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds and then run it through a juicer. Reserve the liquid. If you do not own a juicer, run the cucumber in the food processor until you get a watery liquid. Run it through a strainer or sieve and reserve the liquid.

b.      Make some calamansi-ade by combining some calamansi concentrate and water. The proportions depend on your taste.

c.       Combine the cucumber juice and calamansi-ade and freeze.

d.      On the day of your trip, remove the Cucumber-Calamansi-ade mixture and store in a cooler to enjoy for the rest of your trip.

4.)    One of the things we always crave for during road trips is a little something that’s full of carbs. Instead of stopping for a burger or purchasing some sweet cake, why not create your own snack and take it with you? Waffles are probably the easiest snacks to prepare and are easy to eat in a car. Here’s how you make it:

a.       Simply make waffles with instant pancake mix.

b.      Add in chocolate chips, raisins, dried fruit, or bacon and ham bits in the middle.

c.       Slice your waffles in fours to make it easier to munch on inside the car.

Catch Confessions of a Partyphile (the radio show) every Wednesdays from 6PM to 9PM on 105.9 Mix FM. For comments, suggestions, and more confessions from this partyphile, log on to http://party.i.ph or twitter.com/zhaun