ideas for gluten free travel
I sometimes forget that for GF newbies, eating in general may be a challenge. Thinking of what you are and are not allowed to eat can become daunting. For me it is second nature and I promise for all of you that are reading this and just starting out, it will be the same for you! Just know that, you are probably trying this lifestyle out because of health challenges, you want to see if it will make any difference in how you feel, or you want to become a science experiment and test the waters. For any reason, I think you will be surprised at how easy it truly is and how many choices, literally thousands, are out there to grab.
Add another layer to this challenge, and now you find yourself going on vacation, driving to a far away destination or just figuring out healthy, gluten free options on the run. Before I give you any suggestions, I just need you to know, that we are not going to trade gluten laden, processed food options with gluten free, processed ones. Know that you taking this plunge to be healthier, feel better, have more energy, or see if gluten may be making you sick.
So let's get started. If you are traveling by plane, you are allowed to bring a small cooler with food, and ice packs if they are frozen solid. I use that same cooler when I have to pack for my family if we are going to sporting events for my son or day trips around our piece of the world. Below are my top picks with clickable links to the products I love or recipes that are tried and true for my family.
- Homemade granola (My recipe here) I also add dried fruit and more nuts to a big baggie, which makes snacking easy and accessible. You can also add this mix to small containers of unsweetened yogurt.
- Cut up veggies, make it look like a rainbow! Veggies that travel well are cucumbers, carrots, celery and bell peppers.
- Leftover grilled chicken
- Hard boiled eggs, make them yourself or buy at the store. Markets are providing healthier choices these days and 2 packs of organic eggs are often offered at the check out for a quick snack or travel packing.
- Cut up fruit, I like apples the best. Sprinkle with cinnamon and they last for hours without turning brown.
- Top those apples with individual packets of Justins Almond butter
- Simple Mills almond flour crackers. Thos company rocks with clean ingredients, delicious choices and grain free, dairy free options along with being gluten free.
- Packages of Applegate turkey or ham. I am not a fan of sandwiches, so roll ups it is.
- Organic cheese sticks
- Snack bars, my favorites are Larabar, Kind Bar, gomacro or RX Bar. These are clean, gluten free and have no added sugars.
- Hummus for those veggies or crackers. Make sure the brand you choose is using a good quality oil. I like Trader Joe's organic version
- Traveling without potato chips might be a sin, so when I do need to grab a bag, they are always Jackson's Honest. My favorite is salt and vinegar and I never feel guilty eating them.
- A whole avocado, plastic knives are available everywhere or pack your own and eat with a spoon. I will keep a jar of Trader Joe's Everything Bagel spice mix and keep it in the bottom of the cooler.
- If you are traveling by plane and need to buy a salad, most places offer good choices, but stay away from the dressings. You can bring your own in 2 ounce plastic bottles.
- Bars of good quality chocolate, so many I love! Eating Evolved organic coconut butter cups, Taza Bars, Hu Kitchen, Equal Exchange and Justin's dark chocolate peanut butter cups are a few.
- If you are packing for a long trip, throwing a can of Wild Planet tuna in olive oil is great when you are starving and you can season with the Everything Bagel mix!
- Beef jerkey or beef sticks, I love Epic bars, Nick's Sticks and Krave.
- Paleo Banana Bread ( My recipe here)
- Lesser Evil Budda Bowl Organic popcorn cooked in Coconut oil.
- Don't forget the liquids if you are driving. Lots of water of course, but I also like to bring coconut water, Kombucha or Green juice.
This is definitely not an exhaustive list, but I hope it gets you moving to pack healthy food choices for travel. Most of these choices are readily available at local markets and very few of them have to be made ahead of time. NO excuses then, being gluten free rocks and isn't as difficult as some people may think.
If you are unsure of where to buy some of the products I've listed above, I've added clickable links to most of them. They are available through Amazon which makes it extra easy and other quality websites. These are Affiliate links for me which means, I'm paid a small amount by them, but doesn't cost you anything. Win, win for both of us and I am able to continue all of this FREE amazing content that I'm posting!
Happy Travels