This post is sponsored by Sargento
Mazen and I are road trippin’ this morning, and I have a car packed full of entertainment. I have his kid song CDs, his tablet loaded with some Peppa Pig shows, a coloring doodle pad, some trucks, lots of books, a few new surprise trinket toys and lots and lots of snacks. What is it about road trips that makes you hungry!? Boredom I suppose!
So if we’re inevitably going to be munching our way to the beach, then we better have healthy snacks packed. Here’s what’s in our cooler! We probably won’t eat all of these, but it’s best to over pack.
Sargento Balanced Breaks. These new little bundles of cheese, nuts and dried fruit are what inspired this post idea. Sargento recently sent me a few, and you can find them in grocery stores in packs of 3. They come in an assortment of flavors and are perfectly portioned to be 7 grams of protein and 170-190 calories. The perfect balance of great taste and nutrition!
I love the variety of flavors within the container – bite of cheese, a nut, a piece of fruit, repeat!
Natural White Cheddar Cheese, sea-salted almonds and dried cranberries
Natural Sharp Cheddar Cheese, sea-salted cashews and cherry-infused cranberries
Natural Pepper Jack Cheese, honey roasted peanuts and raisins
Natural Sharp White Cheddar Cheese, sea-salted cashews and golden raisin medley
Fresh fruit. An easy one because it comes in its own single serving. I only pack fruit that isn’t too messy to eat (so oranges are out). Apples, bananas, and grapes are the easiest!
Veggie pouches. These are for you-know-who. I can’t stand the smell of them, but he looooves them and sucks ’em down! I only buy pouches that are 100% veggie based.
Cheddar crackers. A favorite dry snack for the toddler and mom alike.
Granola bars. A variety of textures and flavors since you never know what kind you might be in the mood for!
Dried fruit. A few pineapple rings can keep one entertained for a while.
Crunchy chickpeas. I discovered these on a grocery store snack run in Towson and they are a great high protein option!
And if you forget to pack enough snacks, a grocery store is always the healthiest food stop off the highway. Look for single serving things like:
Sargento’s Balanced Breaks (obviously : ) )
Yogurts
Salad bars for baby carrots or cut-up peppers
Prepared salads
Fresh fruit
Whole food granola bars
To-go hummus packs
Bulk bins with trail mix
And of course, a little dark chocolate is always a wise addition to any car trip cooler : )
Thanks to Sargento for sponsoring this post!
Linda @ TheFitty says
I like now nicely they are portioned!
Mom says
Do grandmas get to try the snacks? I have to say though, I’ve yet to muster the courage to try a pouch!
Keilah says
Where will I find the balanced Bites in the store? Like which section?
Erin says
The snacks sound delicious! Which pouches have you found to be 100% veggie? We use them when we travel and it’s so frustrating because they often use applesauce as the base but don’t mention it on the front of the label. Are there certain brands that are better about that?
Ellen says
Not to be a pedant, but… pumpkin is a fruit! 🙂 🙂
But of course, I understand what you’re looking for is a specific nutritional profile, and it’s great. Just funny!
Emily says
I agree that Earth’s Best are the best ones we’ve found for truly offering veggie-based options. My daughter also likes the Sweet Potato and Beets one.
Bethany says
Travel snacks are the best! I’ve picked up yogurt in tubes before and they are so easy to eat in the car. Plus, you can freeze them so they will stay cold in the cooler, act as extra ice, and is like having frozen yogurt along the way!
Tonya says
Great post! great ideas! I was just talking about planning a road trip this morning.
Erin @ Her Heartland Soul says
Mmm cheese! <3
Laura says
Oh my gosh! I love all of these snack ideas! I get in the terrible habit of bringing one large bag of pirate’s booty, and then my kids keep asking me if I brought anything else… nope sorry kids! Great ideas, and I will definitely be stealing them for our next road trip.
Elyse says
Great post! Lots of ideas to get to branch out of my typical Lara Bars and fruit.
Robin says
My husband rolls his eyes every time we hit the road, because I bring enough snacks to feed a football team! We tend to avoid bananas, because they get bruised and squished easily, but clementines work really well. The kids are now able to peel them on their own, but they aren’t so juicy that they make a mess. SCORE!
Kat @ Where the Sidewalk Ends says
This list looks great! Thanks for the wonderful ideas. Just wanted to share how easy making homemade crunchy chickpeas is, and for probably 10% of the cost of the prepackaged variety. With either canned chickpeas or (better) pre-soaked, home cooked chickpeas, toss with a bit of olive oil, salt and whatever spices take your fancy. Cook at 400 for around 30-40 minutes, depending on your crispy preference. Shake the pan about half-way through. Keep an eye on them to make sure they’re not burning. They last really well in a pyrex in the fridge, and taste just like the packaged variety! Enjoy.
Hannah @ eat, drink and save money says
Great snack ideas! I always have a banana, a clementine, an apple and a granola bar in my purse. If I don’t, I end up buying unhealthy snacks like donuts.
I’m going to have to look for those Sargento packs. They look like fun for a picnic party.
Hannah @ eat, drink and save money says
Oh! And I’m just now noticing the new header. Looks great!
Brittany says
This is a great list! Thanks!
Kerry says
What does he like on his tablet besides peppy pig? Curious for my two year old….
KathEats says
Dinosaur Train and Curious George, but Peppa always wins
sonal says
not sure if you read this
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2015/04/15/399851645/nut-so-fast-kind-bars-fda-smacks-snacks-on-health-claims
just wanted to mention as i see a lot of Kind bars on your blog
Danielle says
What tablet does Mazen have and how did you get Peppa on there? Is it like buying them on itunes? We are going on our first plane ride and trying to figure out how to get my daughter’s shows on the ipad.
KathEats says
I have a 7 inch tablet that is on the older side that is “his” now. All of the Peppas are on You Tube! But for car trips I bought some shows through the Google Play store
KathEats says
I have a 7 inch tablet that is on the older side that is “his” now. All of the Peppas are on You Tube! But for car trips I bought some shows through the Google Play store
Dani @ DaniCaliforniaCooks says
Great snack ideas! I love bringing things that you can mix and match together – like separate packets of nut butters that you can put on apples or crackers or anything that you wish!
Livi @ Eat, Pray, Work It Out says
Great ideas! Cant wait to use some of these on my summer road trips!
Amanda @ Life To Table says
Have fun at the beach! I was just about to say that you forgot chocolate and then I saw your last sentence!
Cassie says
I love this! I also bring tons of fruit, Quest bars, KIND bars and my homemade treats!
mary @ minutes per mile says
brilliant idea by sargento! i’ll have to keep an eye out for these 🙂
Laura says
Just wanted to share some feedback on the Sargento snack packs. I was really excited to buy these for my husband to use as a healthy snack at work. We bought them this weekend (white cheddar + almonds and cranberries) and he had the first one today. He said they were a major letdown. The cheese was okay but he said the nuts and fruit were covered in salt. And this is from a guy who likes salty food. Hopefully Sargento will see this or you can provide them with some feedback. Such a bummer as I thought this would be a great snack option for him.
KathEats says
Really? I love salted nuts and thought they were fine!
Sara says
We did our first car trip a few weekends ago. My son loves Sesame Street and we found the Sesame Street Play app was a lifesaver in the car. I put my iPhone on “Guided Access” mode so my almost tw-year-old couldn’t push any other buttons and he watched a few episodes. Whew!
Sara says
PS–We found Sheetz and Wawa have decent snacks for toddlers. Cut up apples and fruit and also found a pack that had little pretzels, cheese and grapes!
KATE says
I can’t help but feel like this type of snack has too much packaging! And then I start to think about about how as more and more companies produce snacks like this, the pile of packaging in the world will just get bigger and bigger! It makes me feel too overwhelmed and then I don’t let myself buy this type of product.