Chow Down on These 9 Road Trip Snacks
Dec 26, 2024
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A road trip is a time to spend quality experiences with your family or friends — road food is part of that tradition. Road trip snacks are the ultimate indulgence when you slip behind the wheel and let the miles roll on by.
Whether you like sweet, savory or umami flavors in a soft or crunchy or warm or cold format, these travel snacks are the best to make or buy, so you don’t have to worry about Fred bringing his infamous boiled eggs with him if he’s tagging along.
It’s time to get crunching on travel goodness.
1. Nature Valley Crunchy Granola Bars
For short road trips, granola bars are an ideal snack. They offer loads of fiber to fight that car-travel tummy, and with several tasty flavors, you’re sure to look forward to the next bar. Keeping a few Granola bars in your car’s glove compartment is also a wise strategy if your car suddenly breaks down or if you fail to do preventive maintenance to keep it running on your journey.
Benefits:
- Healthy
- Crunchy
- Provides energy
- Non-messy
2. Cracker Jack: The Original Popcorn
Popping some corn with a delicious caramel coating is the ultimate in roadie heaven. Cracker Jack goes one step further by combining popcorn with peanuts, coating both in a fudgy layer that melts on the tongue.
The packaging also makes eating while driving easy. Simply pinch the pack between your legs or slide it into your car’s center console, within easy reach. Crunchy corn is one of the best road trip snacks to stay awake when snacking.
Benefits:
- Serious crunch
- Provides energy
- High in fiber
- Easy to consume
3. Puppy Chow
Not all treats need to be store-bought, and puppy chow is a favorite family treat. A recipe from Delish inspired this travel treat with a few innovations, so feel free to play around with it, too. Puppy chow is one of the best homemade road trip snacks.
Ingredients:
⅔ cup of peanut butter
1 cup of dark chocolate chips
4 tablespoons of unsalted soft butter
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
good quality coarse sea salt to sprinkle
10 cups of your favorite cereal
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
Method:
- Microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter in a microwave-proof bowl in 20-second bursts until the ingredients melt and combine.
- Place cereal in a bowl, pour the melted ingredients over, and mix well.
- Scoop coated cereal into a resealable bag and add the confectioners’ sugar, seal the bag and shake it well.
- Cool it on a large baking sheet before storing it in airtight meal prep containers you can take on the road.
Benefits:
- Tasty
- Better control over the ingredients
- Make it gluten and lactose-free if needed
- Cheap snack for large family trips
4. Kibo Chickpea Chips
Your on-the-go snacks can be healthy and delicious. While you may feel less excited by the thought of highly nutritious roasted chickpeas unless you’re someone with diabetes. These chips offer all the flavors and a tempting variety that will have you and your travel buddies swapping flavors to try them all.
Benefits:
- Healthy
- Low on sodium and sugars
- High in protein for sustained energy
- Non-GMO and gluten-free
5. Blueberry Muffins
Everybody likes blueberry muffins, and while you can order the processed type, which has a long shelf life, you may also enjoy baking some fresh ones the night before or the morning of your trip.
Benefits:
- High in fiber
- Nutritionally dense
- Filling and just sweet enough
- Use edible paper cups for a trash-free trip
6. Chips Ahoy Chocolate Chip Cookies
You can’t start your engine without a pack of Chips Ahoy on board. You can also make your own ice cream sandwiches if you get some ice cream at a pitstop at a local gas station. Remember that a serving size is three cookies, but what happens on the road stays on the road, right?
Benefits:
- A good sodium boost for replacing electrolytes in hot weather
- Crunchy to wake you up
- Tasty and easy to eat from the packets
7. Kar’s Nuts Sweet ‘N Salty Trail Mix
Something about a sweet and salty trail mix just hits the spot. It’s healthy but also a little naughty, and it will wake you up and give you energy for the next stretch of the highway. The resealable pack is handy for when you’ve had enough, while the sturdy pack is ideal for picking out the bits you really want or shaking them into your mouth — your car, your rules.
Benefits:
- Choose the mix that’s right for you
- High crunch with a power pack of sweetness and nuttiness
- Effective packaging
8. Party Pretzels
Pretzels are always fun, and not just at the bar. These baked savory treats make fabulous car cuisine, too. While you can buy different coated pretzels, you can easily make your own. These chocolate pretzels are a variation of the puppy chow recipe from earlier, and you can really get creative with different takes on it.
Simply melt peanut butter and dark chocolate chips in a ratio of two parts peanut butter to one part chocolate. You can add a slice of butter for a softer result. Place the pretzels and melted ingredients in a resealable bag, coating thoroughly. Pack the coated pretzels on a baking sheet to cool. Drizzle some more melted chocolate over the top and sprinkle with sea salt.
You can cover other hard foods like this, too, for variety. Try it with crushed chips and spoon the mix into muffin pans to cool, giving you sweet and salty clusters. For a healthy version, coat dried fruit like apple rings and apricots.
Benefits:
- Easy to make
- Cost-effective snack
- Control what you eat
9. Jack Link’s Beef Jerky
Beef jerky is a classic and tasty treat when you’re grinding through some miles. The salty dried beef helps manage your electrolyte levels, which helps keep brain fog at bay. The chewy texture helps to keep your mind alert, and it’s a brilliant match to some trail mix.
Alternatively, you can grill a few steaks the night before, slice these into beefy chips from the 1.5-2-inch-thick steaks, and pack them in an airtight container. Ensure you take a cooler box to keep your meat treat cooled.
Benefits:
- High in protein
- Convenient to eat while driving
- High in iron and low in fat and sugars
Pack Your Eats Wisely
Pack your road foods safely for your journey. Extreme heat can quickly turn a treat into torment. Consider your family when you decide on what to pack.
Various sweet, salty, and savory tastes help take the bore out of hours in the same car. Ensure you drink enough water to maintain correct hydration levels and mental alertness. Pack foods that are easy to eat while driving to prevent potential distraction-related accidents.
