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Think Traveling = Junk Food? How to Prepare Nutritious Meals, Even for a Cross-Country Trip

Published 07/13/2010 by Jane

Last updated on 11/02/2010

I’ve made quite a mess in my kitchen this morning! Pots and pans, strainers, paper towels, cutting boards, and vegetable trimmings are strewn about the countertops.

Ah, but the end product will be wonderful.

I’m cooking for this summer’s vacation!  In just under 2 weeks my dad and I will hop in his van and trek 2500 miles from Virginia to Montana. (Some of our much loved, but less adventurous family members will meet us there…)

My dad loves a road trip better than anyone I know!   This summer our destination is Glacier National Park.


But more on the trip later. Today, the good stuff…..THE FOOD!

I avoid fast food at (almost) any cost.  I’m also thinking we won’t find many roadside diners that cook with fresh, real ingredients between here and Kalispell,  Montana, so I’m preparing healthy and delicious food for our trip.

At the farmer’s market I picked up plenty of  juicy red tomatoes, sweet onions, carrots, orange cherry tomatoes, and two free-range chickens (If you’re a vegetarian, feel free to substitute ‘vegetable’ whenever I’ve written the word ‘chicken’.).

Here’s a short prep list:

  • I baked the chickens, and made 2 gallons of bone broth….so delicious and nutritious.
  • I chopped the baked chicken into small pieces.
  • I sautee’d the carrots and onions.
  • I pulled a bag of spinach that I froze this past spring, from the freezer.
  • I soaked the lentils overnight (was supposed to add some lemon-juice, but didn’t have any. It’ll be ok.) and cooked them for an hour in chicken broth this morning, with some carrots and onions thrown in.

This is when beautiful mahem ensued ~

Pots and pans were everywhere. I combined pots of lentils, carrots, onions, chicken, and broth….I put one combination after another into ziploc bags (yeah, I know, ziploc isn’t the greatest, but it’s the best I could come up with for this trip.) Some bags are mostly broth, some are almost full of lentils and tomatoes. Two bags look like a hearty soup, with spinach, carrots, onions, chicken, lentils, and broth.

I’ll freeze the bags, and when the time comes for us to head out on our trip, they’ll go into an icy cooler. Each day I’ll pick a bag of delicious food for the day, and let it thaw.

I’m planning to buy a warming pot that will plug into the cigarette outlet…but haven’t found that yet.  Let me know if you know where to find one. I hate the thought of killing the precious nutrition in these meals with a hotel microwave.  I may have to settle for a hot plate and a thermos…we’ll see.

Self-care, great nutrition, and a road trip with my dad.  What more could a girl ask for?

Take good care, and eat well!

Please share your travel tips, food questions, and suggestions below! ♥

Read more about healthy cooking and eating on my post, Falling In Love Again With My Kitchen: Healing With Real Food

Many thanks to Kenny Hindgren for the delicious photo!

Published in bits and pieces

9 Comments

  1. Nancy Brennan Nancy Brennan

    Jane, I love this idea! We’re going to the outer banks and DC in Aug. for a week and this gives me some options other than fast food.

    07/13/2010
  3. Susan Hill Susan Hill

    Jane,

    You are so inspiring! You should post actual recipes…also, what kind of spices did you put in your bone broth? and soup? That is so cool just you and your dad are going on the road trip together…some father daughter bonding time! Have a great time!

    PS…I love the blog!

    07/13/2010
  4. Logan Logan

    Hi Jane, 🙂

    Great post! We use an alcohol stove when we travel (http://www.clikstand.com/). Its small, quiet, easy to use, and you can modulate the flame. This idea won’t work while you are driving but if you stop at a hotel room it would work perfect. 🙂

    The fuel is easy to come by. Look for yellow bottles of “heet” at gas stations or “denatured alcohol” at hardware stores. 🙂

    Cheers,
    Logan.

    07/13/2010
    • Jane Rochelle Jane Rochelle

      Thanks Logan,
      I’ll head on over to clickstand and check it out. We’re planning to stop every hour and stretch, but somehow it doesn’t always work out that way….so taking a break to warm up food a couple of times a day will probably be a welcome break.
      🙂 Jane

      07/13/2010
  5. Katie Katie

    Sounds like you’re really going to embrace this trip with your dad. How wonderful for you. Have a great time and happy eating along the way.
    Katie recently posted..A Beginner’s Guide to Juggling Life

    07/13/2010
    • Jane Rochelle Jane Rochelle

      Thanks, Katie,
      I love my family, but dad and I are the ones with the travel bug, so I plan to cherish every moment!
      🙂

      07/13/2010

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