Gluten Free Healthy Camping Snacks

7 minute read • by Kate Abate 09-03-2020

 

Gluten Free Healthy Camping Snacks

Kate Abate
10 - 12 MIN.

 

Thinking about gluten free snacks? At HighKey, our cookies are Gluten Free - Grain free - No Sugar Added - Low Carb

 

Store Bought, Homemade Campfire Snacks

09-03-2020

Packing food for any trip can be daunting - add the extra challenge of a camping trip, and even the best parent may get a little stressed out. Someone in the family needs to be gluten-free? No problem. Someone else is watching their carbs? We got your back. Accommodating for different needs while still enjoying healthy camping snacks and meals as a family has never been easier.

Sure, there are loads of fantastic gluten-free and low carb mouth-watering recipes on Pinterest that would hold up for a few days in the woods sans the fridge, but let’s be real - not everyone has the time to spend an extra two hours prepping a loaf of almond flour banana bread on top of everything else! This article provides a quick and dirty basic approach to building a solid gluten-free camping food meal plan. No frills, low carb, gluten-free, keto-friendly, often store-bought camping snacks and meal ideas with virtually no prep. Save time with these pantry staples, and allow the kids to get creative in the kitchen with the banana bread while you get everything else ready for a fun, healthy, and delicious hassle-free camping trip!

Gluten Free Camping Snacks

Tuna and salmon packets
Protein is every meal’s best friend. Solid, healthy protein choices help keep blood sugar levels steady, are always low carb, and usually always gluten-free as well. Forgot the can opener? No worries. These packets are single serving, tear-friendly, and bear friendly, too! Food packets are a great choice for on the go meals with the family. Plus, they don’t take up much space, so bring as many as you want, and save the rest for later without worrying about waste. Canned salmon and tuna work well, too - they’re also usually wild-caught, low fat, and virtually carb-free, making both an incredibly versatile meal starter.

Baby food packets

Baby food is not just for babies! These fun, single-serving squeeze packs are great for hikes on-the-go or as a good opportunity to get in that extra serving of vegetables, instead of taking up precious cooler space with fresh greens. Whether you opt for the classics like peas and carrots, or something more colorful like beets, apples, and spinach, every packet or tub was made for baby, from the best stuff on earth - so you can feel confident feeding it to your whole family. Choose squash or pumpkin to compliment a vegetarian dish like baked beans, or peas and spinach to round out the burgers. Get creative! You might be surprised how much fun it is to grab a bunch of different flavors and see what resonates with which members of the family! Applesauce is always a hit, and so is sweet potato. These purees also round out a delicious sauce or topping when combined with other campfire favorites like ketchup and mustard. Try mixing pumpkin with mustard as a zesty and creamy dipping sauce for charred chicken kabobs.

Almonds or walnuts

There is nothing quite like a bag of roasted nuts to round out any healthy meal or snack. Whether you prefer them sweet or savory, roasted nuts make a fantastic, crunchy, low- carb, gluten-free, nutrient-packed addition to any meal. Let the kids smash a bag of walnuts and sprinkle over a few warmed salmon packets for a delicious and satisfying dish. No clean up required! Or, use a handful of almonds for the day hike snack that fits in even the smallest of packs.

Avocados

Nature’s gold. Avocados are an amazing source of healthy fats, fiber, minerals, and micronutrients. Technically a stone fruit, avocados make every dish more delicious - plain and simple. Avocados don’t need to be refrigerated, and their delicious flesh can be scooped with a spoon. Next time hunger hits, slice one in half, sprinkle with sea salt, and enjoy a la carte. For meal ideas, try mashing half an avocado with a packet of salmon for a delicious low-carb, gluten-free take on the classic California roll. Find a ripe one smushed at the bottom of the bag? No problem. Make an easy and delicious guacamole with mashed avocado, onion or garlic powder, a small can of salsa, and any fresh vegetables on hand. Avocados might be the single most versatile camping snack on this list. The possibilities are endless for this natural, keto-friendly gem.

Jerky

Nowadays, they make everything jerky. Whether its fruit leather or chicken, bison, or sable, all things delicious are now conveniently sold in a kid-friendly, dehydrated, and chewy form. While some companies specialize in delicatessen jerky, the basics still work too. Meat sticks are always a fun option when it comes to snack time, especially for the car - they’re salty, they’re portable, they’re delicious, they’re gluten-free, low carb and keto-friendly. Win, win, win. Choose a natural jerky, like those from Chomp, to make sure to keep added sugars to a minimum.

Protein bars

Protein bars, the healthy ones, can be a great quick fix and double as a sweet treat, too. These days, with keto being all the rage, all the top companies have come out with their own delicious meal replacement bars. This makes it difficult to choose as a consumer, but the upside of decision fatigue is that the stiff competition makes for a lot of excellent tasting bars, with solid nutritional profiles. Aim for a bar that has fewer than 10 grams of sugar and uses erythritol as a sweetener.

Seaweed snacks

Are you sensing a theme here? Almost everything on this list is store-bought camping food; already prepared to make your shopping list most manageable. Seaweed snacks are an easy pantry item to use in a pinch for that umami flavor, and kids love them. Make your own California rolls campfire-style by mixing canned salmon with avocado and adding a celery stick or two. Making sushi is always a fun family meal event, plus seaweed is one of the healthiest sea vegetables on the planet. It’s gluten-free, low carb, and full of vital minerals like iodine.

HighKey Granola

Finally, the good stuff. Who doesn’t love granola? Sprinkle over greek yogurt, or eat it straight out of the bag - it’s perfect for a healthy camping breakfast or a post-hike treat. As with all of the HighKey snacks, you can trust that it not only tastes amazing but that it packs a nutritional punch with ingredients the whole family can trust. It’s keto certified, low carb, gluten-free, and brimming with almonds, pumpkin seeds, and cinnamon. Try maple pecan on top of plain yogurt for a well-rounded start to the day.

Peanut butter packets

Everyone loves peanut butter… good luck keeping it to one serving at a time! Now with pre-portioned packets, there’s no spoon required and no concern about gluten contamination. Just squeeze and enjoy.

Veggie Sticks

This list of healthy camping foods wouldn’t be complete without a few vegetables, would it? Opt for pre-cut, pre-washed bagged vegetables that are best enjoyed raw and don’t require much cooler space, like baby carrots, Persian cucumbers, mini peppers, grape tomatoes, and celery sticks. Delicious in their own right, these bite-sized natural gems can be chopped and made into a fun twist on guacamole with the avocado from above, an easy tuna salad, or stuck onto kabobs for easy grilling.

HighKey Chocolate Chip Mini Cookies

Okay, okay. We hear you. This list has been incredibly healthy so far and those kids are going to want more than just that banana bread… Enter, HighKey Chocolate Chip Mini Cookies. There’s nothing quite like a good chocolate chip cookie - especially one that is gluten-free and keto-friendly. Need we say more? Make sure to bring extra… these aren’t just for kids.

Marshmallows

You can’t go camping without marshmallows can you? Thanks to the growing popularity of the gluten-free lifestyle there are so many great options out there. Including Smashmallow in fun flavors like cookie dough, toasted vanilla, or mint chocolate chip. If you’re on the keto train, give MaxMallow a try for a sugar free option.

While it’s certainly easy to get overwhelmed with everything required to make a camping trip run smoothly, there are lots of delicious solutions for meal planning that won’t break the bank or step on anyone’s dietary restrictions. With a little creativity and some resourcefulness from the pantry and the grocery store, you’ll be looking for a great excuse to get back to the wilderness again soon.

 

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