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Raw on the Road Tips

Each time I travel, I perfect things a bit more with new techniques and ideas for those times when I'm away from home and want to eat healthy. Here's a few suggestions I hope can help you feel at home on the road.

Raw Foods Chef Brenda Hinton with Makiko and Masae, at Cafe Gratitude, Harrison St. San Francisco.

Brenda with Makiko and Masae, at Cafe Gratitude

Plan Ahead

Often, I have a few days or weeks before I travel so I'm able to make some snacks for myself, but not always. If I have time to make some flax crackers or cookies I'll bring them for the long plane rides, if I don't have time, I swing through the local healthy store, café or restaurant and pick up that perfect munchy food. While you're there, ask about local raw food restaurants. There are more and more of them, and many "cooked restaurants" are offering raw choices.

Getting through TSA

There are rules for our security and safety on the ground we can't even begin to understand but with a little advanced planning you can get through the gauntlet and still have your dignity and snacks with you as you board the plane. Here's what I do -- I pre-pack a very small soft sided cooler with celery and carrot sticks, hummus, some cookies (of course) and some fresh fruit. Then I take small ice packs to keep things cool. TSA doesn't bat an eye at these small ice packs. They aren't technically liquid (until they defrost) so on the outbound trips they don't set off the crazies. My food and ice packs make it through and I'm nourished all the way to my destination, perhaps with enough left for dinner that night and breakfast the next morning.

Raw Foods Chef Brenda Hinton with Yuki and Beate, at the Tokyo Veg Fest.

Brenda with Yuki and Beate,
at the Tokyo Vegetarian Fest

Snacks on-board

I'm never sure if I'm going to want sweet or salty while flying so I bring along a little of each. Granola bars, biscotti, almonds, celery and carrot sticks or sliced apples. Don't forget those 3 ounce plastic containers of hummus or pate, or almond butter. (btw -- Artisana now makes these really cool small travel squeeze packets of Nut Butters. And another onboard must is: take your own tea bags (caffeinated and decaf), then I only need hot water from the cart. For those non-food additions, remember a good book, noise cancelling headphones, a water bottle and the latest magazine to catch up on the latest hollywood chatter.

For those days ahead

Raw on the Road Supplies

I begin my travel days just as I would at home. My daily morning routine of lemon water, wheatgrass and green tea, which I talked about in the July 2011 newsletter gets me started. When travelling there's no reason to compromise the healthy routine just because you're in unchartered territory or foreign lands. Amazing Grass has organic wheatgrass powder packets easily taken along for that daily dose of green goodness. Combined with local bottled water in my small BPA free travelling water bottle and I'm good to go with my morning 2 ounce shot.

I always travel with a More than a NUT MILK BAG. They come in handy for juicing or making nut milks when I've got a blender (preferably a Blendtec or Vitamix) at my destination, or if I want to do some sprouting with seeds I've brought along.

Brenda in Bali

So think ahead, get creative and get out there. Raw on the Road is easier than you think. If you're always willing to give up what you've got to TSA, sometimes they surprise you (most all the time now) and let your healthy treasures glide on through their conveyer belt with your tennis shoes, computer, cell phone and backpack.

Happy traveling !!