What We Ate Wednesday: Successfully RAW While Traveling

June 7th, 2011 - filed under: The Food » Food Styles



Last Friday, the wee family and I flew off to southern California – that’s home – for a memorial. It’s hard enough eating healthfully and vegan while traveling, but what about eating all raw while on the road? Is it even possible?

Well, to my surprise, yes!



Very early in the morning, I packed us all up. Different food for each of us! From left to right: raw trail mix/granola (sprouted buckwheat, goji berries, pumpkin seeds, spices), an apple, carrots, bananas, snack ball filled with kale chips, 2 pb&j sammies for Damian, black beans and quinoa for Waits, and raw tahini dip.



In the car, Coffee and Cutie Pie:





Breakfast Banana:

Waits and I split this sucker. As an aside – Jet Blue is THE SHIZZIE! I’m never flying another airline ever again. Damn are they awesome! Comfy seats, lots of leg room, free checked bags, free snacks (with choices!), just rad rad rad.



In the Sky:

Here’s a little trick for traveling with tinies: kids have trouble clearing their ears, and that’s why they cry so much during flights. It hurts! If you nurse/bottle feed them during take-off and landing, the swallowing action will keep their ears popping, relieving the pressure. I always nurse Waits through take-offs and 9 times out of 10, he passes right out. Makes for a great flight!


Drinking my complimentary water and doing my mission reading.


Fuji!


Hello ocean! We miss you so!


Awake after landing, Waits is a pro traveler.



Rental Car Ride = 2 Hours and Snacks:

Of course, there was coffee. The soy milk in the coffee was the only non-raw thing I ate all day, w00t! (well, besides the coffee itself, haha)




Nanner with gRAWnola.


Waits ate some black beans and quinoa.



Upon Arrival:

Mas café.


Waits was super into these Queen Anne cherries.


And I whipped up a quick batch of my guacamole, which was enjoyed by everyone. They scooped with corn chips; I used carrot sticks!



Dinner
Dinner was easy-peasy. Our companions were having steaks, haha. Damian had a can of split pea soup, baguette, and salad. I had brought some homemade raw rye bread in my carry-on bag, so I had a delicious open-faced sammie with tahini spread, avocado, and tomato, with a side salad. Waits had more of his black beans and quinoa, as well as some cucumbers. My din-din:




All in all, I managed to stay pretty much entirely raw through a whole day of air- and car-travel. Not too shabby. Proof that a little forethought and a little planning really does go a long way!

  • http://natsmithillustration.etsy.com Nat

    wow! great planning! its so worth it,eh? so many people when they go on a trip eat store bought junk(paired with fast food) and end up feeling awful the whole time. i bet you felt great for your whole trip :)

  • http://thesmartkitchenblog.com Sarah @ The Smart Kitchen

    Yep. Definitely now craving guacamole and it’s not even 8 AM.

  • http://www.vegansunshine.wordpress.com whitney

    What a cute baby! Seriously, he is such a doll. I love this raw WIAW! I have been trying to eat more raw foods as well because it is easy to do in the summer time. I would love to make some gRAWnola, you’ll have to tell me how!

    Whitney

  • http://natsmithillustration.etsy.com Nat

    Sayward, do you do your hair yourself? i love it!!!

  • HeatherG

    Not only is Waits a pro traveler, but OMG he is edible! I just want to nuzzle those baby cheeks!

    I’m sorry for your family’s loss.

    And the WWAW posts are still rocking my socks, just love them…and your family! Great job planning and traveling with health and success!

  • http://mamasthyme.blogspot.com/ Lydia

    So inspiring and everything looks delicious! Waits is adorable!

  • http://easierthanyouthink.wordpress.com Ginger Baker

    Love the post, and HAD to chime in to say: I ADORE Jetblue. I will pay extra just to fly on Jetblue, I <3 them so much!! (And I am pretty frugal, so that is saying a LOT lol.)

  • http://dresseduplikealady.blogspot.com/ Cammila

    This gives me such hope for staying raw on the road! The banana dipped in the raw granola — brilliant!

    And can I just say thank you for saying such sweet things about my “promise ring”? It honestly means so much to me, I can’t even tell you. :)

  • http://vegmomof4.blogspot.com/ April

    Looks yummo!

    I have a question for you:

    I am looking for some vegan/raw options for eating radish tops. I hope to be harvesting some soon from our garden. A quick internet search suggests sauteing them or making a Radish Top soup. I’m not too hip on their furry texture, so they might be out as salad greens. Besides your usual standbys of juicing or smoothies, what do you suggest? Blend into a bad@ss pesto?

  • Kathryn

    What a great post!! In a month we will be heading out on a 16 hour car ride to visit family. It’s nice to know that I can still pack healthy for my family while on the road.

  • http://www.freshfruition.com Tori (Fresh Fruition)

    The color of that guac is gorgeous! So bright green. Can I have some? ;)

  • http://www.peasandcrayons.com Jenn L @ Peas and Crayons

    Congrats on eating raw while traveling! thats major! I’m glad to hear the nursing trip works on kiddos! I’m certain i’ll have to fly with my future kiddo someday =)

    Happy WIAW dollface! <3

  • http://www.zerowastelifestyle.blogspot.com Sonja

    Can you recommend a great vegan recipe book that also has all the important nutritional information for getting all your dietary essentials from vegan food-something to read if you are new to the vegan lifestyle?
    Best Wishes

  • http://www.zerowastelifestyle.blogspot.com zerowastelifestyle

    Any ideas on a great book for vegan baking? My kids love to bake.
    Thanks

  • http://bonzaiaphrodite.com Sayward

    @ Nat – Yes, so much easier than you’d think! Eating “crap” on vacation used to be my MO, but I’d end up feeling so bad it really interfered with the fun of the trip! It took me a long time to figure out that eating right was SO worth it while traveling. Also, yup, always do my hair myself. Thanks!

    @ Sarah – It’s never, ever to early for guac. =)

    @ Whitney – Raw granola is aoooo amazing and the texture/feeling of it can be just the thing to stave off cooked food cravings. I don’t have a recipe up yet, but check this one from Gena: http://tinyurl.com/4x3zap2

    @ HetherG – Aw, thanks lady, I’m having so much fun with this series. Glad you guys like it too!

    @ Lydia – Thanks!

    @ Ginger Baker – Hey lady! Yeah, Jet Blue completely blew me away. I’ll fly into random small airports from now on just to use them. Hopefully they can keep (and build) their business. Both our flights were really empty, so here’s crossing our fingers!

    @ Camilla – Well you’re welcome, but really – thank YOU for sharing it all with us. Also, are you eating raw these days?

    @ April – Well, without juicing/smoothies/soups/salads, that does kind of limit your options, haha. I think pesto is a fantastic idea. Anyone else have ideas of creative ways to use radish tops?

    @ Kathryn – Totally possible. Car trips are the best. I’m all about apples/bananas and nut butters while on the road. =)

    @ Tori – I know, the avocados in SoCal are soooo amazing. I miss them!

    @ Jen L. – Thanks so much, our fearless leader!

    @ Sonja – Hmm, I actually don’t know of one book that has both a total nutritional overview *and* recipes. But I *highly recommend* Becoming Vegan for a fantastic explanation of vegan nutrition. There’s no recipes, but there are sample meal plans with nutritional breakdown, which really helps.

    There are also a few web resources. I love http://www.theveganrd.com/, written by a registered dietitian. Read through the old entries and you’ll get a good sense of what you need to pay attention to and more importantly, what you *don’t* need to worry about (most stuff!). Jack Norris is another RD (http://jacknorrisrd.com/) but his stuff is more dense, better to seek out if you’re looking for info on one particular nutrient.

    For cookbooks, there are so many! Everyone has their fave, but most would agree that Veganomicon is essential. Luck with everything, and congrats!

    @ zerowastelifestyle – The Joy Of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. Hands down, no questions. =)

  • http://cheapwineandcookies.blogspot.com Colleen

    I am SO excited to have found your blog (thanks to Mama’s Thyme)! I have never tried to go completely raw, but you did it beautifully. My passion is ethical eating, and raw definitely fits in with that. Really looking forward to exploring your blog futher.

    And Waits is ADORABLE.

  • http://easierthanyouthink.wordpress.com Ginger Baker

    @April Not raw, but I would try sauteeing them with ollive oil and garlic. Lots and lots of garlic, and maybe a squeeze of lemon….Mmmm now I am hungry!

  • http://windycityvegan.wordpress.com Monika {windycityvegan}

    That gRAWnola looks delish! And I *finally* jumped onto the WIAW bandwagon today.

    @Sonja: Veganomicon is awesome, but I have two more great recommendations.

    1] Isa’s more recent book, Vegan Reduction, was actually written in conjunction with a licensed dietician and does a really great job at breaking down what’s in each dish and talking about vegan dietary needs in the intro. I bough the book just for the salad dressing recipes, but I love everything I’ve tried so far. (Two words: Eggplant bacon!)

    2] Get it Ripe and Ripe Around Here (okay, so that’s two more books) by Jae Steele. Jae is a dietician and midwife-in-training. I bought Get it Ripe specifically for the multiple chapters on nutrition. They take up a third of the book!

    @zerowastelifestyle: The Joy of Vegan Baking is a great one to start with, but the recipes are a bit decadent – definitely not something you want to make every single time you bake, if you bake often. (And especially if you’re baking for children.)

    I would check out Have Cake Will Travel’s website for healthier options that you can bake daily without worrying about it being too rich for young kiddos. Many of those recipes are in her cookbook 500 Vegan Recipes.

  • http://www.zerowastelifestyle.blogspot.com Sonja [zerowastelifestyle]

    Thanks for the book recommendations-those books look super-had a peep at them on Amazon…….and I do have my birthday coming up next week and my hubby is still wondering what to get me…..I’m gonna put some of those titles on my b.day list…………

  • Minna

    I know it’s probably a little OT, but you are so pretty Sayward :) I love this photo of you!

  • http://miraz38.livejournal.com Mandie

    COMPLETELY off topic, but your eyes are stunning in the picture at the top! Glad to hear from you!

  • http://natsmithillustration.etsy.com Nat

    do you have a recipe for your gRAWnola?

  • http://peasoupeats.wordpress.com/ PeaSoup

    All your tips are so amazing – every one of ‘em! I can’t get enough of your blog. And your boy is just gorgeous – possibly one of the sweetest babies I have ever seen. I’m vegan but would love to incorporate more raw food into my diet, I start and stop – I think I do find it a wee bit daunting but you make it seem more manageable. I will try harder:)