OT (slightly) gluten- & dairy-free when camping

[napstress]

I have confirmed that a gluten- and dairy-free diet is essential to my sleep consolidation. Having clear sinuses is vital for me for success with CPAP therapy. So, I am finding it much easier to stick to this diet than before my diagnosis. So much so, that I want to stick with it even for a few days of camping and being on the road.

Does anyone have any suggestions for what I might eat while camping and on a road trip? I'm not sure if I will have access to an open fire while camping. But we will be bringing a cook stove. On the drive I will have no means of heating the food. I will need one meal on the driving days.

For protein, I'm thinking that I could cook up before the trip a bunch of chicken and meatballs, and bring a tin of sardines. I could also bake ahead of time a loaf of the almond-flour bread.

For carbs—which I don't eat much of anyway—I could cook up some sweet potatoes and quinoa. I rarely eat fruit.

For vegetables, I could have a V8 each day, but would like to have some vegetables at the other meals as well. Maybe I could cook some broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, collards, onions, etc., and make a gravy to make them tastier.

These are my best ideas. Anyone have other ideas or suggestions about food-management for restricted diets while camping?

Thanks!

[PUFFERETTE]

i am celiac and must eat a gluten-free diet every day. To add to the confusion, I don't enjoy cooking very much. So I find that eating food in it's purest state works best for me. Raw vegetables in the form of salads with a little olive oil and vinegar, some raisins & nuts scan keep me going for a long time. I'm vegetarian, but you could toss in some cooked chicken or a tin of tuna-fish or salmon and have a really good-for-you meal. There are loads of gluten-free boxed cereals and breads on the grocery shelves, if you like that sort of things. Enjoy your camping trip.

[Janknitz]

Jerky is a very portable protein snack (read ingredients or make your own), nuts, carrots, celery, snap Peas to dip in hummus, hard boiled eggs, BBQ chicken to eat cold. I eat almond butter with a spoon ;o)

For breakfast yo might consider a whey protein shake. Take a shaker bottle to mix it up.

On the road we usually stop at a fast food hamburger place (in and out is my favorite) for a "protein style" burger (wrapPed in lettuce instead of a bun). If you eat fries (I don't) be aware that some fast food places put flour in their fries. Ask 1st.

[BlackSpinner]

One of the things I would take camping is felafel mix. It is tasty and all you do is add water and fry it up. Since most of the camping I did was via canoe or bicycle, food had to be light and not require refrigeration. Canned sausages, dried sausage, peanut butter on crackers and stuff like that.

[chunkyfrog]

Don't forget those little foil pouches of tuna!
Put hard-cooked eggs in the cooler, and tiny cherry tomatoes
Green onions and radishes, too.
Olive oil and your favorite flavor of vinegar --no refrigeration until you mix them.
While you are in the wilderness, don't forget forage.
Lamb's quarters this time of year are tender and small and rival the costliest lettuce for flavor and nutrition.

[Linus]

Leave the grains behind. Stick with meats, vegetables, and fruit. I once brought Steak along on a camping trip. Eggs work well. So does canned chili. If you can avoid cross contamination by covering any community grill cooking surface with aluminium foil. Bring a deep cycle battery and your cpap too.


Btw I am a celiac. Gluten is only part of the issue. The gluten free alternatives are too starchy. Avoid them if you can.

[SleepyToo2]

Jerky is a very portable protein snack (read ingredients or make your own), nuts, carrots, celery, snap Peas to dip in hummus, hard boiled eggs, BBQ chicken to eat cold. I eat almond butter with a spoon ;o)

For breakfast yo might consider a whey protein shake. Take a shaker bottle to mix it up.

On the road we usually stop at a fast food hamburger place (in and out is my favorite) for a "protein style" burger (wrapPed in lettuce instead of a bun). If you eat fries (I don't) be aware that some fast food places put flour in their fries. Ask 1st.

Some good suggestions here, but a couple of points. Last time I looked (which was a while ago) whey protein was a milk protein. Secondly, you also need to be careful about the burgers - they may use breadcrumbs, which will contain gluten, and possibly milk. Eating fries is risky, not just because they might use flour but also because they may be cooked in oil that has been used to cook gluten or dairy-containing foods (think fried fish, cheese fries, etc). Life on the road/trail is not easy when you are gluten and dairy-free! Going to a foreign country is particularly difficult, because you really need to know the lingo for dairy and gluten-free! Add to that the fact that people you are talking with may not understand what you are saying (even when they speak English!), and you get an idea of the complexity of the situation. Oh, and have sleep apnea as well? Fuhgeddaboutit!

[napstress]

Thanks, everyone. I will add hard-boiled eggs, salad stuff, tuna fish, and salmon to my list!

[the_nap_ster]

Another celiac here, so I'm 100% gluten-free, and I follow HFLC by choice. (Though HFLC is the only diet that healed my damaged villi -- even eight years of strict GF couldn't do that for me -- so it is clearly the diet my body needs to be healthy.)

One thing that has gotten me out of a lot of tight food spots is energy dense balls or snacks that I make in advance. Something like these: http://www.primalbody-primalmind.com/?p=459

I don't use dairy butter in mine, but here's the basic formula: Take about 1 cup almond (or other nut) butter. Mix in a bit of vanilla, a few tablespoons of coconut flour, shredded coconut, sesame seeds, chia seeds, chocolate nibs, whatever -- this is all up to your taste. Scoop/roll the mixture into little balls, chill to firm up, and wrap each ball in wax paper. Bring wherever, eat wherever you want, no refrigeration required. They are portable, filling, full of fiber/nutritive value, and so (!) delicious.

They can get a little sticky/melty in very hot weather, but that's why I wrap them individually in wax paper. Take the individually-wrapped balls, pop 'em in a tupperware, and you're good to go. On long road trips, while everyone else is stopping for greasy fast food, my sweetie and I pull these out and enjoy.

[portiemom]

I am LCHF, and I love nitrate free bacon, so I'll cook up a bunch and take with my hard boiled eggs and eat it cold, or crumble it on veggies, helps stave of hunger too!

[napstress]

Bacon and nut-ball snackers: great ideas, both! Thank you!

The bacon in the nut-ball snackers sounds good too...