Packing food for air travel

[NatesMom]

I find eating while flying a challenge. I have a nut allergy  - all nuts. I'm also allergic to beans, legumes, and lentils. Recently, I was diagnosed with a thyroid condition and have found a gluten-free diet is making me feel *much* better.

I have a 7-hour flight coming up in February. I've checked the offerings on the aircraft and there is very little available that I'd be able to eat.

What gluten-free, nut-free snacks to others like to make - and are OK to take across the Canada/U.S. border? 

[vineviz]

Dried fruit for carbs (banana chips, dried apple slices, etc.) and beef jerky for protein work really well for me.  Finding dried fruit without a ton of added sugar takes a little effort but is worth it, and I like jerky from Healthy Jerky Company because it is much lower in sodium.

With the dried fruit, you may need to exercise caution since these products are sometimes packed in the same facilities as nuts.

[emili]

we recently flew from the US to Canada to England to Italy. No one questioned any snacks that I had in my carry on. So I think unless you are going to take a five course meal, you should be OK to take whatever normal things you eat as snacks or quick meals. I had pretzels, trail mix, combos, granola, cliff bars and some other things. The only restrictions were liquids. Even unopened you can't bring them with you. But the offerings on the plane are good, so it wasn't an issue.

[NatesMom]

Thanks for your feedback. I'm not able to take most of what you suggest because of the nut allergy. Snack foods are usually fruits or vegetables. I'm flying quite a bit this month and paying attention to what's available on the plane. I'll see about making my own trail mix with seeds and raisins.

[NatesMom]

Thanks for your feedback. I was wondering if dried fruit was allowed. I've since learned there is a website that lists the fruits/vegetables allowed across the border, so may print it out and take it with me. I'm thinking that purchasing a dehydrator will become necessary to have healthy snacks.

Thanks for letting me to know where to get low sodium jerky. I bloat up so badly with the regular jerky!!

[vineviz]

Keep in mind that fruit and vegetble restictions are usually based on agricultural concerns (disease, invasive plants).  Processed versions, including dried, are likely allowed even if fresh versions are not.

VV