Save Money with this Easy to Make Snack that’s Great on the Go!

It’s the season to hit the trails, and what better snack than trail-mix. It offers variety, longevity, you can eat it on the go and easily share with friends. But not all trail-mixes are created equal, and the better options (with organic super-foods, or dry-roasted nuts for example) come with a hefty price tag.

There are other cons to store bought trail-mix…

Not Enough of the Good Stuff

Even in the higher-end trail mixes the “good stuff” is scarce. The pictured mix below was priced at $5.49 for 150g and even still there were only 2 Brazil nuts in the entire package. Interestingly, there is no shortage of raisins despite raisins barely making an appearance in the package photo.

More Calories from Added Candy and Confectionary

Some trail-mixes contain extra calories from the inclusion of chocolate covered nuts or confectionery. Even worse, sometimes the chocolate is in chocolate chip form and melts all over the rest of the trail-mix while you’re on the trail!

Higher In Saturated Fat from the Roasting Methods

In order to keep costs down, pre-packaged mixes don’t usually contain dry-roasted nuts. With regular roasting practices vegetable oil is added and more nutrients are lost compared to dry-roasting.

They Often Contain Peanuts, Lots of Peanuts!

This more affordable mix pictured below, $3.49 for 150g, was heavy on the peanuts.

It contained both peeled halved peanuts and whole peanuts with their skin.

Maybe if they include them in two variations you won’t notice it’s essentially a peanut mix and not a trail-mix?

Benefits of Making Your Own Trail-Mix

I tried making my own mix to see if I could include a lot more high end ingredients at a lower price tag than the store bought options.

There are many other benefits of making your own custom trail-mix aside from the cost. For starters you control what makes the cut. Imagine a trail-mix that contains only your favourites!

 

You Have the Option of Choosing Organic or Dry-Roasted Products

Dry-roasted nuts retain more of their nutritional value and don’t have any added fat or sugar in processing. Just delicious roasted flavour!

Customize Your Blends with Allergies in Mind

Make your custom trail-mix “School Safe” by avoiding nuts.

You Can Pick Nutrient Rich Options 

Your mix can be full of super-foods like goji berries, wild blueberries, and mulberries that are high in vitamins and antioxidants. Make the most of snack time!

Save Money by Shopping at Bulk Stores 

Not only will you save money by shopping at bulk stores, you’ll be able to control the proportions of each ingredient in your trail-mix and choose from countless options.

I shopped at Pestacio and created my own custom “Sofia’s Super Trail-Mix” with nutrient packed options my family and I enjoy. It included:

• Brazil Nuts (As many as my heart desired!)
• Dry Roasted Macadamia Nuts (So good!)
• Honey Roasted Chickpeas (Added a nice sweet crunch)
• Dried Jackfruit (tastes like birthday cake!)
• Organic Dried Banana with Lime Juice (a mojito in snack form!)
• Dried Batata (tastes like cotton candy!)
• Dark Chocolate Covered Raisins (Rich and soft, a nice shift in texture)

The Bottom Line

I bought 2.3 lbs of assorted organic and dry-roasted trail-mix ingredients for $34.00 from Pestacio. So for an 150g bag of Sofia’s Super Trail Mix it would cost me $4.88, 61 cents cheaper than the high-end packaged trail-mix but with a larger proportion of the good stuff!

The great thing about Pestacio is you can’t go wrong; they have so many delicious options sourced from all around the world. Their aim is to shop direct from the source and to offer organic and dry-roasted options with no added fat or sugar in the roasting process. Their products retain a high nutrient value and the nutritional benefits are listed clearly on the lid bins. You can read my full review of Pestacio as well as all about their wonderful products in this post. I hope I’ve inspired you to try creating your own unique trail-mix blend this hiking season (=

What would go in your custom Trail-Mix?

 

Sofia Martimianakis