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Home » DIY Recipes

Healthy Trail Mix

Published: Sep 4, 2020 · Modified: Nov 18, 2022 by Motions and Emotions

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Healthy Trail Mix contains combination of nuts, dried fruits and seeds which you can munch on the go. Trail mix is a perfect healthy snacking option.

Top view of healthy trail mix in a white bowl

Mixture of nuts, dried fruits and seeds is named as 'trail mix' because it's a non-perishable snack item which is easy to carry and fends off hunger due to its dense nature while you travel. While browsing I came to know there were two travelers who lost their path and survived nearly about a year on the stock of nuts and berries. So imagine just a handful of trail mix can keep you filled and fueled especially during hiking or travelling a long route.

Benefits of Trail Mix while you travel

  •  Light
  •  Portable
  •  Nutrient rich with energy dense ingredients

So does it mean trail mix is only restricted to travelers? Not  at all! Healthy trail mix is for everyone unless someone is allergic to nuts and other ingredients or have any other medical conditions. Trail mix is just right for your 4 pm hunger pangs when you crave for all the junks ?. Yes! this happens with me and trail mix helps to avoid me the junk foods.

Why do you need to prepare healthy trail at home?

There are plenty of trail mix options available in departmental stores. However, here is why homemade trail mix is way healthier than the store-bought one:

  • You are not aware of the sources of each ingredients.
  • Most of the store bought trail mix contains sugar coated nuts which are not good for health.
  • Ingredients are roasted in hydrogenated oils in most of the cases.
  • They use salt to make it salty in taste and you are not aware of the quality of salt used here.
  • Moreover, store-bought trail mix packs are heavy for your pocket and mostly available in bulk amount.

When you prepare trail mix at home it automatically becomes healthy because we can address all the above problems.

What are the common ingredients of trail mix?

Trail mix contains nuts, dried fruits and seeds.

Nuts: Nuts are primary ingredient of a trail mix. Nuts are good source of fat, fiber and protein. Hence, nuts can help to boost the energy and keep you full for longer time.  You can use any nuts of your choice in the trail mix. Most popularly used nuts in trail mix are almonds, cashews and peanuts. You can also add pistachios, pecans, walnuts, Brazilian nuts, Macadamaia nuts, etc. Click here to know more about nuts, their nutritional values and calorie counts. 

Dried Fruits: Dried fruits are great source of fiber and contains good amount of antioxidants. Fiber is good for fighting heart disease, obesity and some types of cancer.  Dried fruits have high sugar content and help to increase the blood sugar after a vigorous session of physical activity. Like different types of nuts you can add varieties of dried fruits in your trail mix. You can add different types of berries including cranberries, raspberries, blueberries, golden raisins, black raisins, dried bananas, pineapples, etc are good options.

Seeds: Seeds are also good source of fiber. they contain good fats and many essential vitamins and minerals. So it is good to incorporate different types of seeds in to your diet. Addition of seeds gives earthy flavors and crunchy texture to your trail mix.  Commonly used seeds are pumpkin seeds, melon seeds, sunflower seeds, etc.

Additional fun stuffs:  Apart from nuts, dried fruits and seeds, you can also add some fun stuffs to make your trail mix more interesting. You can add chocochips, M&Ms, popcorns, butterscotch chips, pretzels, etc. However, if you want to make a healthy trail mix avoid adding any fun stuffs or additional ingredients.

Do I need to roast the nuts and seeds before adding them to trail mix?

It is not mandatory to roast the nuts and seeds before adding them to trail mix, you can add raw nuts and seeds. However, I prefer to roast the nuts and seeds so that they remain crunchy and increase the shelf life. Avoid roasting them in oil, instead dry roast them for few minutes. After that allow to cool them and add to prepare your trail mix.

Should I add salt and sugar in my trail mix?

Store-bought trail mix contains added salt and sugar. Hence, when you are preparing at home, it's better to avoid adding salt and sugar to make the trail mix healthy. If you want you can add spices to add an extra flavor to your trail mix. You can season the mixture with sea salt, ground ginger, cinnamon powder, nutmeg powder, cardamom powder or cayenne pepper to make it flavorful.

Storage Instructions

After preparing the trail mix, store it in a dry air-tight container in a cool and dry place. It is good if you store in a glass jar for example mason jar.

Recipes you can make with Trail mix

Trail mix itself is a good snacking option. If you are making a large quantity of trail mix you can also use it to prepare other snacking options.

  •  You can make chocolate (dark or white chocolate) bark using your homemade trail mix mixture
  •  Homemade trail mix can be added while you are making your granola bar or energy bars.
  •  You can use it as topping while baking a homemade loaf cake or muffin.
  •  They come handy when you are making some no bake truffles. 

After knowing the benefits let's learn how to make trail mix. It's kind of a DIY weekend project! Check the ingredients given here and if you don't have all of them try to get them otherwise you can do it your way with less ingredients over the weekend and pack it in a small box and carry to your office on Monday morning. While your stomach starts growling at 4 pm you can snack healthy on your trail mix and stop your binge eating habit. These days the major problem is travel time especially in Tier I & 2 cities. So keep a box of trail mix in your bag which will be helpful while you travel. 

Top view of healthy trail mix in a white bowl
Print
5 from 13 votes

Healthy Trail Mix

Healthy Trail Mix contains combination of nuts, dried fruits and seeds. Trail mix is a perfect healthy snacking option.
Prep Time5 mins
Active Time15 mins
Course: Snack
Cuisine: American
Keyword: DIY Recipes, Healthy Snack, Trail Mix Recipes
Yield: 4

Materials

  • ½ cup Almonds
  • ½ cup Cashew Nuts
  • ¼ cup Walnuts
  • 3 tablespoons Black Raisins
  • 3 tablespoons Dried Cranberries
  • 3 tablespoons Dried Blueberries
  • 2 tablespoons Sunflower Seeds
  • 2 tablespoons Melon Seeds

Instructions

  • Dry roast almonds, cashews, walnuts, sunflower seeds and melon seeds each separately and allow to cool down.
  • Once they are cool add all the nuts,dried fruits and seeds in a big bowl. Give them a good mix. Alternatively, you can take all the ingredients in a zip-lock bag and shake well to mix them.
  • Take a dry airtight container and store it.  

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jagruti's Cooking Odyssey

    September 19, 2020 at 9:03 am

    Healthy trail mix is our go-to mid-morning snacking every day. So easy to prepare at home rather than buying shop-bought as sometimes they come with rancid nuts.

    Reply
  2. Padma Veeranki

    September 18, 2020 at 5:36 pm

    5 stars
    Trail mix is for sure a guilt free healthy snacking option and a great way to stay away from sweet snacks.....and very handy for traveling. Super share!!

    Reply
  3. Uma Srinivas

    September 17, 2020 at 5:12 pm

    5 stars
    Trail mix is a perfect healthy snacking option. and a perfect snack while traveling. your recipe looks easy and yummy.

    Reply
  4. Sandhya Nadkarni

    September 16, 2020 at 7:08 pm

    5 stars
    I am drooling over that snack mix! Homemade ones are so much fresher and I like the fact that we can add what we like. Great share!

    Reply
  5. Lata Lala

    September 16, 2020 at 5:30 pm

    5 stars
    These trail mixes comes to your rescue when hunger strikes. I love munching on it and you have made it so nutritious and healthy also.
    Lovely share.

    Reply
  6. Vandana

    September 16, 2020 at 12:48 pm

    5 stars
    Great recipe. Sounds so healthy and tasty. My husband and I travel to the Himalayas atleast once every year. Next time I will make this and carry along with me.

    Reply
  7. Priya Srinivasan

    September 15, 2020 at 5:58 pm

    5 stars
    Love this colorful and healthy trailmix! Nuts and seeds are our goto snack, love this guilt-free snack!

    Reply
  8. Pavani

    September 14, 2020 at 2:55 pm

    5 stars
    We LOVE trail mixes and your homemade version looks so so good. I am going to try your version real soon for the family. Love that it is easy and customizable.

    Reply
  9. The Girl Next Door

    September 12, 2020 at 4:18 am

    5 stars
    Totally love this recipe! I love the mix of nuts, dried fruit and seeds that you have used here - the trail mix must be so crunchy. So nutritious too. Who wouldn't like to snack on this? 🙂

    Reply
  10. Preethicuisine

    September 09, 2020 at 12:37 pm

    5 stars
    This trail mix is so light and nutritious. I can snack on them the whole day. Love this easy and quick recipe.

    Reply
  11. Jayashree T.Rao

    September 09, 2020 at 10:24 am

    5 stars
    This trail mix is a healthy snack for mid-day cravings too. Lovely write up on the trail mix. Keeping a trail mix will be handy for me to serve the desserts too.

    Reply
  12. Superduper kitchen

    September 09, 2020 at 6:05 am

    5 stars
    Healthy trail is a guilt free snack to munch on. Like you, I too have the evening 4 pm craving. And interesting to know the story about the travellers.

    Reply
  13. Malini

    September 09, 2020 at 4:24 am

    5 stars
    I love the trail mix. It’s healthy and it’s very filling as well. It’s my go-to snack in the morning and evening.. Keeping this ready at home would definitely help the sudden cravings. The colorful bowl looks so beautiful as well ☺️

    Reply
  14. Hem lata srivastava

    September 08, 2020 at 10:47 am

    5 stars
    Yes, Nuts are good source of fat, fiber and protein. This healthy trail mix is perfect brunch snack. lovely write up

    Reply
  15. Hema's Musings

    February 03, 2020 at 7:48 am

    Healthy,crunchy treat

    Reply
  16. Superduper kitchen

    January 30, 2020 at 3:51 am

    Perfect and Healthy snack to munch on. And loved the write up especially about the traveller.

    Reply
  17. Swati

    January 28, 2020 at 5:04 am

    Perfect handy snack for anytime hunger pangs or to pack for a busy day.. homemade are the best and loved your detailed post on how to make and store it.

    Reply
  18. Geetha

    January 09, 2020 at 10:47 pm

    Trial mix is such a handy snack to munch in evenings. Your trial mix recipe is definitely a healthy and a better way to stay away from sugary snacks.

    Reply
  19. Lathiya

    January 09, 2020 at 7:48 pm

    I love to have trail mix while traveling or for quick hunger pranks.Making it at home really sounds great.

    Reply
  20. JollyHomemadeRecipes

    January 09, 2020 at 10:05 am

    What an amazing & healthy treat it is, Amrita. You have elaborated your post so beautifully. I’m convinced to make this trail mix at home rather than opt for market one. Looks delicous and comes very handy on busy mornings.

    Reply
  21. Priya Srinivasan - I Camp in My Kitchen

    January 08, 2020 at 12:27 pm

    such a healthy snack! i always mix and match nuts and seeds for my evening snack, if i keep them roasted they just last only for 2 days, both my kiddos love this!!!! Beside the health quotient, love the colors when they are mixed together, just like a rainbow!

    Reply
  22. Vandana

    January 08, 2020 at 10:15 am

    Your recipe and story of the men who survived on this trail mix has reminded me how my parents used to fill roasted nuts and berries in the pockets of our school blazers so that we could munch on something healthy all the long. Never knew it has a name too :). Thanks for sharing this recipe.

    Reply
  23. Anshu

    January 08, 2020 at 8:29 am

    What a perfect and healthy snack to curb those untimely cravings anytime of the day!! Loved the share!!

    Reply
  24. Bless My Food by PAYAL

    January 06, 2020 at 6:17 pm

    What an amazing & healthy way to address hunger pangs. You have elaborated so beautifully and fully convinced why to opt for home made trail mix over the store brought one.

    Reply
  25. My Culinary Journey

    January 06, 2020 at 5:50 pm

    Trail mix is my on the go snack when i want to have something nourishing and filling after my gym session.
    Your detailed recipe for healthy trail mix is so good with tips.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Lata

    Reply
  26. Indfused

    January 06, 2020 at 3:21 am

    I cannot stop munching on yummy trail mixes like these. It is such a healthy treat too. Fabulous share!

    Reply
  27. Mayuri Patel

    January 04, 2020 at 3:15 pm

    I usually have a huge jar of trail mix all ready as hubby loves to munch on something while watching telly. A healthy and filling snack, the dried fruit also helps to take care of the sweet tooth.

    Reply
  28. Vanitha

    January 04, 2020 at 11:16 am

    All my favorites in one bite; nuts, dry fruits and everything good for you! Awesome share dear! If possible, I would empty the whole bowl in one go, but....:D

    Reply
  29. Sandhya Ramakrishnan

    January 04, 2020 at 5:14 am

    I always have a container of trail mix for snacking and these are our best friend when we are hiking. A lovely write up explaining the benefits of the trail mix and how to make it healthier by making it at home.

    Reply
    • Bless my food by Payal

      September 11, 2020 at 5:54 pm

      5 stars
      Something to munch is must at my place, especially for late night cravings, and what else could be easy and healthy than this. Superb idea indeed.

      Reply
  30. Ralph Kinney

    January 03, 2020 at 7:23 am

    Excellent food blog and amazing collection of yummy foods,we also have provided awesome foods with reasonable price. Get more info about holiday party venues

    Reply
  31. Julie

    December 31, 2019 at 8:23 am

    healthy snack, filling one too !!
    Happy New Year wishes dear 🙂

    Reply
  32. Angie's Recipes

    December 23, 2019 at 8:52 am

    I would probably snack on this all day long! LOL

    Reply

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Hello and Welcome to Motions and Emotions - Food Diary - one stop blog for everyday recipes. I am Amrita, a medical writer by profession and food blogger by passion.

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