Banana Split Gorp
Candy, nuts, and three dried fruits. A split sundae with the ice cream removed.
- calories
- 320
- weight
- 2 oz
- cal / oz
- 160
- protein
- 7 g
- serves
- 10, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 0 min
- total time
- 10 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Snack
- No cook
- Backpacking
- Day hike
- Thru-hike
- Car camping
- Bikepacking
- Canoe / raft
- Vegetarian
- Gluten free
- Eat in the bag
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Dump and stir
Ingredients
| Plain M&M's | 1 large bag | plain only, peanut butter cups melt into paste |
|---|---|---|
| Cocktail peanuts | 1 can | |
| Walnut pieces | 1 can | |
| Candied pecans | 1 pouch | |
| Dried banana chips | 1 pouch | |
| Dried pineapple chunks | 1 pouch | |
| Freeze-dried strawberry slices | 1 pouch |
Method
- Dump everything into a large bowl at home and turn it over with your hands until the fruit stops clumping.
- Portion into snack-sized bags, roughly a cupped handful each.
- If the mix will sit in a bin for weeks, hold the strawberries back and drop them in the day you leave.
- Eat straight from the bag on the trail.
The whole thing is an assembly job, but the ratios decide whether it works. Peanuts and walnuts are the bulk and most of the fat, the pecans and M&M’s carry the sugar, and the three fruits do the flavor work. Banana chips are fried, so they land closer to a chip than a fruit and add more calories than their weight suggests.
Freeze-dried strawberries are the fragile part. They pull moisture out of the air and go leathery, and they turn to red dust if the bag gets crushed. Adding them at the last minute keeps them crisp, and packing in small bags keeps the crushing to one serving instead of the whole batch.
Packing
Single-serving bags, not one big sack. Small bags stay sealed most of the day, and nobody is reaching a dirty hand into the shared food. In heat, bury the bags in the middle of your pack where the M&M's stand a chance.
Variations
- Swap the candied pecans for plain ones if the mix is coming out too sweet.
- Cocoa nibs or chopped dark chocolate hold up better than M&M's above 85 degrees.
- Dried cherries in place of the pineapple move it toward a black forest version.
https://trailcooking.com/snacks/banana-split-trail-mix