Dinner in the Car

When I was growing up, we would drive from NY to FL every Easter vacation. We left after school and my mom would bring dinner for us to have at a rest stop. It was always the same: fried chicken! I forget what else, but that was the main thing. We always had drinks and snacks packed for the long car ride. If I were you I'd add veggies and dip and fruit to keep clean up simple.

Sandwiches. If you use meat and/or cheese, just pack them in a cooler. Easy to eat in the car because they're not messy and even the driver can eat it without problem/driving crazy.

When we go to see family that is about 6 hours away and will be in the car for usually lunch.. I always pack a cooler. Either make sandwichs ahead of time or on demand.. keep the bread near the cooler. Then we have a bag of chips or other snacks and juice boxes.

We have made simple pb&j, meat and cheese, subs
Snacks have been.. cut up fruit and veggies, chips, crackers, meat and cheese.

Its much easier to eat in the car and much cheaper than even going through a drive through.

an easy "tray" for kids is just take a cereal box and tape the open end closed and cut out one side. It saves the food from sliding and falling off of plates.

Take a cooler with fixings for sandwiches. Or make them before you go depending on what kind of sandwich you want. If we want them with meat and any condiments we take the fixings. If it's just PB&J we will make them ahead of time. That saves on time and money for sure.

Great a mini-vacation....So let the good times roll! Let your family go to a drive-thru and order what they want. Stop every 100 miles for a stretch and bathroom break. Make sure the driver(s) have some coffee or tea since you will be driving late at night after a long days work. Might even want to hit another drive-thru for a snack.

I would carry a cooler with water and extra food (just in case). I'm sure you have a first aid kit and extra blankets etc. I go with the "be prepared" concept. Have a great time.

Does your grocery store sell a whole fried chicken? Ours does and if you buy it at like 7 or 8 at night, the price is reduced to something like 3.99. I would refrigerate that overnight and make or buy some potatoe salad. Take an ice chest and keep it cold. Throw in a few bottles of water, individual apple sauce and fruit cups. Take plastic sppons. That way you can pull over at a reststop or roadside park. Let the kids get out and run off a little energy and have a picnic. Take goldfish and gummys for snacking in the car.

Grilled chicken breast cut into strips
Pita pockets
Julienned (sp?) veggies: carrots, red peppers, sno peas (leave as is)
Some kind of dressing (if you are brave to have this in car)

You could make a tupperware home-package, pre-made dinner for
each person. Think airline-style: chicken pita pockets pre-made (2per
person), applesauce pkt, sm bag of chips, fruit roll ups, cookies, cheese
& crackers, apple slices etc. All in one tray (tupperware w/lid)

Or you could make:
*pre-made burritos, chips
*pre-made sub sandwhiches, chips, apple, tangerines

*be sure to have a bag of extra food: dried fruit, nuts, juice boxes, bottled
water, chips, crackers, pretzels, fruit snacks, cookies, granola mix.
Hv a safe trip!

We sometimes pack a cooler with easy picnic things. Raw veggies and fruit, summer sausage, cheese, bottles of water, crackers, etc.

We find a place to stop and eat though. Three of us get carsick so eating in a moving vehicle is a bad plan. We'll eat at a park and then let the kids run around for a little bit, and use the bathroom, before getting back in the car.

Whatever you do, don't get Carl's Jr. Their tagline is "If it doesn't get all over the place, it doesn't belong in your face!" and boy, do they ever live up to that. My car still hasn't recovered from the great Carl's Jr dripsplosion of '09.

I'd just plan a rest stop in a couple of hours to eat because sitting for more than three hours at a time is no fun for ME... the kids, who have far less patience for long spells of sitting, would probably appreciate the ability to unbuckle and stand up. <3

When traveling growing up we always get one or two buckets of fried chicken and biscuts or corn bread and some kind of fruit like apples, oranges or bananas.

When traveling with my kids, I make wraps of different kinds and put them in the cooler. We try to limit water and liquids because the more liquids the more bathroom breaks.

I hate eating in the car. I worked child care for many years. Choking is a silent killer. I stress out if I can't see everyone's faces. I hate eating off my lap and trying to balance everything. I think taking time to eat a large snack as soon as everyone is home then leaving would be what I would do.

Otherwise I would just take time to stop and eat. Even if you didn't have the money to eat out, you could pack a picnic and stop at a local school or large park to eat. While you are setting everything out the kiddo's can run off some energy and then settle down to eat and back to travel. Plus getting the full meal out of the way before nightfall is important too.

And as much as everyone tries to keep the car clean there will be accidents. Then what? Do you give them your food? Stop at a rest stop and clean food off the carpet? Try to figure out how to get juice out of the cracks of the seats? It is just too messy for me.

Anything NOT greasy!!! I would go for subs or wraps (wraps keep the chicken strip mess contained) light on the sauce and condiments to avoid leakage.

I know my kids like simple melted cheese roll ups with carrots (no dip in the car!).

I think sandwiches are the best for in the car. They seem to leave the least amount of mess, you don't want greasy foods or stuff that leave lots of crumbs (gooey or not). Also bring fruit, crackers or finger type foods to snack on.
When we take long car trips I have my daughter pack her lunch box with things she likes to eat. Sandwiches, chicken nuggets, apple slices, bananas crackers or cookies, etc. I have it so that she can get out what she wants when she is hungry. I also keep a cooler in the car, I have one that Coleman makes and it plugs into the car no ice needed.

I don't know if the kids can handle this, but as adults, we really like doing sandwiches. improvised double decker pizza slices are good too. This takes some planning on your part. Buy two slices per serving, place face to face, (crust side out), wrap in a paper towel and then in aluminum foil. Peel back the foil and paper for an excellent (not too messy meal).

car friendly snacks, in my mind are things which both aren't greasy and aren't crumbly:

carrot sticks,
peanut butter filled pretzels
bananas
salad in a venti sized starbucks iced beverage cup. drizzle with dressing right before serving, shake and serve.
snow/snap peas.
a box of strawberries
ears of corn.

Have fun.
F. B.

Sandwiches, always sandwiches. I have eight kids and we like to make a couple of big, big Sub sandwiches with everything you can think of on them. Some chips and some sliced apples or a few bananas will finish off the meal. My kids also love cold chicken as a travel meal but I've got weird kids. If you've got the time and aren't rushing around like a maniac, which is what I'm usually doing before a big trip, some little pizzas made on english muffins are more nutritious and you feel like you've actually made them a meal and they're easy for the little ones to handle and eat. Always, always bring extra paper plates and bowls on a trip. They come in handy for everything from snacks to drawing faces.