The brown stuff they spread on veggie sandwiches?

Husband and I recently enjoyed Boston! There were many many things to do that were free and interesting both. So an excellent weekend trip.

That being said, any and all travel is expensive.

I am a big believe in attempting to save money while traveling. In the pursuit of cost effectiveness, plus the fact that we were flying ACROSS THE COUNTRY, I made us breakfast and lunch for travel day to there.
For breakfast, I made a batch of the granola bars I discovered when we headed Brazil at the new year. Also, as we were flying on my birthday, I made a coffee cake which Husband put 3 candles in...at 4 in the morning.

For lunch, I offered to make Quinoa Salad or a Pasta Salad for Husband, but he was honest with me, fortunately, reminding me that he really enjoys a good sandwich. Plus, a sandwich would be easier to pack in the long run and make one for our friend Z who was traveling with us.

So I put together a few smoked meat and cheese sandwiches with lettuce, onion and a mustard packet on the side. The dried salami keeps and doesn't soggy up the bread. I used spinach as it is a great source of iron and is hearty enough to survive a few hours on a sandwich before being consumed.

I also made a veggie snack roll up for each of us.

I spread some homemade Hummas (see below) on a whole grain tortilla and then layer on shredded beets, carrots, red onion, spinach, and zucchini and rolled it up in some plastic wrap. A fiber/protein punch in the gut!

Here is the Better than Store Brought Hummus Recipe:
Ingredients

One 15-ounce can (425 grams) chickpeas, also called garbanzo beans

1/4 cup (59 ml) fresh lemon juice, about 1 large lemon

1/4 cup (59 ml) tahini (we used Krinos)

Half of a large garlic clove, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for serving

1/2 to 1 teaspoon kosher salt, depending on taste

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

2 to 3 tablespoons water

Dash of ground paprika for serving

Method

Preparing the Hummus

In the bowl of a food processor, combine tahini and lemon juice. Process for 1 minute. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl then turn on and process for 30 seconds. This extra time helps “whip” or “cream” the tahini, making smooth and creamy hummus possible.

Add the olive oil, minced garlic, cumin and the salt to whipped tahini and lemon juice. Process for 30 seconds, scrape sides and bottom of bowl then process another 30 seconds.

Open can of chickpeas, drain liquid then rinse well with water. Add half of the chickpeas to the food processor then process for 1 minute. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl, add remaining chickpeas and process for 1 to 2 minutes or until thick and quite smooth.
Most likely the hummus will be too thick or still have tiny bits of chickpea. To fix this, with the food processor turned on, slowly add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water until the consistency is perfect. 

Besides the yumminess and simplicity of hummus, I wanted to try to make something new to me so I decided to attempt a Japanese snack that I watched my Bro Bro and Tsumi make for Thing 1 while they were here: Onigiri. If you are unfamiliar with Onigiri, you should look into it as it is a very versatile, albeit not the healthiest of snacks. I didn't get too exciting and just went with what was easy for a filling. I used a bit of leftover salmon that I had made for dinner the night before we flew with a sprinkle of almond meal.

The rice never got quite dry enough, though it was sticky enough. I think I will try this dish again, but not add quite so much water to the rice.  The salmon was nice, but I think that I will go for the dried salmon flakes. next time as well.

So for travel day made:
Coffee Cake for breakfast at home
Meat and Cheese Roll up for on the road
Hummas Veggie Roll up for on the road
Onigiri for on the road

We did the math. We spent about $240 over the 5 day trip. We had to eat out for EVERY meal, many of those in the Convention Center. Thought that number is about  two thirds of our normal MONTHLY budget, we really ended up spending about $20 a day on food per person including afternoon coffee and snacks. I think that we had a mini fridge or cooler pack, that I could have pack more snacks/light lunches, but I feel like that might have just been over kill. Any who...

Until the next trip...

**Today's title is 2 parts, you will see the full quote tomorrow!**