SNACK · NO COOK · 5 MIN · 6 SERVINGS
Trail-mix that's actually fuel.
Most trail mix is a cup of granola with three almonds and a raisin — 30g of carbs and 4g of protein. This one inverts that: chopped Genesee Coffee Latte bar, grass-fed beef jerky, raw macadamias, dried tart cherries. About 25g of complete protein per serving. Travels in any pocket; lasts a week on the desk.
Why this works
Built for the daypart that ruins clean eating: 3 PM at a desk, hour 14 of a duty shift, the airport gate at 6 AM. Most travel snacks are seed-oil rocks or sugar bombs disguised as 'energy.' This mix is shelf-stable for a week, fits a sandwich bag, and lands at ~25g of complete protein per serving from real food — the bar carries the macros, the jerky doubles them, the macadamias and cherries do the flavor work.
Ingredients
- 2 Genesee Coffee Latte bars, chopped into 1/2-inch chunks
- 4 oz grass-fed beef jerky, torn or scissor-cut into bite pieces (Chomps Original or Country Archer Original both work)
- 1 cup raw unsalted macadamia nuts (or pecan halves if macadamias are unavailable)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened dried tart cherries (or unsweetened dried blueberries)
- Optional: 1/4 cup 70%+ dark-chocolate chips for a sweeter mix; pinch of flaky sea salt
Method
- 1
Chop the Genesee bars on a board with a sharp knife — aim for irregular 1/2-inch chunks, not powder. Cold bars from the fridge cut cleaner if your kitchen runs warm.
- 2
Tear or scissor-cut the jerky into bite-size pieces. Bigger pieces hold up better in a backpack; smaller pieces distribute the savory note through every handful.
- 3
Combine the chopped bar, jerky, macadamias, and dried cherries in a large bowl or zip-top bag. Toss until evenly mixed.
- 4
Portion into six 1/2-cup servings — a sandwich bag, a small jar, or whatever travels with you. Stash one in a duty bag, one at the desk, one in the car. The mix keeps a week at room temperature and longer in the fridge.
Notes & variations
- Macros (per 1/2-cup serving): ~310 cal · 25g protein · 16g carbs · 18g fat. Protein is split roughly half from the bar (egg + dairy) and half from the jerky (beef) — complete amino-acid coverage from two animal sources.
- Why macadamias: they're the only common nut with a fat profile dominated by monounsaturated fat (close to olive oil) and effectively zero polyunsaturated fat. That keeps the seed-oil-free positioning of the bar consistent through the whole mix. Pecans are the next-best swap.
- Why tart cherries: tart-cherry skins carry the antioxidants endurance athletes already use cherry juice for, and they're sweeter than they look — 1/2 cup is enough to make the mix read like a snack, not a ration. Dried blueberries are the closest swap.
- Field-tested swaps: Coffee Latte chopped → use Snickerdoodle if you want sweeter, White Chocolate Toffee for dessert-leaning. Jerky → biltong works too if you can source grass-finished. Avoid teriyaki / brown-sugar jerky styles; the seasoning fights the cherry.
- Travel ration math: 6 servings × ~310 cal = 1860 cal of shelf-stable real food in one bag. That's two days of conditioning fuel for a JV basketball player on a road trip, or four days of 'don't fall apart at the airport' for the rest of us.
Personas this fuels
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