I'm trying to find an alternative to the calorically inefficient tortillas that I usually take to spread peanut butter on. At 83 calories to ounce, i feel that this is the one area that I could improve on for a thru-hike. I looked briefly in the cracker isle and didn't find anything promising. I tried to shy away from the organic/whole foods isle because I didn't want to spend $3+ for a sleeve of crackers. Ideas anyone?

Edit: I just discovered Wasa Sesame Crispbread on amazon. At 120 calories per ounce, this is much better than tortillas. Keep the ideas coming though.

Edited by vaporjourney on 03/13/2008 16:42:52 MDT.

I have never tried this, but what about replacing your tortilla with pringles? Extreme Cheddar pringles:

Serving Size 1 Ounce (28 g, approx. 15 crisps)
Servings Per Container approx. 6
Amount Per Serving
Calories 150 Calories from Fat 90
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 11 g 16%
Saturated Fat 3 g 15%
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 0 mg 0%
Sodium 190 mg 8%
Total Carbohydrate 14 g 5%
Dietary Fiber 1 g 3%
Sugars 1 g
Protein 1 g

Vitamin A 0% • Vitamin C 6% •
Calcium 2% • Iron 0%

Pilot crackers have a little over 100 calories per ounce, can be bought in bulk, are cheap, tasty and plain enough for me to eat every day. Here is the information for mountain house crackers.

NUTRITION FACTS
Serving Size 1 Cracker (13g) (about 1/2 oz)
Servings per Container - About 70
Amount per serving
Calories 50
Calories from Fat 15
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 1.5g 2%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 55mg 2%
Total Carbohydrates 9g 3%
Dietary Fiber Less than 1g 4%
Sugars 1g
Protein1g
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 2% Iron 4%



PRODUCT INFORMATION
Ingredients:
Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Vegetable Shortening (Contains One or more of the following partially hydrogenated oils: Soybean, Canola, Cottonseed), Sugar, Corn Syrup, Whey, Leavening (Sodium Bicarbonate Phosphate, Ammonium Bocarbonate), Salt.

Tortillas if you get whole wheat or low carb versions do offer something in benefit: fiber! Lots of it.....
Honestly though, if you are smearing a ton of PB on them it evens out in the end.

I HAD to go back to tortillas now with braces on. I also had to give up kettle cooked potato chips due to being too crunchy.

I like the idea of using pringles as a base to put Peanut Butter upon, but they just are too brittle I'd think. I have considered eating an entire tube of Pringles for lunch/snack, but never using a few to spread something on. The same thing applies with chips. I find it hard to believe that they wouldn't crumble when you put a bit of force on them with a spork smeared with PB..then again I've never tried.

Yeah... there are actually some of the whole wheat / low carb tortillas that I prefer the taste of as compared to normal white tortillas.

And when combined with Peanut Butter? mmm..... add some honey? aaaaaahhhhhh......

I had purchased some low carb tortillas recently and I thought they were horrible. Even while gently heated in a saute pan, they still maintained the consistency of cardboard. IMO, not worth the carb savings.

Back to the peanut butter though... I wonder if you can thin the peanut butter out so it's more of a dip. Actually, a dark chocolate covered pringle, dipped into a peanut butter dip would be awesome!

Frank,

The ones I like are, I think, the Carb Balance Whole Wheat Tortillas by Mission Tortillas... don't taste like cardboard at all. Now, the multi-grain on the other hand... blech...

http://www.missionmenus.com/Pantry.aspx

Sure...mix it with Nutella ;-) Wooooo......

I buy an even better version of it in Asian grocery stores (why it is sold there I have NO idea but whadda I care?). It is imported from Belgium and or the Netherlands and is a marbled mix of chocolate hazelnut and white hazelnut spread. Pure fat. So good!

There used to be tortillas made by the French Meadow Bakery called Sprouted Hemp Tortillas that had around 210 calories per tortilla, and around 17 grams of fat. Calorically they are awesome, unfortunately if they aren't toasted they taste a little strange. The sprouted hemp bread by french meadow bakery is also very similar. These have an extremely low glycemic index and provide a very good source of calories. The hemp bread with hummus is off the chains. Hemp seed is also a tasty and nutritious alternative to flax seed.

Last summer I discovered "Stax" "Potato Crisps". A much (IMHO) tastier chip than Pringles.

The neat thing about Pringles is that they make GREAT fire starters! No kidding.

Safeway used to carry pilot crackers, but I can't find them there anymore. As a replacement I now use Ak-mak crackers, made of whole wheat with sprinkles of sesame, they're great with pb. And they hold up fairly well to the rigors of backpacking. Happy trails!

Out hiking we love Trader Joe Multi-Grain Pretzel Nuggets and although it would be fiddly to spread PB on them, that would taste great. We added them to bags of dried fruit and nuts (which made them a bit soft after a few days and we still loved them). They have 110 calories per OZ (and 1 g dietary fiber per OZ) and cost about $1.20 per 8 OZ bag.

When I've asked thru hikers what their favorite food is, their sentiment is often 'anything we haven't been eating' so it may be good to have a few selections in this category.

Edited by lollygag on 03/21/2008 13:15:50 MDT.

I switched to WASA crisp breads a few years ago and they are great! Lots of different flavours available (I like the Multi-grain) and they hold up really well in a pack (I bundle them in small stacks to make little bricks). Not only do they go well with various spreads but I like to break them up and toss them into my pot of soup to add some bulk.

this a bit off topic but you guys ever try Ultralight Joes moose goo? I made it a few times tastes edible and ever better with a bit more honey.

Wow... talk about blast from the past... haven't made the stuff in a few years... but yeah, it's good. Real good. Especially if, as you alluded to, you dink around with the recipe a bit to really make it yours.

Yep.... It is great.... used it off and on for the last 5 years....it travels well.... easy in squeeze tube if it is above freezing...Be sure to use corn flour and not corn meal.

Pan

Sounds like you would be interested in Pilot Bread. The kind I'm familiar with is called Sailor Boy and is made by Interbake Foods in Virginia. 98% of their product is consumed in Alaska; originally by necessity but now through tradition. Personally I hate it, but lots of people swear by it with peanut butter, stew, or heated up with butter on it. In fact, people love it so much that there was a mass scare and hoarding last fall after (false) rumors that it was going out of production. Check it out; the box is blue and white and delivers 2 pounds of hard dry dense calories (100 per cracker, 20% from fat).

Edited by sheilabaynes on 05/14/2008 18:02:29 MDT.