Healthy Travels: Israel

This blog, Trail of Kale originally began as a platform to record my vegan eats while studying abroad in Ghana in the fall of 2010. You may be able to infer by the lack of posts from that time, internet was not the only thing that was sparse in that country. Grumbly stomachs aside, I learned a lot from my travels- how to prepare and how to improvise when you are completely unprepared in a foreign place. Although I've heard nothing but wonderful things about the food situation in Israel (i.e salad for breakfast!) I'm leaning towards over-preparation. Between long plane rides, hiking and generally eating in a group of 40+ people, in the worst case scenario I'll make a new friend over some dark chocolate?

L-R: 2 bars of dark chocolate (don't want to worry about hidden milk derivatives in a foreign language) various types of raw trail mixes for hikes, various food-based protein bars (Pure bars have a simple ingredient list and Macrobars are my new found on the go obsession! the coconut granola one tastes like candy!) Yogi Tea bags for morning and evening and some stomach ease thrown in there, nut butter packets and an sleepy eye mask because the best way to fight jet-lag is sleep. 

L'hitraot! (see you soon)

Hemp protein barz

These little green bars are full of protein and will keep you energized for hours. They are subtly sweet and have the consistency of fudge when left out at room temperature. They are also great for travel :)

Dry ingredients:

1cup raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

1cup coconut shreds **plus more for topping the bars 

1/2cup hemp protein powder (I used Nutiva brand)

4T chia seeds

4T flax seeds

dash of pink Himalayan sea salt

Wet ingredients:

1cup dates, pitted and soaked overnight

1cup prunes, soaked overnight

1t spiralina

4T raw cacao powder

1cup Brown rice puffs


In a food processor or blender, pulse the dry ingredients quickly. Do not over-process, or it will turn to nut butter. You want a chunky consistency. Place the mixture in a bowl and set aside. 

Add all wet ingredients to the food processor or high speed blender and blend to combine. This might take some time, and if your blender isn’t strong enough you might have to help out by stirring around a few times with a fork or add a dash of water.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, add puffed brown rice and stir until well combined. 

Spread the batter evenly into a 11 x 7-inch (28 x 18 cm) baking dish, make sure it becomes quite compact. Place in the fridge for about 30 minutes. Cut into bars. **Optional: press extra coconut flakes onto the top of the bars**

Wrap them in paper and store in an air-tight container. Will keep around a week in the fridge.