Planning everything we will eat for two months is an interesting experience, cooking it is even more so.
May 2014 was our “month of food”. We planned, cooked and dehydrated all of the meals for our 600 mile High Sierra Loop. Past long distance hiking trips have taught us that variety is key. This fact was brought in to sharp focus on out first PCT trek after 43 day of eating oatmeal every morning triggered a mini two person revolt and a lot of trading out for other breakfasts at any hiker box we could find. 
This year we bought a Garden Master Food Dehydrator (high recommended) and home cooked may of our meals. We made chili, pasta sauce and lentil salad among other lunches and dinners. We dehydrated jam for PB&Js that we’ll make with bannock, a trail cooked quick bread. We will also dine of trail pizza make with the same bannock and the pièce de résistance, trail chaat, a simplified just add water bhel puri with powdered spices that is SO delicious. 
Over our long distance trips we have realized how important snacks are to keeping your energy up will striding through the miles. This year we fell in love with Kind bars. These scrumptious treats are made of nuts, fruit and honey as a binder. The only down side to Kind bars is their high price tag, especially when buying more than 100 for our trip. So, we developed and made the Sati Roll, a Kind bar inspired treat. Sati Rolls are even more delicious and are packed with energy dense goodness. Yum!
A fact of a long distance trip like ours is that within a few weeks it is just not possible to carry enough food to meet your body’s calorie demands. Some estimate that a backpacker covering 20 miles in a day requires somewhere in the neighborhood of 7000 calories to do it. In reality, it is weight prohibitive to carry more than about 3500 calories/day. This results in a constant and incredible hunger that is unlike anything we have ever experienced in the “normal” world. When we get out to a trailhead that has a grill or restaurant we will gorge ourselves in almost inhuman ways. 
To combat this crazy hunger we also fish. Supplementing our diet with trout from Sierra lakes and streams provides us with something healthy and fresh as well as with cherished extra calories to help is eat up the miles.
At the end of the day, hunger is the the best sauce. Much of the food that we will eat on the trail would not be our first choice at the dinner table at home (at least in its dehydrated state). But, on the trail after a 20 mile day, it tastes like the finest of dinning!
Bon Appétit! 