Earlier in the year I put together a moderate emergency kit for my car. Hats, gloves, matches, space blanket, etc packed in a piece of ABS pipe I had. But no food.
Had thought about granolas but not enough nutrition + they aren't the greatest in temperature extremes (not fun to eat frozen).
Recently I thought (duh) honey. Honey lasts forever and is fairly calorie dense. But I don't know how much it expands and contracts in extreme temps. Would I end up with honey everywhere? Thanks.
It doesn't actually have enough water to expand the way other liquids will (pure honey, not "honey syrup" - read the fine print on labels).
It will, however, gain viscosity in cold wx. Somewhere around -5*F, it will hit a stage that looks and feels solid, but can still be moved and will still flow super, super slowly.
I think you have to hit -35 or -45 *F to have it hit solid stage.
Creamed honey doesn't change texture as readily as liquid honey (here, anyway).
You also have the option of pouring liquid honey out on waxed paper and sitting it somewhere covered like a cake dish or in the turned-off dehydrator, and letting it dehydrate into crystals. Same cal boost, mostly the same flavor.
Or you can buy pure honey powder or honey crystals.
I know you get colder up there, but the dry Nature's Own granola bars will get more brittle, but not really be any "harder" down to single-digits F here - well below the freezing point (32F). At a certain point where foods/moisture content are concerned, the points below freezing stop mattering.
SOS and Datrex bars are also options, designed to be low moisture and have five-year storage in sub-zero and 100+ weather.
I'd stick with one of those two, not the others, because they're smaller, softer shingles (easier to eat) and they aren't as thirst provoking as some of the bigger blocks. The harder blocks like Millenium and the 200- or 300-cal sampler size of Mayday bars are already more difficult to chew. Plus, the normal-size Mayday and Mainstay "bars" have to be broken apart.
You could also look into just powders, like Carnation instant breakfast, for a calorie boost and a low-moisture food replacement with high usable calories.
Nuts are a good option too.
Sesame snaps, nuts covered in chocolate, M&M's, single serving peanut butter packs all have a lot of healthy calories and have a lot of "feel good" included.
Or try mixing honey and PB together and pack in small containers.
Kraft has small bottles pf pre-mixed peanut butter and honey that are sealed really well with a foil layer then the jar lid. I had an introductory coupon so bought a bottle. It's quite good. When I found the mixture on sale again, I bought a few more bottles and left one in the pack in the car. It doesn't seem to be harmed by heat......it hasn't been cold yet (obviously) so don't know how it will keep then.
Honey is a great source of food but it does not like storage a low temp. in a very short time it will begin to crystalize and once it starts, it accelerates. This does not distract from the food value but it does become very hard, and depending on what it is stored in, it may be difficult to access. To liquefy again you must apply gentle heat for several minutes,(soaking in a very hot water bath for 30-40 minutes) and upon cooling it with crystalize more quickly.
I would suggest a few smaller plastic containers that can be cut open when required and then you can suck on the hard honey and it will melt in your mouth eventually.
Trust me it is a bitch to get it out of the container when it hardens.
But still a great idea
