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If you’re looking for some easy healthy snack ideas, you’ve come to the right place. I’ve scoured my recipe books, my fridge, and the internet to find some great treats that everyone should love: you, your friends, and your family. Let’s dig in!
Table of Contents
Easy Healthy Snack Ideas The Whole Family Will love
#1. Beet Chips
When you and your family are home watching TV or relaxing with a good book, sometimes a potato chip craving sneaks up on you like a hungry snake. While store bought baked chips are healthier than their deep-fried, greasy cousin, I’ve got a better option for you: beet chips.
You can buy Terra Chips at your local grocery or health food store, but sometimes it’s just cheaper to make your own (normally these things run up to about $7 a bag). So here’s my secret recipe that I’ve adapted from the different trials in the kitchen.
Peel beets (around two golden or red beets) and slice them up thin. Toss them in a spoonful of extra virgin olive oil and place them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Sprinkle some seasoning on them. My boyfriend is fond of Johnny’s but I just like regular sea salt. Cover your baking sheet (with foil or another baking sheet), bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees. Uncover, turn pan, then bake for another 15 minutes.
#2. Crackers with Fruit
When your kids come home from school and their digging through your cupboards for some chocolate chip cookies, why not offer them some crackers and fruit?
Dried fruit often has some sugar added to them and canned fruit sits in preservatives and/or sugary syrup, so fresh or frozen fruit is often healthier.
#3. Mozzarella, Tomatoes and Basil (YUM!)
If your man (or kids) are chomping at the bit for dinner and dinner isn’t quite ready yet, try this little appetizer. Slice some mozzarella and tomatoes and add a few leaves of basil from your garden. So yummy!
#4. ”Fancy” Hors D’oeuvres
Want some easy hors d’oeuvres ideas for when the book club comes over? Cut some cherry tomatoes in half, spread on some goat cheese or sprinkle on some feta, and garnish with some fresh parsley on top.
Want something sweeter? Give them an antioxidant boost with some dark chocolate nut clusters. Melt some dark chocolate in the microwave. After it’s melted, toss in some roasted, unsalted nuts. Spread it out on some wax paper and let it cool and harden.
#5. Ricotta With Strawberries
If your husband is late for work (again) and doesn’t have time to sit for a healthy breakfast, just fix him up a bagel with ricotta and strawberries. Drizzle a little agave nectar on it and you’ve got a delectable breakfast treat that’s easy and quick.
#6. Easy Snacks For Those Counting Calories?
If you’re counting calories, try these healthy snack ideas on for size:
- 2 oz Honey and Maple Turkey Breast wrapped in 2 bread-and-butter pickles (80 calories)
- 4 stalks celery with 2 tbsp Better’n Peanut Butter (124 calories)
- 1/4 cup Trader Joe’s Chili con Queso, 18 baked tortilla chips (140 calories)
- Half of a 1-oz container of M&M’s Minis mixed with 1/3 cup low fat granola (145 calories)
I know that some of these snack are over 100 calories but that’s around the caloric intake that you want for a snack. Remember that most of your calories should come from the food that you eat during a meal.
#7. A Tall Skinny Latte While You Run Your Errands
If you need a pick-me-up while you are picking up some groceries or the dry-cleaning, why not head over to Starbucks for a tall, skinny latte? It has a shot of calcium and protein without the added sugar. Not to mention, the caffeine will give you a refreshing boost.
#8. Air-Popped Popcorn
If you’re looking for a snack to eat with your family after dinner, try some air-popped popcorn. If you buy a bag of kernels instead of a box of microwave popcorn, you won’t get the nasty preservatives and fat content that comes in those processed bags.
When you are distracted while you eat (like when you are watching TV or a movie) you are more likely to eat more. So measure out around 3 cups of air-popped popcorn and pour it in a bowl for yourself. If we’re talking “mindless snacking,” this is a lot healthier than a bag of chips.
#9. Fruits And Veggies
If you want to be even healthier, try a cup of baby carrots, or celery sticks with about 2 tablespoons of hummus.
If you’re craving sweet, melons can be a great snack. Melons are mostly water so you won’t be eating a lot of calories plus you’ll get some extra beta-carotene (from cantaloupe).
Another great fruit mixture is 1 cup of raspberries, 2 tablespoons of plain yogurt, and 1 teaspoon of honey (for some added sweetness).
These healthy snack ideas are great if you’re on the go. Prepackage the veggies or fruit in portion-sized baggies and place them in your crisper drawer for when your kids get home from school, or if you’re running out the door for soccer practice.
2, 3 and 9 are my main go to snacks on this list. It is surprising how you can get a little creative to come up with something simple yet good for you. I would much rather pair together some crackers and fruit than open up a greasy bag of chips.
I am all about healthy and I am always looking for new ideas. The beet chips sound pretty bad. I don’t like beets so I doubt I would like the chips. I love the ham and Swiss idea. My hubby always wants meat.
I have only eaten beets once in my life and they came up before they even made it to the stomach. No way I’m trying beet chips! I keep fresh fruit in veggies in the refrigerator ready to snack on so that I have something healthy available when that sudden urge for a snack hits.
These all sound yummy and healthy. I love beets and we have some left over from the garden. I’ll give the baked beet chips a try.
I put cut up vegetables on the table before dinner and add hummus as a dip. This way the kids don’t complain that they are hungry.
I do count calories and love the idea of bits of M&Ms in my yogurt. I tend to snack on fruits and vegetables during the day. If you need a dip there are a lot of low-fat dips on the market that are great for vegetables. I will sometimes use a dip instead of margarine or butter.
I have to agree with you both about beets! Gross. I don’t even like to smell them. My husband loves them but I cannot stomach them.
I love air-popped popcorn. I eat it often. Popcorn seems to be a filling food. I also love crackers and fruits. I am going to start giving these to my kids for their after-school snack.
I’ll have to give beet chips a try. Thanks for the recommendation. I agree that air-popped popcorn is the best type of popcorn to eat. Avoid those microwaves and that cancer causing butter additive found in microwaved popcorn.
I love the suggestion of a tall and skinny latte! I have recently started drinking Starbucks’ lattes a couple of times a week and they really do make for a nice pick-me-up. 🙂