Five Healthy Snacks

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My wife mentioned before that she sometimes has problems with people at work pushing unhealthy foods on her. As part of a plan to combat this we’ve tried to stock the house (and her work) with some healthy snacks for in between meals. Here are some of the healthy snacks we try to have on hand all the time:

Microwave Popcorn - We find the “100 calorie pop” is perfect for one person and occassional split a bag at night before dinner. Though it’s not the protein content that I would typically look for in a food, the amount of chewing and time that it takes to eat 50-100 calories make it appear to much more food than it is.

South Beach Diet Cereal Bars - We found a great deal on these at the military commissary (24 bars for $10). They are 140 calories with 10 grams of protein. It has 5 grams of fat and 9 grams of net carbs, but it tastes like a candy bar. In contrast to the popcorn above it’s a dense 1.23 ounces. Few foods beat it for portability and speed to eat. I have a friend who is a busy doctor and keeps them handy because she might only get 2 minutes here and there to eat during the day.

Slim-a-Bear ice-cream sandwiches - At 100-calories per sandwich, these are a perfect substitute for the full fat ice cream. You wouldn’t want them to be your whole diet, but you feel completely guilt-free after eating one.

Fruit - Nature’s candy is an easy choice here. We keep apples and oranges around all the time because they have a good shelf life. Occasionally we will have bananas, but they go bad in a couple of days.

Whey Protein Shake - I’ll blend some whey protein and milk and have a shake every now and again as a snack. It’s not very portable, and it’s not going to taste as good as the South Beach Diet bars or Slim-a-Bear ice-cream sandwiches, but the thought of 25-30 grams of protein makes my analytical mind excited. Occasionally, I toss in some frozen berries for more anti-oxidants - other times I will use a Splenda-based low-calorie chocolate syrup for taste. Another similar idea is to use a Carnation Instant Breakfast package instead of the whey protein.

I find that most of these healthy snacks stay under 200 calories. They give me a variety of choice depending on my mood: popcorn for when I want to pick at something, cereal bars when I need something on the go with no preparation or refrigeration/cooking necessary, and ice-cream sandwiches for cravings.

When you want a healthy snack what do you go with?

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healthy snacks, ice-cream, popcorn

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Healthy Meals

Posted by Lazy Man on May 5, 2008 in Healthy Meals.

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