Healthy Snacking!

If you have breakfast at 6:00 a.m. like I do, your belly probably starts to rumble about 9:00 just like mine! And, of course, this cycle repeats itself at 3:00 every day about 3 hours after lunch and a long time before dinner! It’s inevitable. You know it is going to happen. So, instead of walking down to the vending machine for junk food to satisfy these cravings, plan ahead and bring healthy snacks from home. I’ve listed some great options below. This also goes for your kids too! If they need a mid-morning snack at school and/or an after-school snack, be sure to pack these items in their backpacks in the morning along with big water bottle!

An apple is a quick and easy choice. For an extra-special treat, slice it and dip it in all-natural peanut butter. Our favorite is the Maranatha organic creamy Peanut Butter available at the health food stores and Super Target. Walmart now carries an organic version of Smuckers.

Grab any piece of whole fruit and a handful of nuts. Raw almonds are best, then walnuts (watch out for preservatives - read the package!), then other nuts. It is best to balance your fruit consumption with some protein to help your body not have a sugar-spike from the fruit alone. You can make little snack-size ziplock baggies of almonds, walnuts, pecans, or a mix of these and store them in the freezer for freshness. Then, when you grab your fruit in the morning (apple, orange, banana, peach, nectarine, plum, etc.), you can just grab one of these little baggies and away you go with your snack! There’s a farmer at the OSU Farmer’s market with delicious pecans. Plus, at the farmer’s market you can pick up wonderful peaches, nectarines, plumbs, strawberries, blueberries, melons and lots of delicious items. Great, organic snacks for you and your kids.

Make-your-own trail mix. Raw, unsalted nuts are best. Be careful when choosing dried fruits. Many have preservatives or sugar. The health food stores carry delicious dried cranberries, blueberries, cherries, date pieces, raisins and other dried fruits in the refrigerated section. You can be as simple with this as mixing up some Walnuts and dried cranberries, or you can get more complex. You can add some seeds to the mix also. Pepitas (raw pumpkin seeds) and raw sunflower seeds are also available at the health food stores and are delicious in trail mix and sprinkled on your salad.

Yogurt with fresh or frozen berries is always great! You get the benefits of the acidophilous (probiotic) in the yogurt as well as the antioxidant boost of the berries. Try the berries without the yogurt. Yes, eat them slightly frozen - yummy! Your kids will love frozen blueberries.

Baby carrots and celery sticks, as well as any other raw veggies, are a great snack. You can buy a veggie tray at Sam’s for less than $10. Put a variety of veggies in plastic baggies for you and your whole family to grab on the way out the door each day as a mid-morning snack or to put in your lunch box.

If you just don’t have time some day to grab something fresh, try keeping a stash of Odwalla bars (whole-food bars, similar to granola bars - available at Super Target and health food stores - Berries Go Mega and Carrot Raisin are good choices) or granola bars (organic versions available at Walmart and the health food stores). Try to just make this an “occasional” snack instead of a daily snack. Fresh foods, raw foods, and food processed the least are always the best.

Finally, instead of stopping at a fast-food drive-through for a snack or at a convenience station, run into a grocery store and pick up some fruit, yogurt, nuts, mini carrots, or something else healthy. The couple of extra minutes it takes will be well-worth the health benefits.