Check out this guide for Easy, Healthy Snacks to keep on hand for when hunger strikes between meal time!
While I was not compensated to write this post, I partnered with Sprouts Farmers Market on the TV segment shared below. Opinions are my own. Thank you for continuing to support brands that make The Nutrition Adventure possible!
You’ve probably heard that meal planning is an essential component of a healthier diet. And it is! When planning meals for the week, though, we should also consider our snack options for the week and include a few healthy snack items on the shopping list. Being prepared with easy, healthy snacks will prevent desperate visits to the vending machine, drive-thru, or binge-eating the leftover doughnuts in the break room.
The most important thing to keep in mind when it comes to snacking is the balance of protein, healthy fats, and carbohydrates. These are all macronutrients, and it’s also important to balance these three at mealtime. Why? Having a balance of the three macronutrients will ensure that you feel satisfied after eating, and it will help prevent an energy crash shortly after eating.
I shared easy, healthy snack ideas recently on a local TV station. Watch the segment below or scroll on for my list of snack pairings!
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Easy, Healthy Snack Recipes
Chocolate Banana Oat Bites
These have quickly become my favorite snack! I’ve been making them at least once a week, and they’re great to keep on hand throughout the workweek. They taste like banana bread but are gluten-free and filled with nutritious ingredients like hemp seeds, almonds, and oats!
Lemon Blueberry Quinoa Breakfast Bars
Creating this guide of easy, healthy snacks together reminded me I need to make these again soon! Lemon + blueberry is always a winning combination.
Energy Snack Mix
Okay, I’m starting to see a theme here…apparently I like to include a little chocolate with my snacks! hah. At least I included the dark chocolate covered espresso beans in this mix 🙂
School Fuel Trail Mix
Look…more chocolate! It’s official, I’m addicted to chocolate and didn’t even know it. This trail mix is great for kiddos and includes banana chips and dark chocolate covered blueberries along with raw pumpkin kernels, sunflower seeds, and walnuts.
Peanut Butter Pumpkin Pie Bites
I enjoy pumpkin year-round, and these Peanut Butter Pumpkin Pie Bites make for a tasty post-workout snack!
Blueberry Cottage Cheese Parfait
Cottage cheese works well as a substitute for yogurt to make parfaits. My favorite combination is wild blueberries + cottage cheese + a crunchy, high-fiber cereal topping.
Easy, Healthy Snack Pairings
These are simple snack pairings to keep in mind when grocery shopping. Stock up on these items at the beginning of the week to pack for work or to grab when that snack attack hits while working from home. Each of these pairings provides the healthy balance of protein, fat, and carbohydrates I mentioned at the beginning of the post.
- Popcorn + Mozzarella String Cheese + Baby Carrots: 3 cups of popcorn= 1 serving and I’m obsessed with the lightly salted popcorn from Sprouts Farmers Market!
- Fresh Fruit + Almonds + Beef Jerky: this snack is great for road trips & outdoor activities because none of these foods require refrigeration!
- Hummus + Fresh Vegetables: I’m always amazed at the amazing prices on produce at Sprouts so that’s where I try to get most of my produce
- Boiled Egg + Fresh Fruit: prepare several boiled eggs at a time so they’re easy to grab before heading out the door!
Better-for-You Beverages
I can’t talk about snacking without mentioning beverages because it’s highly likely you’ll drink something while enjoying a snack! When a mid-afternoon crash hits you, don’t grab an energy drink or an extra-large iced coffee that will end up throwing off your sleep cycle. Instead, choose one of the beverages below.
- Kombucha —a fermented tea that contains probiotics so it’s great for digestion and immune health
- Matcha Green Tea (affiliate link) — matcha contains a small amount of caffeine (about 76 mg) but also contains antioxidants & amino acids
- Unsweet Tea, Hot Tea, or Water
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