Healthy(ier) Snacks

Anyone who knows me, knows I *LOVE* my snacks.  It was one of the major factors in me gaining so much weight.

I still eat two snacks (3 if you count my evening 'dessert') almost every day.  That made it necessary to find healthy recipes that would fit into my numbers.

Some of the best hunting grounds for snack ideas(and all manner of recipes) is Pinterest.

Here are a few of the 'gems' that I've found so far.  I've entered the data into MFP recipe builder to get all the macro data that I use.

'Nacho' Rounds
1 Servings
6 Tostitos Tortilla 'scoops' (The chips that look like little bowls).
2Tbsp fresh store Pico De Gallo
1 Oz Tillamook medium Cheddar

Lay the tortilla scoops on a cookie sheet.  Divide pico among each evenly.  Sprinkle a little cheese on each one.
Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly.
190 Calories - 12 Carbs - 1 Fiber - 380 Sodium - 8 Protein


Cut Out Crisps
1 Serving
3 Nosoyo Egg Roll Wrappers
1/4 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Splenda Packet
1/2 Tbsp Ground Cinnamon

Using cookie cutters, cut out shapes in the eggroll wrappers. Mix the Splenda and cinnamon together and
set aside.  Brush shapes the Olive Oil and sprinkle with the cinnamon mixture. Bake on cookie sheet in a 325 oven until crispy.
213 Calories - 38 Carbs - 3 Fiber - 411 Sodium - 7 Protein
This one is a bit high in numbers for me, but I thought it looked hella fun so I kept it in this post.


Granola Energy Balls
20 Servings
2 cups oats
2 cups coconut flakes
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup ground flaxseed
1 cup chocolate chips
2/3 cup honey
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all ingredients thoroughly.
Roll into 20 bite-size balls.  Store in fridge.
246 Calories - 21 Carbs - 3 Fiber - 5 Sodium - 6 Protein



 Homemade Jerky (Not the most amazing jerky recipes, imo, but a very easy one)
4 Servings
Beef top round roast (1 lb)
1/4 C Organic Worcestershire sauce (look for one without HFCS)
1/4 Low Sodium Naturally Fermented Soy Sauce
1 tsp Ground Black Pepper
2 tsp Onion Powder

Slice the meat very thinly, with the grain (so it doesn't fall apart).  Put the pieces of meat into a gallon-sized Ziploc freezer bag. Add the rest of the ingredients, close the bag, and mix well by moving the meat around with your hands. Let the meat marinate for at least 8 hours.
Pat the meat dry with paper towels.  Put some foil on the bottom of the oven to catch drips.
Set oven to the lowest setting (this is often 170 degrees) and crack the door open a bit.
Cook until it's jerky
195 Calories - 4 Carbs - 0 Fiber - 850 Sodium - 27 Protein


Strawberry Jerky
1 Serving
15 Large strawberries
Hull and halve the strawberries. Lay wax paper on a cookie sheet ad spread strawberries out on sheet.
200 degrees for 3 hours turning every hour.
26 Calories - 26 Carbs - 0 Fiber - 0 Sodium - 0 Protein


Strawberry Yogurt Bites
1 Serving
10 Large strawberries
2 Oz Chobani Greek Yogurt (vanilla flavored)
Spread wax paper on a plate or cookie sheet.  Set aside.  Hull strawberries. Dip in yogurt and place on plate/cookie sheet. Put in freezer.  When set dip again and put back in freezer until solid.
36 Calories - 6 Carbs - 0 Fiber - 6 Sodium - 1 Protein


Cheese crackers
6 Servings
1 1/2 cups (about 4 oz.) grated Cheddar Cheese
4 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, softened and cut into 4 pieces
3/4 cup All-Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp Coarse Salt
dash of Paprika
1 Tbsp Whole Milk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a pastry cutter combine the cheese, butter, flour, salt and cayenne pepper until the mixture looks like pea-size crumbs. Add the milk and use your hands to form the dough into a ball. On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough about 1/8-inch thick. Use a pizza cutter or a sharp knife to cut the dough into your desired shapes or use some mini cookie cutters. Gently transfer the crackers to an ungreased cookie sheet leaving 1/4-inch between them. Try to make the crackers roughly about the same size so everything will cook evenly. Bake the crackers on the middle rack for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges of the crackers are golden. Cool on baking sheet set on a wire rack. These taste great warm but are also very good at room temperature. Store in a sealed container for up to 5 days.
193 Calories - 11 Carbs - 0 Fiber - 196 Sodium - 6 Protein