Healthy Snack
For many of us, "snack" has become like a four-letter word (though it technically has five letters). When we think about snacks, foods like potato chips, chocolate bars, and sodas come to mind. But snacks don't have to be unhealthy! In fact, if you have the munchies, you can choose some healthier alternatives to snacks loaded with salt, sugar, and fat. Here are some of them.
1. Cheese and crackers.
Look for low-face cheese and whole wheat crackers. This will help to ensure that the snack's a healthy one. What's fantastic about this snack is that while it tastes heavenly, it's actually quite healthy. Make sure to eat healthy varieties of these foods. Too much fat in either the cheese or crackers (or both) can cause regrets when you step onto a scale next time.
2. Ice cream.
While many of us have the notion that full-fat dairy products are unhealthy, it turns out that they seem to lower your metabolism! But this doesn't mean that eating a gallon of ice cream after every dinner will help you to lose weight. Make sure to keep your portions small. Also, look for ice creams that only contain natural ingredients. If you can't pronounce some of the ingredients in certain ice cream brands, then it's probably not the best type of ice cream to consume. The best option is to make your own ice cream, so you can be 100% certain that you're eating some healthy frozen stuff.
3. Popcorn.
Avoid microwave popcorn brands, as they tend to be overloaded with fat. As an alternative, look for prepackaged popcorn that's nearly fat-free. If you make the popcorn yourself, drizzle it with a little (trans fat-free) margarine or butter. Also, make sure to go easy on the salt. While we need a certain amount of salt in our diets, there's no need to drown your popcorn in it. Instead, simply salt to taste.
4. Smoothie.
When you think of snacks that give you a boost of energy, candy bars and sodas probably come to mind. As an alternative, make a smoothie instead. Simply blend your favorite fruit, along with some low-fat milk. The fructose in the fruit will give you a sugar rush-but without the sugar. Among the tons of smoothie recipes out there, you'll find one that suits your tastes.
5. Trail Mix.
It's not just for hiking trails! This oldie-but-goodie healthy snack includes some basic ingredients, including nuts, dried fruit, grains, and chocolate chips. Besides tasting terrific, trail mix is also low in fat, and provides you with a burst of energy. Determine which ingredients you want to include (and exclude) in your personalized trail mix.
6. Yogurt.
This is one of those foods that can be healthy, if you eat it properly. Choose plain yogurt, since the other varieties tend to be loaded with sugar. Then add your own fruit and low-fat granola.
When you choose the right foods, snacking won't just be good-tasting, but also good for you. These are some all-time favorites that will satisfy your hunger without loading on the calories and fat.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says we should eat no more than 2,400 milligrams of sodium (salt) a day. The World Health Organization (WHO) says the same thing. But Americans, on average, are eating 4,000 milligrams of salt a day, and much of it comes from restaurant meals, frozen meals, and canned food.
Salt is an acquired taste and the more salt kids eat the more they want. This concerns health experts because salt is one of the major causes of high blood pressure and pre-high blood pressure.
Kids get really hungry between meals. All too often, kids snack on high-sugar, high-salt, and high-fat foods. They eat these snacks because they are available. Similarly, kids will eat healthy snacks if they are available. Kids will enjoy healthy snacks if you involve them in preparation. You may want to make Saturday your "official" snack preparation day.
Young children can wash grapes, bag them in zipper snack bags, and pop them in the freezer. Kids will enjoy making pure fruit juice ice pops as well. Older kids may assemble the ingredients for individual pizzas and note the baking directions on a recipe card. The last thing you can do to promote healthy snacks is to store them at a reachable height. These snacks will quell kids' hunger and tide them over until the next meal.
* Crisp apple wedges (Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, and Braeburn are especially good.)
* Frozen red and green grapes
* Individual pizzas made with whole wheat English muffins, salt-free tomato sauce, dried oregano, and low-fat mozzarella cheese
* Fat-free, sugar-free yogurt (Divide into two servings for young children.)
* Orange fruit smoothie made with fresh orange juice, ice cubes, and fat-free, sugar-free vanilla yogurt
* Fruit ka-bobs (pineapple chunks, sliced bananas, and seedless grapes)
* Baby carrots, celery, and broccoli with low-fat vegetable cream cheese (Thin the cheese with a little fat-free milk.)
* Dried apples, apricots, pears, and raisins
* Unsweetened applesauce
* Homemade trail mix (unsalted peanuts, raisins, and a few chocolate chips)
* Plain popcorn with chopped dried fruit
* Fritatta squares made with egg substitute, low-fat cheese, and a few bacon crumbles
* Low-fat peanut butter and sugar-free jelly sandwiches on whole wheat bread
* Low-fat cheese on salt-free crackers
* Low-fat cheddar and a dollop of chutney on salt-free crackers
* 1% cottage cheese with fresh or frozen fruit (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, peaches)
* Pure fruit juice ice pops
* Drained and chilled Mandarin oranges in plastic zipper snack bags
* Flavored water
The last way to promote healthy snacks is to take kids grocery shopping. Let them choose the fresh fruits and veggies they enjoy best. Ask kids to read food labels, too, especially the sugar content, salt content, and serving size. Get on the heart healthy path and enjoy these snacks with your kids
: healthy snacks for work to lose weight
In order to lose weight more efficiently, you need to eat more. It may sound too good to be true and it contradicts the entire concept of dieting, but it is a proven fact. The catch is, however, you need to eat more of the good stuff.
For a fire to keep burning it needs to be stoked, much like our metabolism, which is our internal fat burning furnace. Stoking your metabolism requires eating a small meal or snack approximately every 3 hours. Over the course of a day this will add up to 5 or 6 small meals (for example: breakfast, mid-morning snack, lunch, mid-afternoon snack, dinner, evening snack). The size of the meals will depend on your total daily calorie allowance.
It is recommended that snacks generally be between 100 and 200 calories each, which does not seem like a lot. You are probably wondering what type of snacks could possibly be 100 to 200 calories and still be satisfying. You can be certain that it rules out any sort of processed or junk food options, which are loaded with empty calories and next to zero nutrition. Processed snacks will not satisfy you for long and generally cause a drop in blood sugar levels, which lead to unhealthy food cravings. The key to avoiding this viscous cycle is to find foods that are naturally low in calories and nutrient dense.
Top 10 Nutrient Rich Snacks:
1. Nuts (almonds, walnuts, cashews, pine nuts)
2. Dried Fruit (raisins, dates, prunes, cranberries, cherries - unsweetened)
3. Veggies (baby carrots, celery sticks, sugar snap peas, etc)
4. String Cheese
5. Fresh fruit & Berries
6. Popcorn (air popped, unsalted, no butter or margarine)
7. Cottage cheese & fresh or frozen berries and honey
8. Whole grain cracker with Hummus, Peanut butter
9. Smoothie
10. Dark Chocolate
These healthy snacks are great for on-the-go or at your desk at work. Portion control is very important even with healthy snacks. Measure out and pack proper portions in advance so they are ready when you need them, this requires a little planning and preparation, but is well worth the effort. By having these healthy snacks readily on hand, you can avoid any dietary pitfalls and feel good that you are stoking your body's natural fat burning potential.
Healthy Snacks - 4 Quick and Easy Sweet Low-Calorie Recipes That Can Be Done in Almost No Time
Snacks are the meals where it happens easiest that we make unhealthy choices. We might give our main meals a thought, and then we think we eat healthy. But snacks somehow don't seem to count. They are the little things we quickly eat in between, and often we are not even aware of them. Just write down every single bit you eat for one day, and you will be surprised how much you really eat and how much unhealthy things you eat. If you really want to eat healthy, you need to think about what you snack too.
Of course, it's easy and quick to grab that chocolate bar or packet of cookies. But they are packed with calories and calories only. Did you know that many healthy snacks don't really take time and effort to prepare? And that they taste just as great? Here are some quick and easy sweet snack recipes that can transform your diet into a complete healthy one:
Mashed Banana with Chocolate and Cinnamon
Mash one large banana, add a teaspoon pure cocoa powder and a teaspoon ground cinnamon and mix well. Bananas are a fruit rather high in calories so it will give you just as much energy as your chocolate bar. And it will provide you with important vitamins too.
Mint Strawberry Yoghurt
Wash and quarter a handful of strawberries and mix them into 125 g plain low-fat yoghurt. Add some fresh or dried mint. This snack is low in fat and does not need sugar as strawberries are naturally sweet. Yoghurt blends you buy often are sweetened and contain colorants and flavors instead of real fruit, so making it yourself is a much healthier option and will only take a few moments of your time. If you like it smooth, you can put the strawberries and yoghurt into your blender for a minute or two.
Vanilla Ice-cream with Raspberry Puree
Mix 250 g fresh raspberries, 2 tablespoons honey and 1 tablespoon lemon juice in your blender until smooth. This will be enough to make a small snack for four. Pour the puree over 2 small scoops low-fat vanilla ice-cream per person. Your kids will love it and you don't have to worry about calories.
Fruit with chocolate sauce
Another recipe your kids will love: Heat up 250 ml low-fat milk until it boils. Mix 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder and 7 g cornflour with a bit of cold milk until smooth. Add to the hot milk, bring to boil and allow to simmer for a few minutes until the mixture thickens. Pour the sauce over any fruit you like. You can prepare the chocolate sauce in advance and keep it in the fridge until you need it. If you wish to sweeten it, add 1 tablespoon of honey whilst it's still hot.
By now, you should have grasped the idea that even sweet snacking can be healthy. The easiest way to create sweet healthy snacks is to use fruit which is naturally sweet and does not need any added sugar. Fruit gives excellent quick and easy to make snacks when combined with low-fat dairy products like milk or yoghurt. With this kind of snacks, you can enjoy the benefits of healthy snacks providing you not only with energy but also valuable vitamins and other nutrients like calcium. And all this without overloading your system with calories.
Healthy Party Snacks
Whether it is an impromptu get-together with friends or a formal cocktail party, whether you are hosting them or being hosted, parties are an important part of our lifestyle. They are like mini-vacations for celebration, fun and laughter with family and friends. While get-togethers and parties are a great way to unwind, especially after those tiresome work hours, we do tend to indulge in all kinds of unhealthy food items.
What you snack at these get together parties, matters more than you think.Healthy snacking is a great way to combat hunger in between meals. They tend to add too many calories for too few nutrients.And if you are someone who is trying to watch calories and lose weight then you are likely to dread either hosting or going to these parties.
However, you can change this misconception of people wherein snacking equals unhealthy by serving snacks made from fresh fruits, vegetables and dry fruits such as almonds at parties.
Almonds, in specific, make for an easy snack option.Here are a few healthier options for you to try or recommend for the next party so can nibble, guilt-free!
• Grilled fruit, vegetable or chicken skewers:
Every party needs a platter of finger food to nibble on. A skewer dish, be it with fresh fruits, greens or chicken, makes for a great party snack. They are fresh, grilled and super tasty. And since, presentation is as important as taste when it comes to enticing guests, you can try a rainbow fruit skewer platter with fruits of different colours and shades. Easy on the eyes and super easy to make
• 'Chaat' party:
A delight for chatpata or spicy food lovers, this is an ideal party snack when you are in a mood for something different and a lot more casual.From sweet-potato chaat to fruits chaat, people love these bite-sized savory snacks, as most of its ingredients are not only fresh but also healthy. You can try these incredibly yummy snack recipes for your next chaatparty: Bhuni Shakarkandi aur Badam Ki Chaat, Almond, Sweet Potato and Pomegranate Chaat, White Pea Ragda.
• Bruschetta
A snack recipe with open ingredients on top of a piece of butter toasted white bread. For a healthier version, you can pick a whole wheat or multigrain bread, brush itwith olive oil instead of butter and top it with juicy cherry tomatoes sprinkled with basil leaves and chopped up garlic, for a delicious slice of good health.This recipe can be great party snack that barely takes any time to make
• Home-made Tomato Salsa with pita chips:
Served with baked pita chips, this tangy salsa is sure to please any crowd. By pairing these baked chips with tomato based salsa, you can not only satisfy your taste buds but also be rest assured about not adding too many calories. Try this low fat and healthy snack at your next party or family gathering
• Bring on the kebabs:
Kebabs can be a nutritious alternative to highly processed fast foods. They are not deep-fried and may also include salad or a yogurt dip. Kebabs are a great way to keep an eye on portions too, and an easy way to include more vegetables into your diet. One can add deeper green vegetables to increase the nutrient content of the dish. Recommend the Badam Papitae ke Kebab with pineapple salsa recipe to your friend throwing the next party
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