Snack Ideas for your car, work and when you are on the run...

Image from Going-Well.com

Snacking is my weakness... my downfall. I would easily trade a  meal for a couple of snacks. And sometimes I do. Sometimes it is not plausible for me to sit and eat a proper breakfast or lunch. And when I don't I get hungry. Ah, let's face it, even when I do I still get hungry. I could just eat all day long! And because of this I need to make sure that healthy snacks are within my reach at all times -- at home, at work and in the car. We covered the home part yesterday. I'll share some ideas for work and car.

In the summertime I keep a small Igloo cooler in the back of the SUV. I place a new ice pack in it every morning and fill it with waters, juices for the kids, and occasionally a Diet Coke for me! I also keep fresh fruit in it.

During the winter I do not need a cooler and since the kids are not spending much time outdoors I don't really keep snacks for them in the car... just a few water bottles. I, however, live in my car year round and spend more time in it than I'd care to... I take the kids to school, hop over to the gym, go to work or run errands or have an interview/story/article to cover... have to pick the kids up from school and run errands and take them to their activities and doctor's appointments and play dates... and well, you get the idea. So, I need snacks in the car. I need healthy snacks in my car. And I always make sure that I have something at hand.

Yes, I hit Starbucks more often than I should. My too-sweet and flavored coffees have been replaced by my newest obsession, Chai Lattes. When ordered with skim milk it's a sweet, delicious low fat treat! Other than that waters and snacks are in the car.

Snacks for the Car
Bottled waters
Low cal sports drinks
Sugar Free iced teas
Apples, sometimes whole, sometimes sliced, in a Ziplock bags.
Grapes are the perfect car snack!
Clementines
Nuts, pre-portioned in Ziplock bags
Granola, pre-portioned in Ziplock bags
Pretzels
Wheat Thins
Granola/Power/Protein bars
Trail mix, pre-portioned in Ziplock bags
Animal crackers are a perfect treat for when you must have something sweet. The small boxes are fun and portion controlled.

Snacks at the workplace

You can have any of the above-mentioned at the workplace. In addition, most offices have refrigerators or access to them. If you do have access to such:
yogurt
yogurt drinks
cottage cheese
cheese sticks
applesauce
Veggies/crudites and low fat dip/salad dressing

Keep a bowl of fresh fruit on your desk. It looks pretty and will keep you from wanting to grab something calorie-laden! Certain fruits like apples and clementines last longer on the shelf than some others. Clementines are preferable over oranges as they are easier to peel and less messy.

Do you have any ideas to add?

Healthy Snacks for the Family

Photo from Flickr

I don't know about you, but lately it seems I hear groans when my kids want a snack and I suggest they grab a piece of fruit. Fruit? How drab! How boring! How healthy Mom! "I don't want anything healthy!" That's a funny comment because in this house they're not getting anything that's not... On a rare occasion we'll have hot chocolate with marshmallows or whipped cream, or something homemade and fresh out of the oven. Most days, however, the boring healthy stuff!

Kids are like adults. Food must be appealing. If I have time I'll make up a nice presentation. I also try to get creative and mix things up a bit. We all need variety and kids are no exception.

Fresh fruit in a bowl on the counter might look pretty to a grown-up, but kids need a little more in the wow department...

Snack ideas -- Fruit
My kids love party toothpicks... the more festive the more fun. Serve some of the following with fancy toothpicks!

Blueberries in yogurt
Blueberries in yogurt over lowfat granola
Blueberry Smoothies
Strawberries
Strawberries dipped in yogurt (vanilla) and then dipped in sprinkles
Apples cut up with peanut butter
Apples cut up with peanut butter and drizzled with honey
Apples dipped in *cinnamon sugar
Bananas drizzled with honey
Bananas with peanut butter
Bananas dipped in yogurt and then dipped in sprinkles

Snack ideas -- Non-fruit!
Pita chips and hummus
Pretzels and hummus
Veggies and hummus (not as popular with my kids!)
Pretzels with mustard
Pretzels with Queso dip -- the jarred variety is actually fairly low in fat and calories... just watch serving sizes!
Pretzels with *melted cheese
Pita chips and salsa
Baked tortilla chips and salsa
White corn chips (Syder's is lower in calories and sat fat then regular tortilla chips) and salsa

A slice of toast with peanut butter or peanut butter and honey or peanut butter and banana
An English Muffin with *melted cheese
English muffin with peanut butter/jelly (English muffins are a great choice. 110 calories per muffin!)
A bowl of soup. Soups are (for the most part) low fat and filling!
Mixed nuts -- watch portions!
Trail mix -- *make your own!
Granola -- lowfat or make your own and watch portions!
A plate of cheese, crackers and apple or pear slices
Pudding made with skim or 1% milk
Deviled eggs -- made with lowfat mayonnaise. 1 egg (2 halves) packs a bunch of protein!
Popcorn
Mixed dry fruit (with or without nuts)
Crudites (veggies) and lowfat dip

Finger sandwiches (smaller and leaner than their regular counterparts!):
Using Pepperidge Farm Very Thin bread
   Turkey
   Ham
   Cucumber
   Tuna

Kabobs (Kids love these!)
Fruit kabob -- String together various pieces of fruit on to a bamboo skewer
Veggie kabob -- String together various veggies (cucumbers/cherry tomatoes/peppers) onto a bamboo skewer with a small dish of lowfat dressing to dip into
Fruit and cheese kabob
Veggie and cheese kabob

Breakfast for snack!
2 waffles, pancakes or pieces of French toast cut into strips -- honey or maple syrup for dipping
Cereal
Life -- sweet without an overload of sugar
Cornflakes or Rice Krispies drizzled with honey
A small bowl of oatmeal with raisins or dried cranberries (not the instant please!)
Muffins (homemade are healthier, smaller and contain less fats)
   Blueberry
   Apple
   Banana
   Pumpkin
   Sweet potato
   Oatmeal raisin
(Plenty of recipes in this blog to choose from!)
Fruit breads
Made with very little fat (canola oil) these make a nice snack or breakfast
Strawberry
Apple
Zucchini
Blueberry
Pumpkin
Banana
(Plenty of recipes in this blog to choose from!)

* Pretzels (or Triscuits or pita chips) with melted cheese
Preheat oven to broil (hi)
Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil
Place desired amount of pretzels on cookie sheet
Sprinkle generously with your favorite shredded cheese (cheddar, Mexican, etc)
Place under broiler and watch closely until the cheese starts to bubble and turn a golden brown.
Remove from oven and place on a plate with mustard for dipping, if desired.

* English muffins with melted cheese
My kids (as do I!) love these and they are a much better and healthier substitution to the fat-laden grilled cheese sandwich.
Preheat oven to broil (hi)
Halve your English muffin and place in toaster until lightly toasted
When done place sliced cheese (cheddar, American, etc) on each half
Place aluminum foil on a cookie sheet
Place English muffin with cheese on cookie sheet
Place in oven and watch closely until cheese starts to bubble and turn brown.
I am normally not at all a lover of American cheese, but melted on this it is fantastic!

* Trail Mix
Equal amounts raisins and or dried cranberries and nuts such as dry roasted peanuts mixed with half the amount of chocolate chips. Sometimes I add the Pepperidge Farm pretzel goldfish to this as well. So much more less expensive to make your own!

Seasonal Citrus Beet Salad with Goat Cheese and Red Onion

I was at my childrens' school the other day as the Resident Chef was bringing out items for the salad bar. The lovely purple and orange color grabbed my attention immediately. "What's that? I asked, tongue practically hanging out of my mouth. It was a simple mixture of freshly cooked beets (which are in season) and oranges. I just had to try this beautiful concoction. It was delightful and refreshing. Every bit as good as t looked.

Later that afternoon I got an email asking if I would like to contribute a unique Thanksgiving recipe to the food website CTBites. Immediately I though of Lauren's recipe. I found her in the kitchen the following morning and asked if she wanted to help create an adult version of the salad. She was happy to help.

This afternoon, armed with a dozen freshly cooked beets from our local organic farm, Sport Hill Farm, and some goat cheese I headed off to school. Lauren prepped the oranges as I sliced the red onion paper thin. Our creation was as good as we had anticipated. The crunchy addition of nuts, either sweet or savory, would have truly put this over the edge!

This beautiful salad featuring seasonal fruit and vegetables would compliment any Thanksgiving or Christmas meal.

Children's Salad

Grown-ups salad

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 dozen small to medium beets (4 - 6 large)
3 -4 oranges*, peeled and cut into segments, reserve all juices
Several thin slices of red onion, quartered. (The thinner the slice the better. You want a hint of onion, but you do not want the onion to overwhelm the dish which will happen if it is not finely sliced.)
A generous handful of crumbled goat cheese

Optional: A generous handful of nuts -- plain, salted or sweet to sprinkle over the top with the goat cheese.
* Clementines may be used in lieu of the oranges. In this case use about 6 - 8 clementines.

Directions:

In a bowl add your beets and oranges and onion and let sit from 1/2 hour to an hour
Arrange in a bowl or a large plate
Pour the extra juices on over the salad
Sprinkle generously with the crumbled goat cheese
Add a touch of sea salt. This will really enhance all the flavors
Serve immediately!