Living Well In Yalobusha County
Make Healthy Choices When Snacking
By Pamela Redwine
Do you ever sit down to watch your favorite show and want a snack? While there is nothing wrong with eating snacks, you need to be mindful of the calories you may be consuming from snacks. For some people snacks are recommended, especially since research shows that we need to be eating small frequent meals throughout the day.
The only problem is that we tend to gravitate to the easy-to-grab snacks. Although there is no problem with grabbing quick snacks, these snacks have a tendency to be processed foods that may end up adding too many calories to our diet.
What we need are some easy tips to have on-the-go snacks that are healthy and that taste great. If you are like me I do not like to cut vegetables and fruit before every meal or snack, so try cutting them when you get home from the store and placing them in washable containers.
By doing this you can have healthy snacks that are already washed, cut, and ready to eat. You can keep most cut vegetables for up to a week in air tight containers, and most cut fruits for 4-5 days in safe containers as well. Not only does this eliminate those processed foods and extra calories, but it provides additional vitamins and minerals in the diet that may be missing in meals. If you are in an office all day, purchase washable containers that you can put your snacks in and have them ready to eat. If you are trying to lose weight or maintain your weight you may need to add healthy snacks to your diet to keep you satisfied, especially if you are eating less at your regular meal times. Pretzels, whole wheat crackers and low-fat and low-sugar granola bars are easy to grab and put into baggies. They are also easy to eat while working or on-the-go.
Listed below are some easy snack recipes for you and your family!
• Cut an apple into cubes and top with flavored yogurt of your choice and crushed granola.
• Mix together peanut butter and cornflakes in a bowl. Roll into balls and cover with crushed graham cracker.
• Make a trail mix with raisins (any dried fruit is good), nuts, and dried cereal.
• Make a delicious smoothie with bananas, frozen strawberries, and low-fat milk. Blend for 30 sec.
• Mini Pizza: Toast an English muffin or whole wheat bagel, drizzle with pizza sauce and sprinkle with low-fat mozzarella cheese.
• Dip cut vegetables or pretzels in hummus dip.
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Recipe of the Week
Parmesan-Coated Brie
Ingredients
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon water
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated fat-free Parmesan cheese
1 1/4 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning
1 (15-ounce) round Brie Cheese with herbs
Cooking Spray
Fresh rosemary sprigs (optional)
Directions
Combine egg and water in a shallow dish. Combine breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, and seasoning in another shallow dish.
Dip Brie into egg mixture, turning to coat top and sides (do not coat bottom). Place Brie in breadcrumb mixture, turning to coat top and sides. Repeat procedure. Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Chill at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
Bake at 375 degrees F for 10 minutes. Garnish with rosemary, if desired. Serve with low-fat crackers or French baguette slices (crackers and bread not included in analysis).
Yield: 15 appetizer servings.
Recipe Source: Quick and Easy Diabetic Recipes
