Quick, Easy, Healthy Snack Recipes
I'm not a health nut at all. In fact, I probably crave fast food more than I crave nutritious food. I have this whole idea in my head about "treating myself" to eating whatever I want to make up for my crappy days.
But when I'm not eating like a pig, there are a few super simple 'recipes' (if you could even call them that), that I like to follow when I make some snacks at home. They're more healthy than fast food and extremely quick and easy (otherwise I wouldn't be able to do them). Without further ado, here's a few of my go-to snack recipes!
I love Caprese Salad for an afternoon snack, a late night snack, or sometimes a whole meal if I'm really in a rush. It's so filling and satisfying, but it's relatively healthy and really affordable to make, especially if you already have some of the ingredients on hand.
Here's what you'll need:
- Roma Tomato (or whatever tomato you prefer)
- Fresh Mozzarella Cheese (either a whole ball or individual pearls)
- Medium Firm Tofu as a vegan/dairy-free substitute
- Fresh Basil
- Olive Oil
- Balsamic Vinegar
- Optional: Garlic
What to do:
- Slice/chop your tomato and cheese/tofu. Traditionally, you'd want to slice the tomato and the mozzarella into rounds and place them in similar sized pairs. But sometimes you just don't have the energy to do that so you don't have to make it look fancy! I like to dice the tomato into smaller chunks and break the cheese into similar sized pieces and mix them together in a bowl, like a true salad.
- Take your basil and choose leaves that fit the rounds you made. If you're going with the mixing method, just tear your basil into small pieces and mix it into the bowl.
- Pour a small amount of olive oil over the bowl. Think of it like a light salad dressing; you don't want everything to drown in it.
- This is the optional step: infuse your balsamic vinegar with garlic by crushing the garlic and mixing it into a small dish with the vinegar. Let it sit for a few minutes.
- Pour your balsamic over your salad mixture, lightly. This is where a lot of your flavor is coming from so you don't want it to be too overpowering.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
This is a more savory snack, and it's definitely not vegan or lactose friendly. The next recipe however, is.
What You'll Need:
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1/2 red onion
- 1 regular tomato or cherry tomatoes
- 1 lemon
- 1 cucumber
What You're Gonna Do:
- Slice and dice all your ingredients! We're making a salad, so think similar sized, small pieces. I prefer my chunks of avocado to be slightly bigger than everything else in the salad. Try to keep the red onion finely diced because that flavor can be really overpowering if you eat too much of it in one bite. If you're using cherry tomatoes, just slice them in half.
- Mix the onions, tomatoes, and cucumbers in a bowl.
- Slowly introduce the avocado, being careful to avoid crushing the chunks. We want all the separate pieces to be intact -- we're not making guacamole. Gently fold in from the sides and bottom.
- Squeeze as much lemon as you'd like onto the mixture. I like mine a little tart so I do about 1/2 of a lemon.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
You can enjoy this with toast and egg, just toast, or simply by itself. It's really refreshing and good for you because the ingredients are so simple. It's gonna be especially great to have as it starts getting hotter. My only warning is that you should eat it as soon as possible because the avocado does start to brown.
I discovered this brilliant idea on none other than Pinterest, and although there are tons of variations of this recipe floating around the internet, I prefer the tried and true, classic recipe.
What You'll Need:
- Chia seeds
- 1 can Coconut milk
- Vanilla Extract
- Agave to taste
What You're Gonna Do:
- You're gonna first mix your liquid. Put your coconut milk into a blender, add a dash of vanilla extract, and add agave until you like the sweetness level. Agave is a really subtle sweetener, so try to go slowly and pay attention to how much you're adding because it's easy to get carried away.
- Blend the two until they're evenly distributed.
- Now comes the semi-tricky part. You're supposed to add enough chia seeds to make this into a pudding consistency, but you can't really tell how big the seeds are going to expand to. Most recipes say to add 1/4 cup for every can of coconut milk, but I just kind of eyeball it and hope it turns out okay.
- You're supposed to refrigerate the mixture and wait for it to set for a few hours but I usually take it out pretty early because I'm impatient. It's not unsafe to eat or anything, so just enjoy it when you think it looks ready!
If you're vegan, this is a great, healthier alternative to classic pudding.
Let me know if you try any of these recipes and if you liked them! Until next time.
