Written by Zoe Manoukian
Now that we are all house ridden for the foreseeable future, we are left with a lot of extra time for studying, tidying, and snacking. Luckily, there is an abundance of delicious and healthy snacks that involve ingredients that may already be found in your kitchen and lend well to bulk buying. Next time you’re feeling peckish, consider one of the following recipes:
Oven Chicken Fingers
As appearing in Fix-It and Enjoy- It! Healthy Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good, submitted by Barb Harvey.
1 C Italian bead crumbs
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 garlic clove, minced
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
- In a plastic bag, mix bread crumbs and cheese.
- In a small bowl, combine garlic and oil.
- Flatten chicken to ½” thickness and cut into 1” wide strips.
- Dip each strip in garlic oil.
- Coat each with crumb mixture. Place on a greased baking sheet withut letting the strips touch each other.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
Mini Eggplant Pizzas
As appearing in Fix-It and Enjoy- It! Healthy Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good, submitted by Maryann Markano.
1 eggplant
½ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp dried basil
½ tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/8 tsp black pepper
¼ Cup pizza sauce
½ Cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 Tomato, cut in 4 slices
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees
- Peel eggplant and cut into 4 1/2” thick slices
- Combine spices and set aside
- Brush both sides of eggplant with oil and season with pepper
- Arrange on baking sheet and baked until browned, about 8 minutes. Turn once during baking to brown both sides.
- Place tomato slice and whatever vegetable toppings you want on each eggplant slice and sprinkle with spice mixture. Drizzle each slice with 1 Tbsp pizza sauce
- Top with cheese and bake until cheese melts, about 3-5 minutes
Berry Nougat Crunch
As appearing in Fix-It and Enjoy- It! Healthy Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good, submitted by Anita King.
5 Cups berries, fresh or frozen
¾ Cups chopped almonds
½ Cup raisins
¼ Cup almond butter, softened (*can replace with other nut butters)
2 Tbsp maple syrup, or honey
- Spoon your choice of berries into large mixing bowl.
- Fold in nuts and raisins.
- In a small mixing bowl, stir almond butter and maple syrup together until well blended. Add 2 Tbsp of lemon juice if desired.
- Stir gently into fruits and nuts.
- If you’re using frozen fruit, allow to thaw for about 20 minutes before serving.
200g Yogurt
2 Handfuls of fresh berries
- Lay approximately 12 cupcake wrappers on a small baking sheet or tray that will fit in your freezer.
- Spoon yogurt into wrappers.
- Press berries into yogurt.
- Place tray into freezer. Once frozen through, enjoy!
8 oz baked tortilla chips
8 oz lean turkey breast (*or meat of choice)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper
1 cup spicy black bean dip (*or just black beans)
1 1/3 cup reduced-fat Mexican cheese
2 cups pico de gallo salsa
1/2 cup light sour cream
2/3 cup fresh cilantro
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- Place chips in baking dishes or baking sheet
- Heat a large nonstick sauté pan over high heat. Add turkey. Season with cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper and sauté until cooked through, breaking up meat into small pieces with a wooden spoon.
- When cooked, add bean dip and mix well.
- Spoon the turkey mixture over the chips and sprinkle the cheese on top.
- Bake until cheese melts, about 6 minutes.
- Remove the nachos from the oven, top with pico de gallo, sour cream, cilantro and jalepeños.
2 large overripe bananas (240 grams total, without peel)
1 cup (92 grams) rolled oats (Use GF oats, if needed)
1/2 cup crunchy cereal granola or nuts
2 tbsp pure maple syrup or any other sweetener you use, if using a granulated sweetener add 2 tbsp liquid such as almond milk
2 tbsp (28 grams) natural peanut butter or other nut or seed butter
2 tbsp semi-sweet chocolate chips (make sure to use vegan, if desired)
2 tbsp dried cranberries or other dried fruit
2 – 4 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- Line a muffin pan with paper liners, or use a silicone muffin pan for easy removal.
- Mash the bananas. Add wet ingredients and cocoa powder and mix well. Add all other ingredients, mix well then press into prepared muffin tin.
- Freeze at least 60 minutes before enjoying. We like keeping them in the freezer for easy snacks. In the past we’ve used a homemade cereal that stays crunchy but more often than not I’ll use homemade granola or even an equal amount of nuts but use whatever you have. I’ve even used toasted buckwheat before and it works really well and stays crunchy.
Other popular healthy and homemade snacks at the moment include zucchini/banana bread, chips, and homemade salsa or guacamole, and hummus. For a sweet snack or dessert, consider softening apples and sprinkling with cinnamon. The possibilities are endless and now is a great time to find the healthy and delicious snack that you love. And remember to cut yourself some slack in this stressful time. Cracking into the occasional bag of chips or soda is a-okay, and some experts even encourage us all to allow ourselves a cheat snack.
*asterisk marks the author’s suggestions
