All too often we are surrounded with food to snack on whether we need it or not. That’s a big part of the overweight problem we face as Americans. It’s just too easy to overeat. However, there are moments when you are actually hungry and you NEED a LITTLE something but the available healthy choices aren’t appealing.
What can you have to stay on track with your healthy low calorie diet and yet satisfy your desire for something creamy or crunchy or salty or whatever the need might be? You might have a piece of fruit for your snack but what you’d rather have is a bag of potato chips. Maybe what you are really wanting is something salty. What might you eat instead?
I’ve started a list of low calorie healthy snacks and treats that I hope you will help me expand on! I would like this list to help you and me identify which foods might be helpful to have around for those unpredictable moments when nothing else will do. It is possible to be prepared with appropriate choices! Because the alternative can mean wolfing down hundreds of unnecessary calories just because an equally satisfying lower calorie choice was not available!
My list includes mostly healthy snacks plus some treats. If you watch portion size you can keep each of these snacks to 150 calories or less.
[NOTE: Snacks will not only satisfy a need for a little something to tide you over between meals but they also provide a good source of much needed nutrients. Treats may have far greater appeal but typically provide little more than extra calories. The treats I’ve included here do provide somewhat more than just calories which is a plus given the low calorie count!]
Crunchy
Crackers:
- Reduced Fat Triscuits by Nabisco (120 calories for a serving of 7 crackers)
- Wasa Hearty Rye Crispbread (45 calories per serving)
- Kashi Mediterranean Brushetta Crackers (120 calories for 4 crackers)
Pickles (fresh/refrigerated pickles are best to reduce sodium)
Carrot/celery sticks
Chips (Limit the chips, fill up with low calorie salsa instead)
- baked pita chips
- baked potato chips
- rye crisps
- Athenos Whole Wheat Pita Chips (about 9 chips for slightly less than 100 calories)
- Plocky’s All Natural Corn, Cracked Whole Wheat, and Brown Rice Chips (129 calories for 1 ounce)
- Whole Grain Tortilla Chips (about 140 calories for 1 ounce)
- Terra Chips with 90% less salt
(NOTE: Veggie chips are not necessarily better/healthier than other chips – Check to see if vegetables are listed first on the ingredient list, then check the calories. Veggie chips may have as many or more than regular chips.)
Salty
Popcorn
Rice Cakes
Quaker Oats Rice Cakes with a little peanut butter
Pickles
Olives
Jerky
Oven roasted almonds by Blue Diamond with a touch of sea salt
Feta cheese sprinkled on low calorie cut veggies such as tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers,
Sweet
Small low calorie smoothie (You could have 1/2 of a Bright-Eyed and Blueberry Blend from Jamba Juice and share the other half with a friend for 140 calories.)
“pie-like” treat – cut up an apple or peach into slices, sprinkle with cinnamon and a LITTLE sugar, microwave for a minute or two
Low calorie cookies
- Petite Sunflower Seed Cookies
- Vanilla, Lemon, or Chocolate Midel cookies
- 12 animal crackers
- 2 Nabisco 100% Whole Grain Fig Newton Cookies (100 calories for 2)
Fruit
-Blueberries/Raspberries/Blackberries/etc.
-2-3 dried plums or figs
-25 grapes
Sour
Blueberry Pomegranate real fruit twists (100 calories for 15 twists, Archer Farms)
Dill pickles
Olives
Spicy
Green Tabasco Sauce on veggies (cherry tomatoes halved, small pieces of cucumber or zucchini, etc.)
Hot and spicy salsa
Creamy
Low Fat Greek yogurt with a little honey or caramel
Instant (homemade) oatmeal with berries and nuts (Homemade Instant Oatmeal)
Raspberries/Strawberries/Blackberries/Blueberries mixed into plain low fat yogurt
Banana with 1 oz. dark chocolate – Cut lengthwise slit in banana without cutting all the way through, insert chocolate pieces in slit, microwave for a minute or so till chocolate melts
½ cup Hummus
Tuna Fish Salad with Avocado slices
-Strawberry Low fat Frozen Yogurt Bars (60 calories each, Weight Watchers)
Skinny Cow Fudge Bars (100 calories per bar)
(I haven’t tried the other Weight Watcher’s bars. Are they creamy also? Please comment below and let me know.)
Chocolate Mousse Bars (60 calories each, Weight Watchers)
Dark Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Bars (80 calories each, Weight Watchers)
1% Cottage Cheese (81 calories for ½ cup)
Snack pack low calorie pudding
Almond Milk
1 cup Amy’s Low Fat Butternut Squash Soup (100 calories)
1 cup Amy’s Low Fat Cream of Tomato Soup (100 calories)
Yogurt, Thick and Creamy, Yoplait Light (100 calories per container, includes an artificial sweetener*)
Light Fit n’ Creamy, Dannon (100 calories per container, includes an artificial sweeter*)
*See Artificial Sweeteners for Weight Loss: Do They Work?
Thirsty/Juicy/Refreshing
Iced tea with a squeeze of lemon juice
Iced coffee with nonfat milk
Whole Fresh Orange
Mandarin Orange slices
Frozen grapes/blueberries/raspberries/cherries/etc. (to enjoy when the weather is warm)
Fresh juicy peaches, plums, grapes, watermelon, etc.
Ripe Mango, sliced (55 calories for ½ cup)
Fresh Pineapple, cut pieces (75 calories per cup)
O.K., I’ve shared all the ideas I can come up with for the moment. Please jump in the conversation and share your thoughts about what might be added to the list of low calorie healthy snacks. It will help all the many thousands of readers who visit my site. Thank you!!
Till next time, watch those calories, eat healthy foods, and allow yourself to have occasional treats!
