Snack Challenge

Think of a snack as a mini-meal that contributes nutrient-rich foods. You can fit snack calories into your personal healthy eating plan without over-spending your day’s calorie budget. Plan snacks ahead of time. Keep a variety of nutritious ready-to-eat supplies on hand, such as whole-grain crackers and low-fat cheese.

Apple slices
Spread 1 tbsp peanut butter on apple slices.

Baby carrots
Dip baby carrots and cherry tomatoes in low-fat ranch dressing

Baked potato
Microwave a small baked potato. Top with 1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese and salsa

Banana Split
Top a banana with greek vanilla or fruit yogurt. Sprinkle with your favorite whole-grain cereal

Celery sticks
Spread celery sticks with peanut butter or low-fat cream cheese. Top with raisins.

Hummus Boat
Cut 1 red bellpepper into quarters and stuff each quarter with 1 tbsp of hummus

Mini-pizza
Toast an English muffin, drizzle with pizza sauce and sprinkle with low-fat mozzarella cheese

Pita pocket
Stuff a whole-grain pita pocket with ricotta cheese and Granny Smith apple slices. Add a dash of cinnamon

Popcorn
Sprinkle 1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese on 3 cups of hot popcorn

Quick-to-fix salad
2 cups of mixed greens with 1/2 cup of mandrin oranges, 1/2 cup beans, and 2 tbsp reduced-fat dressing.

Sandwich
Make a mini-sandwich with tuna or egg salad on a dinner roll or whole wheat sandwich thins

Smoothie
Blend low-fat milk, frozen strawberries and a banana for thirty seconds for a delicious smoothie

Soft taco
Top 1 soft taco with beans, 1 tbsp of grated cheese and salsa

Strawberries or apple slices
Dip strawberries or apple slices in low-fat yogurt

Tomato soup
1 cup tomato soup with five whole-grain crackers

Tri-Color veggie snack
6 baby carrots, 10 sugar snap peas (or green pepper strips), 6 cherry tomatoes and 2 tbsps reduced-fat ranch dressing for dipping

Turkey wrap
Fill one wheat tortilla with a slice of turkey, 1/8 slice of avocado, 2% or low-fat cheese, lettuce and tomato

Vanilla yogurt
Top low-fat vanilla yogurt on two graham crackers and add sliced banana to make a yummy sandwich

Waffle
Toast a whole grain waffle and top with low-fat yogurt and sliced peaches

Yogurt
Fill a waffle cone with cut-up fruit and top with low-fat vanilla yogurt