My Recent Healthy Eats — #4

The fourth edition of My Recent Healthy Eats has arrived! Without meaning to, this seems to have turned into the snack-edition. I would apologize but I looooove snacks! Especially when they’re fun and tasty and satisfying like the ones featured here.

Snacking can be one of the hardest times to eat healthily. Sometimes you’re hungry and you just want to eat ALL THE THINGS. Having nutritious snacks you can take with you on the go or keep on hand at home in case you come through the door ravenous can be a big help. These snacks take little to no prep time so it’s really just a matter of keeping them on hand in order to make eating healthy ridiculously easy.

I’ve also moved these posts from Sundays to Fridays so if something inspires you, you have the weekend to buy all your ingredients and do any preparing you need to set yourself up for a healthy, nourishing week!

1. Roasted squash seeds

I try to waste as little as possible in the kitchen. So rather than toss the seeds when I’m baking squash, I scoop them out, rinse them off, toss them in olive oil and sea salt and bake them in the oven at 325F. It’s just a matter of listening for them to pop, then taking them out, shaking the tray or using a flat spatula to redistribute them and returning the tray to the oven. Repeat this until they are golden-brown. Be careful when opening the oven in case they are still popping. You can use virtually any squash seeds — I’ve done acorn, butternut and spaghetti squash and they’re all delicious!

2. Homemade popcorn

Popcorn gets a bad rap thanks to the movie theatre and bagged varieties that can be loaded with fake butter and additives. But homemade, natural popcorn is a perfectly healthy treat from time to time. If you have a popcorn maker, that makes things extra easy. But if you don’t, simply drizzle olive oil in the bottom of a medium-sized pot, sprinkle in popcorn kernels and place the lid on the pot. Heat over medium-high heat until the corn starts to pop. When it goes 3-5 seconds without popping it is done and can be removed from the heat. Pour popped corn into a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil and sea salt or Himalayan salt.

3. Nud Fud crackers

If you haven’t tried the raw organic vegan snacks from Nud Fud, you definitely should give them a whirl. The carrot flax crackers pictured here have a more neutral taste which makes them perfect for dipping in things like this yummy roasted red pepper dip but they don’t have a lot of flavour on their own. The other varieties are sweetened with a little banana which makes them a better treat to snack on on their own. The bags are a little pricey so I tend to wait until they go on sale or end up on the clearance rack at my local health food store and then stock up.

4. Tahini and carrots

Sometimes I just don’t have the time or energy to make hummus but having a dip for my veggies is just too much fun. On one of these occasions a few months ago I decided (partly out of creativity, partly out of desperation) to see what carrots dipped in tahini would taste like. I mean, tahini is in hummus so it seemed plausible, right? Well, let me tell you. It is plausible. And it is delicious. Just peel and chop up a bunch of carrots and dip them in a spoonful or two of tahini. It’s a perfect combo.

5. Pumpkin-coconut purée

This here was another stumbled-across-pure-brilliance moment. One day I really wanted something “desserty” but didn’t have anything remotely resembling dessert in the house. So I decided to try to turn vegetables into dessert (the fact this is where my mind goes in such a situation makes me not surprised I’m training to become a holistic nutritionist). It’s simply pumpkin purée mixed with coconut milk, a pinch of cinnamon and a few drops of stevia. I think I’ll do this up as a full recipe with measurements because it’s Just. So. Good. And I want you all to be able to enjoy it. So stay tuned for that!

6. Last-minute roasted meals