Recipe Round Up: Healthy Snacks

The month of January is a popular time for people to start new diet resolutions, or at least try to eat healthier.  Now that the month is over, I thought this was a good time to share another round-up of healthy recipes that I've tried from other blogs!

This time, the theme is healthy snacks - including portable snacks to power you through the day's activities, and homemade versions of snacks that you might usually buy at the grocery store.

Peanut Butter, Coconut & Dried Fruit Granola Bars
First up are these granola bars from Peanut Butter Runner. I never seem to make the same granola bars twice because I like to experiment with new combinations, and this recipe was the latest version that I've tried. I used dried apricots and dates for the fruit, which provided most of the sweetness and they were nice and hearty from the oats. These bars have been fueling me through my new schedule of exercise classes - they make a great pre- or post-workout snack!

Chili Garlic Crackers
I usually buy crackers from the store, but I saw this recipe on Versatile Vegetarian Kitchen and wanted to try making my own. These aren't necessarily the healthiest crackers, as they still have a bit of butter and sugar, but I like to think that since they're homemade and have less of the processed ingredients, they're still a pretty healthy snack choice!
They had a lot of flavour from the addition of garlic and green chilies and were super spicy for my taste, which I liked! They were also perfect on a charcuterie board to eat with different types of cheeses and tapenades.

Almond Joy Cookie Bites
I just bookmarked this recipe from Oh, Ladycakes, as seen on Vegan Yack Attack last week, and had a chance to make them this morning because I had almost all of the ingredients on hand. I did have to make a couple of substitutions which I think compromised the full flavour potential of these cookies (like leaving out the dark chocolate and using a different type of nut butter, plus my coconut had lost its freshness).  I still liked the combination of almonds, coconut and cacao nibs, so I'm excited to try the raw version of this recipe from Ashlae next!

Lentil Trail Mix
I was very curious about this trail mix when I first saw it on Healthful Pursuit and I finally had the chance to make it earlier this month to bring along as a snack on a family day trip.  I made a few changes based on what I had on hand, like using chopped dried mango and papaya for the fruit, along with the cranberries. I admit it was a bit odd at first and not everyone who tried it was a fan, but I personally loved the crunchiness of the red lentils and the sweetness of the dried tropical fruit!

Oat Snackles
These cookie bites from Let them Eat Vegan, as seen on Plant-Powered Kitchen, were another snack that I made for our family day trip that we spent outdoors at a provincial park.  They were nice and chewy and I liked the addition of the raisins and chocolate chips. Next time I would use less lemon zest, since the combination of zest with dried fruit reminded me too much of fruitcake, but other than that, they made a great healthy and portable snack!

Baked Plantain Chips

I've been wanting to try making my own plantain chips, since it sounds so easy, so I bought a plantain the other weekend and followed this recipe from the Kitchn.  I made half of the chips with a mandolin so that they came out super thin (at the bottom in the pic below), and the other half I cut with a knife a bit thicker (the top half of the plate). 

The thinner pieces turned out more like actual crispy chips and made a nice light snack, while the thicker ones were good for dipping in salsa. I liked them both ways, and this is definitely a snack that I want to make more often - maybe for Super Bowl this weekend!

Have a great weekend everyone, and I'll have some new recipes to share with you next week!

Multi-Seed Crackers with White Bean Dip

I always like to have at least one dip in the fridge to eat with crackers, pita chips or carrots as an afternoon snack. I usually stick with different flavors of hummus, but since I had some white beans leftover from my Quinoa with White Beans, Roasted Grapes and Brussels Sprouts, I decided to try making a dip with the beans instead of chickpeas.

The dip was super easy to make, and since white beans are naturally softer than chickpeas, it was very creamy without needing to add any extra oil. To flavor the dip, I added some fresh thyme, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper.

And since I needed something to eat my dip with, I also decided to make some crackers!  Homemade crackers are actually pretty easy to make, and you can make them healthier than storebought ones by controlling the type of flour and other ingredients that go into them.

I adapted this recipe for seed crackers from the Living Kitchen Wellness Group. The original recipe contained three different kinds of seeds, and I added two more types to really make these crackers multi-seeded!  I also added some rye flour because I like the flavour it adds, and I thought they needed a bit of sweetener so I added some agave syrup.

The crackers had a nice texture from all the seeds and a slightly nutty flavour that I liked. They were a tad on the dry side, but they made the perfect base for a creamy spread like the white bean dip!

Multi-Seed Crackers
Adapted from The Living Kitchen Wellness Group

1/2 cup oat flour
1/2 cup rye flour
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp each: poppy seeds, sesame seeds, chia seeds, golden flax seeds, and sunflower seeds
2 tbsp + 1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp agave nectar (or other sweetener)
4-6 tbsp water

Preheat oven to 370° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Place all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Add the olive oil and agave and stir to mix. Gradually add the water 1 tbsp at a time until a sticky dough forms.

Roll out the dough on a clean surface as thin as possible. Cut into squares or rectangles with a knife.

Place crackers on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes, until crackers are firm and golden (mine took 13 minutes). Remove from oven and let cool.

Serve with white bean dip (recipe below) or another spread.

Makes about 17 crackers.


White Bean Dip
2 cups canned white kidney beans, rinsed and drained

2 tsp fresh thyme (or rosemary)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1/4 tsp kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper

Add all ingredients to a food processor and process until completely smooth.

Store in the refrigerator.

This was submitted to Wellness Weekends at Diet, Dessert, and Dogs.