There are soooooo many processed snack options in the supermarkets these days. Bars, bliss balls, biscuits, crackers, chips...and the marketing is very clever - gluten free, vegan, plant-based - all the while hiding sugar or other refined or artificial sweeteners, colourings, flavourings, natural flavouring (*tip - it's not natural like you and I would think), soy flour or soy protein, preservatives and gums.
Now obviously the best snacks are the traditional ones:
fresh fruit - mandarins are delicious at the moment
dried fruit
nuts and seeds (watch the portion size - about a tablespoon)
vegetable sticks and hummus
rice crackers (check ingredients for flavourings)
boiled eggs
smoothie with fruits and vegetables
home-made juice
But sometimes I just feel like something a bit more like a treat. Again homemade biscuits/muffins/cakes are leaps ahead of bought ones because you can use:
wholemeal flour/spelt flour/gluten-free flour
proper butter
rapadura sugar (unrefined sugar) / honey / maple syrup
and of course you don't add colourings, flavourings or preservatives!
However I don't always have the motivation or time to do home-made baking (and my mum is in NZ so my nieces and nephew get all her delicious goodies!). So then we get into the insane world of processed snacks. Most of them are just hideous when you read the ingredient list, so I wanted to introduce you to a little friend I've found:
These delicious little bars are a small snack (child size) and contain only dates, sunflower seeds, ground chia seeds, ground sesame seeds and cocoa powder. Guess what? No nuts so they're lunchbox friendly too! Although they may not make it to your child's lunchbox if you get your hands on them.
What I also love about them is they don't contain any soy protein** or coconut oil. Soy protein is very hard to digest so not great for anyone but particularly those with any gut issues. Coconut oil is absolutely fine for most people but I don't seem to do well with a lot of it so I'm stoked these bars contain no added oils.
**be sure to buy this flavour. All the others I've seen in this range contain soy protein. I'm referring to refined or extracted soy protein. Soy protein naturally occurring in tofu, tempeh, miso or natto i.e. properly prepared soy products is a healthy form of protein.
These bars are a handy snack to keep in the handbag, glove box, work desk drawer or pocket so a healthy snack is never too far away, even if we're out and about. And of course they go well with your favourite cuppa!
These are from the McLaren Vale Coles in the health food aisle.
It would be great to hear if you've found any other bought snack products that appear healthy - let's share the "Carla Approved" love.
Happy snacking,
Carla :)
