Healthy Snacks That Almost Taste Like Junk Food

If you are anything like me, you started off the school year with your 4 pm snack consisting of shoveling mini Oreos into your mouth. Weeks into the semester, you’ve probably realized that this wasn’t an ideal situation. While you still love dessert, you figured your afternoon snack should be real people food and you decided to save the treats for after dinner. However, the notion of a kale smoothie or a salad does not very much appeal to you. The solution? Healthy snacks that almost taste like junk food!

Here are some of my favourites:

What you’re craving: Chips
The solution: Eggplant Chips

What you’ll need:

1 Asian Eggplant (it is long and skinny)
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
Sprinkle of salt and/or spices of your choice

How to make it:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Cut your eggplant into thin slices
3. Lay them on a cookie sheet or on top of parchment paper over a pan
4. Brush or drizzle 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil on the slices
5. Sprinkle salt on them
6. Place them in the oven for 15-20 minutes, flipping them over half way through

You can always experiment with adding other flavours to the chips, like soy sauce, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, etc.

What you’re craving: Fro-yo or ice cream
The solution: Fruit Smoothie

What you’ll need:

A blender/magic bullet
1 frozen banana
1 cup of your preference of frozen fruits (berry mix, mango, pineapple, etc.)
1/2 cup of almond milk

How to make it:

1. Put in your banana and add a cup of frozen fruit to your blender
2. Add half a cup of almond milk
3. Blend away! You can add some more almond milk as you blend and stir if the smoothie is having trouble mixing

What you’re craving: Nachos
The solution: Avocado Wrap

What you’ll need:

1 whole wheat or regular tortilla
A very ripe avocado
Salsa

How to make it:

1. Heat up the tortilla, either on a pan flipping it to either side, or in the oven (optional)
2. Mash up the avocado in the middle of the tortilla
3. Drizzle some salsa over it and roll it up

Add shredded cheese while heating the tortilla on the pan for a more indulgent snack. For a lunch option, you can also add tuna or turkey to the wrap.

What you’re craving: Bits and Bites/Chips
The solution: Roasted Chickpeas

What you’ll need:

1 can of chickpeas
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Sprinkle of salt and/or spices of your choice

How to make it:

This recipe can be made in a pan or in the oven, but this is my preferred method:
1. Put a tablespoon of olive oil in a pan
2. Pour out about half the can of chickpeas on to the pan
3. Cook until the chickpeas brown and become crunchy on the outside, about 10-15 minutes
4. Add spices of your choice, such as cayenne, cumin, smoked paprika, etc. You can get very creative here.

If you are a salad person, these also taste delicious in a salad with spinach, nuts, cheese and balsamic dressing.

Happy snacking!

Yours Creatively,

Raquel Simpson, Online Columnist

Photography: Amanda Katz