What Are Good Snack Foods?

Looking for a healthier option than the usual chips and cookies? Our nutritionist has lined up an array of options that offer snacks with benefits.

June 13, 2022

By: Leesa Morales, MScN

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Photo By: Leesa Morales

Turn Snacking Into a Healthy Pursuit

Snacking often gets a bad reputation, and in certain cases, for good reason. These sweet and savory options offer a satisfying solution to your mid-meal cravings, while also supporting your health, mood, and energy throughout the day.

Olives

Olives are one of the healthiest foods in the world, and a staple of the Mediterranean diet. The fruit’s combination of phenolic compounds, omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, essential amino acids and fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K help protect against early aging, cardiovascular disease and certain forms of cancer, including breast, prostate and skin, according to the Journal of Nutrition and Dietetic Practice. Try them on a charcuterie board, chopped into tapenade or on their own drizzled with olive oil for a vibrant, juicy, flavorful snack.

Miso Soup

You may be familiar with miso soup from your favorite sushi restaurant, but with as little as 3 ingredients, one of them being hot water, you can make your own rich, flavorful miso soup in a matter of minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of yellow miso paste to a mug or bowl, and add 2 teaspoons of dried seaweed granules; kelp is my favorite. Cover with 1 cup of hot water, and stir gently. The seaweed will unfurl into soft, noodle-like ribbons in one minute. Sip and slurp your way to a hydrating, fermented and surprisingly satisfying snack almost instantly. For more protein, add cubed tofu before the hot water.

Pickles

Oddly satisfying and surprisingly hydrating, a cold, zesty pickle will sometimes do just the trick when the craving for a midday snack arrives. The crunch is familiar to fresh produce but with an even juicer texture and more vibrant flavor. Clearly, I can’t say enough about them! Pickles are an extremely low-calorie food, generally about 5 calories per spear, and research from the Journal of Food and Health Science suggests that pickling actually enhances the antioxidant capacity of certain vegetables, cucumbers included. Look for pickles that have been naturally fermented without any preservatives, like those from Cleveland Kitchen or Grillo’s.

Pistachios

Pistachio's vibrant green and yellow interior and purple-ish outer skin are indicative of the unique antioxidant compounds that make it so impactful on our health. Compared to other nuts, pistachios are among the richest in terms of protein, fiber and potassium, and they are packed with mono-unsaturated fats, which may be beneficial in protecting against cardiovascular disease and obesity. Consuming foods rich in healthy fats, protein and fiber can contribute to a feeling of “fullness” and may support stable mood, energy and blood sugar throughout the day. Some evidence suggests these foods may also reduce feelings of anxiety.

Wild Salmon Jerky

With all of the health benefits of fresh salmon, and all of the convenience of a portable snack, wild salmon jerky provides a shelf-stable, protein-packed alternative to traditional jerky, perfect for stashing in the car on your next road trip or leaving in a desk drawer to refuel between meetings.

Fruit and Vegetable Jerky

A diet rich in fiber from whole fruits and vegetables has the potential to reduce the risk of diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease and several cancers, yet it is estimated that only 10% of people in Western populations eat enough of it, with typical intake being less than half. Jerky made from whole fruits and vegetables offers a shelf-stable, easily packable option to incorporate more fiber into your snacking routine. Solely fruit jerky contains one entire mango or banana, or half of a whole pineapple in every single-serve strip. Similarly, Pan’s mushroom jerky contains seasoned whole shiitake mushrooms that are as nutritious as they are craveable, while both options contain 100% of the original fiber from the fresh whole fruit or vegetable, delivering between 2g - 7g of fiber per serving.

Thin-Cut Fruit Chips

RIND Snacks’ innovative crispy, craveable, dehydrated fruit slices offer an immune-supporting midday snack with just a single ingredient in each bag: orange, apple or kiwi. Each serving delivers well over double (or even triple, depending which fruit you choose) the recommended daily intake for Vitamin C as well as 5 grams of fiber. Consider this naturally gluten-free, paleo, whole-30 compliant snack nutritionist-approved! What’s more, RIND Snacks keeps the peel on these sweet and tangy fruits before drying, which reduces food waste and delivers more antioxidants and fiber than most other fruit-based snacks. Find them nationwide at most food retailers, or on Amazon.

Stuffed Dates

Dates are a sweet, chewy, fiber-packed fruit with a caramel-like flavor and fudgy texture. If you’ve tasted these sweet jewels, you may be surprised to learn that they are actually considered a low glycemic food, meaning they will not have a drastic or detrimental effect on your blood sugar — an important factor for those monitoring their glucose or lipid levels, according to the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Try one stuffed with goat cheese or nut butter and sprinkled with your favorite toppings like bee pollen, chopped nuts or cacao nibs. It’s like nature’s candy bar!

Upcycled Vegetable Chips

In today’s modern world, you can have your chips, eat vegetables and reduce food waste, too! You might be surprised to learn that the first ingredient in Pulp Chips, a crunchy, zesty, flavorful new snack, is organic fruit and vegetable pulp sourced directly from national juice brands. Wildly, these chips are grain-free, gluten-free, vegan and pack 5g of fiber per serving, all while being less than 150 calories. Plus, the brand saves more than 10,000 pounds of perfectly edible fiber from going into the landfills each year, and that number is growing.

What Are Good Snack Foods?

Shop This Look

Turn Snacking Into a Healthy Pursuit

Olives

Miso Soup

Pickles

Pistachios

Wild Salmon Jerky

Fruit and Vegetable Jerky

Thin-Cut Fruit Chips

Stuffed Dates

Upcycled Vegetable Chips

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