Having a hard time finding snacks that are both interesting and healthy? I run into that one all the time. So, I’ve decided to compile a list of my favorite snackages that come in interesting packages…or no package at all!
1. Avocado Power!
Okay, let’s start with the subject of FFT…Part 2; our bumpy little green friend the avocado. While most people equate avocados with guacamole and end it there, I offer you a few easy, low-prep alternatives. If you don’t know the simplest way to navigate to the yummy parts (flesh) of the avo, read on for a couple of quick tips.
Avocado Preparation Tips
* Have a sharp knife and a spoon on hand before you start.
* Cut the avo from the tip to the bottom and back around to the tip. Chef’s knives are brilliant for this because the blade will get all the way down to the large seed in the middle.
* Twist each half in opposite directions and they will separate. To remove the seed, either pry it out with the spoon, or give it a good whack with the chef’s knife and twist it out. (PLEASE be careful when handling any sharp kitchen tools!)
Now that you’ve got two beautiful halves, what next? If you wish to slice up the avo, I suggest you first run your spoon along the inside of the skin to loosen the flesh and remove it from its shell. That yields the most aesthetically pleasing result, particularly if you are using your avo as a pretty garnish. Once sliced up, try your avo on some toast or pita bread. I find this just as satisfying as cream cheese.
If you’re just feeling the need to eat something green, use the cavity left by the seed as a built in sauce dish and pour some soy sauce in, grab your spoon and have at ‘er! If soy is not your thing, try lemon juice, worchestershire sauce, salsa or whatever tickles your tastebuds.
Guacamole is always best when it’s made fresh, so if you’ve only ever bought it at your favorite grocery store, you’ll be amazed at how easy it is to make. If you’ve never had the pleasure of eating guacamole before, you are in for a treat! (**Please note that no self-respecting guac contains yogurt or sour cream!! This is sacrilege punishable by death.**)
Start with the basic ingredients:
1 ripe avocado
Ground cumin
Salt
Lemon or lime juice
1 or 2 cloves fresh garlic
Start by mashing the avocado with a fork, press the garlic into the same bowl (I’d start with one clove) and mix together. Add small amounts of cumin and juice to the mix and adjust seasoning to taste (if you are not sure how much to start with, 1 tbsp juice and 1 tsp cumin should be a safe start). Add a little salt at the end and voila! All ready to scoop with some of those yummy baked tortilla chips (see below for my picks on baked chippy things).
If you’re feeling adventurous, try adding some freshly chopped tomato, jalapenos, onions or cayenne pepper. Start with small quantities and remember that the flavor will intensify if it is stored before being eaten. You can always add more, but it is nearly impossible to remove too much spice, short of adding another avo.
Storing Mr. Avo
Your new-found green friend does not like to be exposed to air for very long. The best way to stop your avo from turning brown is to cover the surface with plastic wrap. Yep, press the plastic lightly to remove small airspaces from the surface of the avo/dip that you wish to refrigerate. Guac seems to enjoy having the seed put in the bottom of the bowl as well to help preserve it. Although lemon/lime juice will help to keep it fresh, the plastic wrap works best to stop it turning brown.
2. Hummuna Hummuna Hummus
This is the chickpea/garbanzo bean at its finest. If you are not familiar with this tasty dip, it is simple to make and is very satisfying. Nutritionally, it is a great balance of carbohydrate and protein with some fat. How much fat is really up to you. You may choose to forego the olive oil, but it does add another layer of flavor to this savory dip. I’m not going to include a formal recipe because I find it is a matter of personal taste. Start with the basic ingredients and go from there. Food processor or Braun hand mixers are indispensible for making a smooth, creamy-textured dip.)
1 can Chickpeas (Garbanzo beans)
Water
Olive oil
Garlic
Tahini (sesame paste)
Salt and pepper
Lemon juice
The intensity of each flavor is really up to you. I personally like a lot of tahini in my hummus, but not so much as to make the dip bitter. Striking a good balance between the ingredients will result in a flavorful hummus that is not runny and has smooth texture to it. Also, add lemon juice carefully as it can easily overpower the other flavors.
3. Baked Chippy Goodness
I’ve eaten pretty much every baked chip under the sun and not all baked goods are equal. I’ve chosen to include some of my favorites – store-bought and homemade. These are my personal tastes and I do not claim that they taste the same as their full-fat or deep-fried counterparts. I choose baked stuff because I know it is better for me, not because it tastes better than the original. Also, be prepared to pay a little extra for these treats. What you won’t find in this list are products fried in low-fat oils/substitutes. If you wish to try these, do your research first, then form your own opinions. I do, however, cook with low-fat cooking sprays. I fully understand that some people regard these as the anti-christ of the cooking world. If you fall in that category, just get yourself an oil mister/spray bottle and use your favorite oil…sparingly, of course.
Make your own Baked Pita/Tortilla Chips – Whole wheat pita bread or tortillas cut into wedges, a little butter-flavored or olive oil flavored cooking spray, seasoning and baked at low heat for about 20 minutes. Easy, fresh and your guests will think you did a lot of work. Try using flavored flour tortilla shells to have homemade baked tortilla chips.
Tostitos Baked Tortilla chips – There are other brands out there, but none that live up to these little guys. Served out of the bag with your favorite dip or baked into a platter of nachos, these chips stay crisp! Some of the other baked chips out there taste okay when they’re made up as nachos, but they develop a rubbery, chewy texture after being baked again. Not so great.
Baked Lays Chips – These might remind you a little of Pringles sans-excess salt and fat. These even passed the taste test at my office full of deep-fried-eating-no-health-food men. A word of caution to those sensitive to MSG – Lays produces several different baked product lines, including Baked Cheetos and Baked Doritos and some do contain MSG. These are very tasty, but MSG gives me a tummy ache. Just be sure to read the ingredients before purchasing any of the flavored ones. If I recall, the BBQ and plain flavors are safe.
Flavored Mini Rice/Corn Cakes – I find that brand does not matter here, they’re pretty much the same as far as flavors go. Just be sure to read the labels for the cheese flavored ones – some are not as low fat as they might seem.
Kettle Bakes Potato Chips – If you want something that looks like a chip, feels like a chip but isn’t greasy, try these. They are super!
4. “…But what I really want my favorite, homemade [insert name of favorite baked goodie here]!!!”
Okay, okay…quit whining! If you really must have it, who am I to stop you? Before you break out the cookie sheets, loaf pans and muffin tins though, here are a couple of tricks (and their pitfalls) for substituting out sugar and fat in your recipes. Remember, with any substitution, the texture or consistency may be affected and may not be exactly as remembered. Also, I would avoid trying all of the substitutions all at once. Take a more scientific approach and try them one at a time. Ensure that you’re a good little scientist and take notes on how your goodie was different than before so you know what to expect next time you make it.
Cholesterol-free baking
1 whole egg = 2 egg whites
This one is by far the easiest to use or avoid. Yes, I said avoid. This substitution is ideal for pancakes, loaves,muffins, cakes (you get the idea), but not for custards and items depending on the emulsifying power of Mr. Egg Yolk. If you’re unsure it will work, chances are you’re right. An already cholesterol-free cake (usually) is Angel Food, which uses only egg-whites.
Lard/butter = vegetable shortening
Since there is no good source of cholesterol in the plant world, just ask the basic question: Is it animal or vegetable? The latter will always be safe for your cholesterol woes. It does, however, have just as much fat. So, don’t try to pawn your favorite pie off as health food just because you didn’t use butter or lard to make the crust.
Fat-free or reduced fat baking
Quantity of fat = 2 x quantity of applesauce/mashed bananas
If you didn’t get good grades in Math, use this example: 1/2 cup butter = 1 cup applesauce/mashed bananas. I have used the applesauce substitution more frequently than bananas with great success. Remember that applesauce and bananas add moisture to your batter and the end result will be a spongier one. I have made chocolate chip cookies using applesauce and they taste great, but they are softer and more cake-like. Also, if you try to use applesauce in a recipe that uses baking soda, your end result will have a slightly more pronounced baking soda/salty taste.
Dairy
Quantity of sour cream = quantity of fat-free sour cream/yogurt
Quantity of whole milk = quantity of buttermilk or skim milk
This one is pretty self-explanatory. All the taste with much less fat. You do have a choice!
*A word to the wise
I do not recomment the use of low-fat or reduced-fat margarine as an option for baking. The reason is that these generally have a much higher water content and will make baking, well, icky. Example: Have you ever spread some of that on a piece of toast? The end result is a piece of toasted bread that tastes like it’s been misted with buttery water. Gross.
Another one I’d avoid is light peanut-butter for making cookies. They just end up looking and tasting weird and don’t seem to bake properly. If you must have peanut-butter cookies (as one does, from time to time), make a batch of the real thing. Just eat one or two and throw the rest in the freezer. Better yet, throw two cookies in the oven and put the batter in the freezer. Makes it more labor intensive to eat a dozen cookies if you have to thaw the whole bucket of batter!
“Sugar..aw, honey-honey…you are my candy girl…”
If you want to be someone’s Sugar-Momma (or Daddy) without looking like a rotund lollipop, here are a few words about what’s out there.
Sucralose (aka Splenda)
For those of you anti-Splenda folks: move on, you’re in the wrong place – nothing for you to see here.
I love Splenda! This is my choice if I am going to substitute out the real thing. Its granulated texture allows you to go measure-for-measure with little to no error. Some recipes need minor adjustments, however there is a multitude of recipes on the Internet for baking using Splenda.
Honey
Popular amongst many for baking, I have limited experience with using honey as a substitute for granulated sugar. I found a website that does offer the more complicated substitution details, as well as some other baking tips. I have not tried their recommendations, so use your own judgement.
Stevia
It comes from plants, can be purchased in liquid or granulated form and if used too liberally, will give anything a sickly sweet taste. I’ve never tried baking with it other than adding stevia-sweetened chocolate protein powder to pancakes. That did go well, but I ended up using the rest of the protein powder in that way because I couldn’t handle the taste of it on its own as a protein shake.
Fruit Juice, Maple Syrup, etc.
Yes, these do steer you away from what some think is the evil of refined white sugar. Please remember though that sugar is sugar. Fructose, honey and maple syrup are still sugars, just in a different form. If you’re trying to reduce calories, my bet is still on Sucralose. I invite you to form your own opinions and experiment at will.
Gorgeous hair, sensational skin and a satisfied tummy? No, it’s not shampoo or a monster bag of movie popcorn. It’s the wunderkind of all fruits – the Avocado. If you’d like to skip my enlightening comments, I suggest you go straight to the “I eat avos” section of the 
