SOME GREAT SNACK RECIPES
Here are some great ideas for things to take to work, on the road, or just as far as the couch!
MAKE AHEAD
HUMMUS
400 g can chickpeas
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 lemon, zest and juice
3 tablespoons tahini
pinch of ground cumin
good-quality olive oil
Tip the chickpeas into a sieve, rinse with cold water and drain. Put them in a food processor together with the garlic, lemon zest and juice, tahini and cumin, and whizz it all up to a paste. Add a splash of water to get the consistency you want – it should look lovely and creamy – and adjust the flavour to your taste using more garlic, lemon and/or tahini. Put the hummus in a container and drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Store in an airtight container in the fridge – it should keep for a week.
No food processor? Mash everything together in a bowl with a fork or a potato masher – you’ll get a bonus upper body workout as well as your hummus!
Don’t want to make your own? Buy a good-quality ready-made version from the supermarket (check the labels).
Serve with peeled carrots cut into sticks and/or celery stalks cut into manageable pieces. (Too busy? Buy baby carrots and pre-cut celery at the supermarket.) If you’re taking this into work, invest in some small clip-lid plastic containers so that you’ve got portion control. A single snack portion of hummus is about ¼ cup.
GUACAMOLE
1 tomato
2 avocados
juice of 1 small lime
1 clove garlic, crushed
¼ red onion, finely diced
fresh chilli and/or fresh coriander (optional)
Dice the tomato finely, put it in a sieve and leave it over a bowl or the sink to drain. Meanwhile, peel the avocados and mash the flesh together with the lime juice. Stir through the garlic and red onion, along with the finely diced chilli and/or chopped fresh coriander, if using. Finally, stir through the diced, drained tomato. Taste, and add salt if needed. Store in an airtight container in the fridge and use within a couple of days.
Don’t want to make your own? Buy some ready-made guacamole from the supermarket. It won’t taste as good as home-made, but it’s easy if you’re in a hurry.
Serve with carrot sticks and/or celery stalks. (Too busy? Buy baby carrots and pre-cut celery at the supermarket.) If you’re taking this into work, invest in some small plastic containers so that you’ve got portion control. A single snack portion of guacamole is about ¼ cup.
SPICED SEEDS
250 g mixed seeds – pumpkin and sunflower are best
1 teaspoon spice of your choice – garam masala or ras el hanout are good options
1 teaspoon sweetener – maple syrup, agave syrup, rice bran syrup (not honey – it will make everything too sticky)
1 teaspoon tamari, soy sauce or other liquid to complement your spice
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
½ teaspoon flaky salt
pinch of chilli or cayenne, if you want a bit of heat
Preheat the oven to 160°C.
Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl, then tip onto a baking tray and spread out evenly. Cook for 15–20 minutes, being careful not to let the seeds burn. Loosen any stuck seeds from the tray, and tip out onto a large plate to cool. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
SPICY POPCORN
½ cup popcorn kernels
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons maple syrup or equivalent sweetener (not honey)
½ teaspoon chilli powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon flaky salt
Preheat the oven to 175°C. Pop the popcorn in an air popper (if you don’t have an air popper, follow the instructions on the popcorn package).
Place the coconut oil on a large baking tray and put it in the oven until it’s just melted. Remove the tray, then stir the maple syrup, spices and salt into the coconut oil.
Tip in the popped popcorn, and stir with your hands to coat all of the popcorn with the mixture. Remove any unpopped kernels as you go, or you’ll end up with a mess all over your oven!
Spread the popcorn out evenly over the tray, put it in the oven and bake for about 8 minutes. Remove and let it cool slightly. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
MIX AND MATCH
CRACKERS AND TOPPINGS
Pick a cracker variety that has a good wholegrain content, is relatively low in saturated fat and doesn’t have loads of sugar or salt. Check the label to see how many calories per cracker – your snack portion is about 100 calories, so that’s four 25-calorie crackers or two 50-calorie crackers. Choose wisely!
Top with any of the following:
A slice of avocado, a slice of tomato, salt and pepper
Marmite (no butter) and a slice of tomato
Hummus
Guacamole
A smear of peanut butter and a couple of slices of banana
A big slice of tomato, salt and pepper and a few fresh basil leaves
EASY
NUTS
Buy raw, unsalted nuts from the supermarket or your preferred food store. Portion them out into servings of 10–12 nuts (4–5 if they are Brazil nuts).
APPLE AND PEANUT BUTTER
Slice an apple in half and use a spoon to scoop out the core. Put ½ teaspoon of peanut butter into the cavity of each apple half.
CARROT, CELERY AND PEANUT BUTTER
Cut carrots and celery into sticks and smear them with a bit of peanut butter.
SNACK IN A CAN
Open a small can of tuna or salmon! Choose cans that provide around 100 calories (420 kilojoules) per serving. There are some great flavours available, but watch out for added sugar.
BLISS BALLS
NUT AND OAT BLISS BALLS
1 cup rolled oats
½ cup peanut butter or almond butter
½ cup dates, diced
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 tablespoon chia seeds
2 tablespoons cacao nibs or cocoa powder (optional)
1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
handful of desiccated coconut, for coating
Blitz all of the ingredients except the desiccated coconut in a food processor, until they come together into a firm paste. Form tablespoons of the mixture into balls, then roll in desiccated coconut. Freeze. Either eat frozen, or take a couple out to take to work.
SUPER-SALADS
Having a stash of salads in the fridge is one of the easiest ways to add vegetables to your meals. Salad can be made with raw or cooked vegetables, whichever takes your fancy. Raw salads are great in summer because they’re so fresh and cooling, and they’re pretty easy to roll out if you’re having a barbecue in the evening. There are heaps of ideas for salads on the internet, but here are a few to get you started.
# Beetroot and carrot: Peel the beetroot, but you can just scrub the carrots if you like. Grate equal amounts of beetroot and carrot. Put them in a bowl and add a handful of sultanas and a big handful each of finely chopped mint and parsley leaves. Put a good handful of pumpkin seeds into a dry frying pan and toast them until they just start to colour; tip them into a bowl to cool, then do the same to a handful of sunflower seeds. While the toasted seeds are cooling, make a dressing. Whisk together 2 tablespoons each of olive oil and orange juice, 1 tablespoon each of pomegranate molasses and balsamic vinegar, and add a touch of honey if you want more sweetness. Pour this over the salad mix, add the seeds and stir everything so that it’s all mixed together. (Don’t have pomegranate molasses? Substitute maple syrup or a bit more honey.)
# Green goodness: Cook 200 g frozen edamame beans in the microwave, drain and leave to cool; do the same with 200 g frozen peas. Finely chop a small bunch of spring onions, including the green parts, and put them in a bowl. Cut an avocado (or two) into nice bite-sized pieces and add to the bowl along with the juice of 1 lemon, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin and some salt to taste. Finely shred a big handful of flat-leaf parsley and a big handful of mint leaves; add some chopped chives, too, if you like. Add this to bowl, along with some diced cucumber (the little Lebanese ones are nice). Add the cooked peas and beans, and mix to combine.
# Brassica bowl 1: Cut a large head of broccoli (or two smaller heads) into bite-sized florets. Bring a big pot of water to the boil, add salt, then toss in the broccoli for 1–2 minutes – you’re just taking the raw edge off them, not cooking them. Tip them into a colander straight away, then rinse them in ice-cold water to stop the cooking process (it will also help keep them nice and green). Grate a couple of carrots into a bowl, and add the broccoli. Make a dressing by combining equal quantities of olive oil and fresh lemon juice (a tablespoon of each will be plenty), with some chilli flakes (or fresh chilli, if you like), salt and pepper. Stir through the vegetables.
# Brassica bowl 2: Cut a medium-sized cauliflower into bite-sized florets. Bring a big pot of water to the boil, add salt, then toss in the cauliflower for 1–2 minutes only. Drain in a colander and rinse with ice-cold water to stop the cooking process. Make sure the cauliflower drains well – you might even want to pat it dry with a paper towel – then put it in a bowl. Add a big bunch of finely sliced flat-leaf parsley. Halve some pitted black olives and add those. If you have capers (the ones preserved in salt), rinse some and add them as well. If you want extra crunch and colour, add a finely diced red capsicum. Make a dressing by combining equal quantities of olive oil and red wine vinegar (a tablespoon of each will be plenty), then stir this through the salad, adding salt and pepper if desired.
# Tomato salad: Take some firm, fresh tomatoes and either slice them or cut them into segments. If you’ve got cherry tomatoes, just halve them. Finely shred a good handful of mint leaves and put this into a bowl with the tomatoes. If you want a bit of zing, add some finely sliced spring onion or shallot. Make a dressing with equal amounts of olive oil and fresh lemon juice (a tablespoon of each should be enough), plus salt and pepper. Gently stir the dressing through. This tastes better if left for half an hour or so for the flavours to develop.