Healthy Substitutes For Junk Food

My current favourite snack is celery sticks dipped in peanut butter. I dislike the taste of ranch dip, and peanut butter offers better nutritional value, providing protein and much less sodium than generic dip. Plus, it's easier to carry because you can easily wrap peanut butter in cellophane wrap. No need for little dip cups/bottles!

 

I like to keep dried fruit around. It makes for a quick snack, it is better than most of the things that pass for snack food and there is no preparation needed. While I would prefer fresh fruit on most occasions, I like the dried as it is easy to pack with me. I also like that dried fruit has a good shelf life as it allows me to take advantage of sales when they happen and buy a good supply.

Hummus and Pita is a good snack as well and satisfies me when the fruit will not do. We have a variety of pita breads available at the store so one can pick whole grain options is you are looking for a better snack.

 

I don't mind snacking on healthier stuff like celery, carrots, and red pepper strips as long as I have some fresh hummus or black bean dip on hand. Both are very healthy in their own right, as well as filling. Hummus is very adaptable too, you can go in so many different flavor directions with it. One restaurant here in Cleveland called "Tommy's" even makes a "spiked" Hummus, which is served warm, and has all sorts of stuff on it like BBQ sauce, a little shredded cheddar, red onions, olives and more. It's still really healthy, and has a ton of flavor. Black bean dip is really easy to throw together with ingredients on hand - a can of black beans, some jarred salsa, and a little cumin and chili powder in your blender will make a great dip, for example. I add a little olive oil too, to make it a little more rich.

Harry & David sells a variety of pepper and onion relishes, that are great with a little bit of low fat cream cheese on whole grain crackers. They also have a grilled pineapple salsa that is equally delicious. I like to top them off with a little bit of fresh chives too.

 

Hi Katharinemae

Luckily for me, all my kids are moderate junk food eaters but maybe because I don't buy them that often so they don't have ready access to junk foods.

Anyway, when it comes to healthy alternative snacks, I prefer to give my kids fruits. I did a lot of experimenting at first because they are not really fruit eaters. I mixed and match, cook, freeze, caramelized several kinds of fruits until I finally got what they really want - bananas. They like whole bananas with some nutella chocolate, cut bananas in crepes again with some nutella and their favorite >> bananas covered with chocolate.

 

I love junk food but when I want to serve fruit, I sprinkle it with Tajin which is a Mexican fruit booster made of lime, chilies and salt. Although it is spicy and acidic, it actually makes fruit taste sweeter.

 

I'm sorry, but eating a stick of celery no way should be considered a substitute to a hamburger, no matter what you dip it in! Surely there is something better?

 

I once came across a method of making potato chips that was quick and also seemed healthier which is to microwave them, but I honestly don't think it's worth the effort. Fruits and nuts are the obvious choice for something to munch on while still keeping healthy, and it think these are best to be used as substitutes of late night snacks, but for something closer to potato chips, I'd just recommend looking for healthier options like sweet potato, pea pod chips, etc.

 

So, it seems like your preferred style of junk food would be salty? I think at first it's best to determine what your taste profile prefers in the junk food and then find alternatives. If it is I would go with lemons and limes along with veggies. Olives alone or combined with hummus. Jerky may work well for you also. Though I would suggest sticking with turkey jerky. Fun to say and delicious to eat.