Help! Need Ideas for Portable Snacks!

[A R Price]

Biscotti are great portable snacks...lightweight, don't spill, aren't sticky, and can actually be good for you. CL has had some very good recipes for them in the last 2-3 years. A recipe search on CL Online or through the Annual Indexes might find them, or I can dig through my back issues (yes, I keep them all) and find the ones I put yellow stickees on. Let me know if you want me to do the latter.

Anne

[kentgirl]

I'm going to post a few suggestions of snacks that I take to work that I consider portable:
· apple and hummus
· mini bagel with low-fat cream cheese (pre-spread)
· fruit
· high fiber muffins
· trail mix
· cereal you can eat without milk
· veggie sticks
· breadsticks
· low-sodium V8 juice
· whole grain crackers and peanut butter.
· individual containers of canned fruit
· bag of Weight Watchers popcorn.

If I think of any more, I'll post them! Congrats on going back to school to get your degree!

[JillC]

Cooking Light's website has a related "article" with some recipes for snacks. Here's the link: http://www.cookinglight.com/articles/get_article.asp?aID=9497
Jill

[Leanne]

You may think I'm crazy, but beef jerkey is a good portable snack. It is low in fat & high in protein - which keeps you fuller for longer. Pemmican (I may not have spelled that right) is a good brand.

[Wendy w]

I agree with the snack suggestions here, but I just want to extend my congrats to you! Insert fireworks graphic here!

[hhcowgirl]

I am in law school and have the same problem with having almost zero time between classes. Although I am not a big snacker, I've found that baby carrots and those little individual packages of cottage cheese (made by Breakstone) travel well. Plus, the cottage cheese has 12 grams of protein and only 2 of fat!

[Laura Wick]

One of my favorite snacks is an apple with cheddar cheese. There are many great insulated soft lunch bags on the market, small enough to put in a backpack or a large tote.

Also, little boxes of raisins are convenient, don't spoil and give lots of energy. Small packages of nuts ditto.

Congrats on going back to school, and good luck with this new chapter in your life!

[Veronica]

Congrats on going back to school! I just graduated from college last year after about a 10-year hiatus. I enjoyed it & appreciated it much more the second time around.

For your snacks, you may want to consider taking a small ice-pack to keep in your backpack with perishable snacks. I used to take grain & veggie salads (e.g., tabouli), crackers & cheese, a banana, peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, and other things along these lines. A big bottle of water is a must, too.

Good luck & enjoy!

[Heidi]

I can't remember the brand (I think maybe Sunmaid), but one of the companies who makes little boxes of raisins now makes little boxes of other dried fruit. I've looked in the grocery stores with no luck but they do have them at Costco. There is an assortment of boxes in the package: golden raisins and dried cherries, dried tropical fruits, dried cherries only, and one more I can't remember. They are a nice alternative to raisins and the perfect size to put in your pocket for a quick snack.

[SClementson]

Wow! I can't believe all of your great ideas! I'm going to print this out and take it with me to the store...

Anne, I'd love to know what your favorite biscotti recipes are. I've been wanting to try making my own, but I hadn't thought about taking them to school. Thanks!

Kentgirl, thanks for all your ideas, esp. the low-sodium V-8 juice. I find V-8 to be really filling and satisfying. Leanne, I've always loved beef jerky, but hadn't considered that, either. And hhcowgirl, I love cottage cheese - I'll have to look around for those individual containers. The little boxes of dried fruit sound like a win, too. And I definitely won't forget my water!

Thanks again for all of your ideas, AND for your support and well wishes. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif Once again, I have to say that I love this BB. It truly is a unique place on the web!

Sarah

[laughsandlaughs]

I'm a big fan of Luna and Clif bars...especially the Lemon Luna and the Peanut butter Clif (warmed in the microwave for 15 seconds it tastes like a yummy cookie!) These do have higher calorie content (about 180 for Luna, 230 for Clif) but are great if you're skipping breakfast or lunch or I sometimes eat half if I need a small boost!

These have good soy protein content (10 grms) too!

[SClementson]

You BBers always have such great ideas, so I thought I'd pick your brains http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif I'm starting school next week, (I'm FINALLY getting my bachelors at the age of 37!) and I'll be either on the train or in class from 7:00am until 2:30pm. I won't have more than a 10 or 15 minute break between classes, so I need your ideas for healthy, non-perishable, easy-to-carry things I can eat that will keep me going untl I get home. I'm worried that I'll get so hungry by the end of my school day that I'll overeat when I do get home! I'm thinking about taking dried fruit and maybe granola bars (except some of them can be pretty high in fat and calories). You all have such great ideas - any suggestions?

[sneezles]

Congratulations on going for your BA! Don't have any ideas off the top of my head but will look at some of my picnic recipes and get back to you.

[Linda in MO]

Pears and animal crackers are two good low-fat snacks. I also love Planter's Caramel Crunch trail mix, but this is not low-fat/low-cal. It's pretty nutritious though.

[BethML]

I highly recommend Luna Bars. They're made by ClifBar but this line is marketed primarily to women (they have extra calcium, etc.) and I think they are tastier than the ones sold just as ClifBars. (Well, actually, I only eat the S'Mores flavor because I'm a chocolate addict.) They have excellent nutritional composition and are the most portable, non-perishable things you can carry around.

I bring one to work everyday (or keep a box at work) for breakfast or for a pre-workout snack. 180 calories a piece.

[hhcowgirl]

Wow--I am surprised at the number of recommendations for Luna Bars, etc. Do you all not find that they are too high in calories/too heavy? I wish I could eat them b/c they are so portable and easy but I have yet to find one that did not make me feel as if I might as well have just eaten a snickers bar. I go for the fresh fruit instead.

[RunnerKim]

hhcowgirl,

I agree, I don't eat an energy bar as a snack. I do however have one after every "long run" I do (Saturdays). Here its important that I eat something relatively soon (within 30 minutes) that has fat, carbs and protein. I recover a lot better and have more energy for the day if I make sure to get these nutrients fairly soon. Since I try to keep to 30-35g of fat/day I find other things to meet my hunger/nutritional needs the rest of the time. I'm hoping either CL or Runner's World will do some energy bar recipes so I can make my own.

I think its important to remember that some convenience items were developed for very specific purposes. I had to laugh one time when my sister-in-law commented on our drinking gatorade - she didn't drink it because of the salt levels. Well, I sweat a lot when I workout and need the salt replacement. She was drinking it almost as a soda replacement not as its intended purpose of use during/after physical activity.

Kim

[A R Price]

Hi Sarah,

Here is one...I'll be back in a minute with another or two. (Truth is I can't figure out how to keep my "reply" active while I go elsewhere on the computer to get the recipes so I have to do it one by one in separate messages...any suggestions on that technical problem?)

Anne

Power Biscotti
Peanut butter takes the place of margarine or butter, adding flavor as well as protein and B vitamins.

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chunky peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 325`. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Combine peanut butter, vanilla, eggs, and egg whites in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk; add to flour mixture, stirring just until blended. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface;
shape dough into a 10-inch-long roll. Place roll on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray; flatten to 1-inch thickness. Bake at 325` for 35 minutes. Remove roll from baking sheet; cool 10 minutes on a wire rack. Reduce oven temperature to 300`. Cut roll diagonally into 18 (1/2-inch) slices. Place slices, cut sides down, on baking sheet.

Bake at 300` for 20 minutes. Turn cookies over; bake an additional 20 minutes (cookies will be slightly soft in center but will harden as they cool). Remove from baking sheet; cool completely on a wire rack.

Yield: 11/2 dozen (serving size: 1 cookie).

CALORIES 122 (23% from fat); FAT 3.1g (sat 0.7g, mono 1.4g, poly 0.8g); PROTEIN 3.9g; CARB 19.8g; FIBER .50g; CHOL 25mg; IRON.80mg; SODIUM 121mg; CALC 7mg

[A R Price]

Hi again,

Here is one I flagged but have not made yet. I flag almost any recipe with cinnamon and cloves in it!

Anne

Soft Spice Biscotti

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons water
2 large egg whites
1 large egg
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375`. Combine first 9 ingredients in a large bowl; beat at low speed of a mixer for 1 minute. Combine flour and baking powder; gradually add flour mixture to sugar mixture, beating until well-blended (dough will be soft). Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; shape dough into 3 (6 x 4-inch) rectangles. Place rectangles on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray; flatten to 3/4-inch thickness. Bake at 375` for 25 minutes. Remove rectangles from baking sheet; cool 10 minutes on a wire rack. Cut each rectangle diagonally into (3/4-inch) slices.

Yield: 2 dozen.

CALORIES 98 (28% from fat); FAT 3g (sat 0.5g, mono 1.1g, poly 1.2g); PROTEIN 1.5g; CARB 16.6g; FIBER .40g; CHOL 6mg; IRON 1.0mg; SODIUM 7mg; CALC 26mg

[JeanneW]

Sarah,

No ideas for you. Just wanted to say congrats! As one who finally graduated from college at age 35 (and after a 15-year "sabbatical"), it's a great accomplishment.

Best of luck to you. Jeanne

[slknight]

A R Price-

Don't know if this has been answered elsewhere or not, but if I understand your "problem" correctly, this is what I do:

if you are working on your reply and then want to go elsewhere to look up other recipes, just open a new browser window. In Netscape, just go to file-new-navigator window. I think it's something similar in Internet Explorer. (If you're using something else, sorry, no ideas!)

That way you can have your reply open, and look up recipes and things in another window.

Hope this helps. If it's not what you're looking for, sorry.

-Susan

[Kimba]

Hey - congratulations! I'm in my final semester, and I'm 10 years older than you, so it IS doable http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

I bring dried or fresh fruit, high fiber bran muffins, and yogurt. I wrap the yogurt up in foil - it seems to keep it cool enough for several hours.

Good luck to you!

[laden]

try Wendy W's hummus with pita bread. It is sooooo gooood!

[A R Price]

slknight,

Thanks for that suggestion. It is exactly what I needed.

Anne