Healthy Party Snacks
Dec 22, 2009
For most of us, the holidays are linked to consuming vast amounts of unhealthy but oh so yummy treats. Whether you are throwing a party, or taking food to a pot-luck, it is important to make low-in-fat snacks in advance so that there are things that you can munch on relatively guilt free. Here are some recipes and ideas to make that job a little easier....
Rice Paper Wraps. Chop a variety of vegetables (try peppers, cucumber, carrot or whatever raw veggies float your boat, the more colourful the better) into thin sticks. Soak rice paper circles (available in the Asian foods section of larger supermarkets) in hot water until they become soft, then load with vegetables and wrap, just as you would a burrito. Serve with soy sauce.
Kale Chips. Take a bunch of kale, remove the leaves from the thick stems then tear into bite sized pieces. Lay the leaves on a baking sheet spread with parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil and salt, then bake at 350 degrees for 10 - 15 minutes. (Edges of leaves should be browning, but not burnt.) These are absolutely delicious and very nutritious.
Blue Cheese and Apple Canapés. Peel and core 2 large apples, then cut into thin slices. Crumble a small amount of blue cheese over apple slices, drizzle with honey and then sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper.
Smokey Roasted Almonds. Heat oven to 275 degrees. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray. Toss 1kg of raw almonds in 1/4 cup brown sugar, 2tsp ground cumin, 1tsp chili powder, 1 tsp thyme, 1 tsp salt, 1 egg white and 1tbsp water. Once nuts are coated, spread over baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes, stir the nuts before putting them back in the oven at 200 degrees. Bake for another 30 minutes. Let cool for 20 mins before serving.
Easy Salmon Pate. Debone a can of sockeye salmon, then put in food processor with low fat cream cheese, pulse until smooth and serve with crackers.
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Rice paper wraps! YUM!
Rice paper wraps are one of the greatest foods ever. Whenever I go to a potluck my friends always ask me to make them. Super delicious.
I will also have to try the Kale chips for something different, they seem to be quiet popular.
The roasted almonds are really good, I have made them before. I find they turn out better when you pre-toast the raw almonds for about 8 minutes and then toss them in the coating and bake them for another 8 minutes or until they look done. You don't even need cooking spray if you use parchment paper or even aluminum foil (and its easier to clean up afterwards).
Kale Chips
Where the heck do you buy kale - never heard of it??
kale
ask at your larger grocery stores. might not have year round, in the produce section. just ask
i'm going to have to try the
i'm going to have to try the kale chips. yum!
YUM
I'm always looking for healthier alternatives to my favourtie snacks. I am definitely trying those kale chips.
I love kale chips. I'm a
I love kale chips. I'm a person who snacks when watching tv now instead of potato chips, tortillas and pretzels I eat kale chips and air popped popcorn with flavour shakers to mix it up a bit.
*** I've actually had swiss chard chips as well.
I had never bought kale before so when I first got a hold of this recipe I thought I'd try it out. I went out and bought what I thought was kale and made the chips. Turned out the signs at the grocery store were mixed up and I'd actually bought swiss chard. I didn't even know I'd made the mistake until the 2nd time I tried to find kale... silly me I went to 3 different stores looking for the same kind of kale I'd bought the first time before I clued in that I'd made a mistake the first time.
I can't wait to try those
I can't wait to try those kale chips. I am always looking for new ways to cook vegetables!
No sugar!!
Just try this,,, cut out all forms of sugar and take a multivitamin for three days. Your life will change for sure. What have you got to lose? Worked great for me. I don't even fall asleep after supper anymore. Sugar is public enemy number one and number two is white flour. Trust me on this one.
MMMMMMM....
Cheese and Apples- my fav snack.
getting fit
I haven't joined this challenge to lose weight because I am not overweight. But don't boo me for joining. I have two good reasons for joining. First, I am almost 50 and look pretty good for my age,however, I have no energy, am always cold and tired,stressed out and don't sleep well. A complete check up and blood work showed nothing wrong with me and I am not lacking in anything other than ambition to get up and do anything after a day of work. I come home, have supper and veg on the coach especially during the winter months. If this continues, I'm sure it won't be long until I do start putting on the pounds. I can't walk around the block without feeling exhausted and short of breath. Being cold all the time is probably from poor blood circulation which can probably be helped by doing some form of exercise. So I am hoping that taking part in this challenge will motivate me to get up and get fit and healthy, which is my goal.
Second, I have a 24 yr old daughter who has joined this challenge to lose 40 pounds by the end of the challenge and maybe more after that. I have made a promise to her to walk in a marathon (5 km) with her at the end of the challenge. Right now I would not be able to do 1 km. So I have to get in shape and get fit so I can do this with her as I don't want to let her down.(She lives in a different town so I can't exercise with her). She has struggled with her weight most of her life and had I did more physical activities with her when she was younger instead of buying her every Disney movie ever put out (turning her into a child coach potato), she may have been more physically fit and not so over weight. So, I want to do this with her and for her and help her achieve her goal and mine and do a 5 km with her this summer. And just to let you all know, she beat me in the fitness test by one minute. She weighs 215 and I weigh 117. I should have been able to beat her, but I am that out of shape. So if you read this my daughter, YOU GO GIRL! I know you can do this and I am VERY proud of you!
Get walking at home Weakling!
I highly recommend Leslie Sansone's home walking videos. They would be a good way for you to prepare for your 5K. You don't need fancy equpiment - just a good pair of runners. You can get them at Wal-Mart, or order online from Future Shop or Best Buy. You can easily adapt them to your fitness level and get a good full body workout. It doesn't matter what time of day it is or what the weather is like to get a walk in at home!
You go girl!
Congratulations on joining a wonderful way of life.