Snack Attack

January 6th, 2012

By Jennifer Hwang, Contributing Writer

Happy 2012 everyone, and welcome to the new year! Hope you’ve had a smooth transition into this year’s yogic cleanse diet. I’ve heard through the grapevine that many of you are struggling with the same thing I always do when I start:  what do I do for snacks? And it just so happens that is the topic of this first blog post for 2012.

Stock up in the bulk food aisle

I find my craving for snacks seems to increase whenever I start the yogi diet so I’ve become very familiar with the bulk food aisle at my local Whole Foods. Of course, fresh fruits and vegetables can serve as great snacks, but I usually want something a little more substantial—with a little more taste “oomph” than a few carrots can offer me. Nuts, olives, dried fruit (especially figs) and even dried vegetables (kale in particular) are all great mid-day snacks that can take the edge off a craving for me.

I’m also partial to apples with cheese, yogurt with honey—and even chips, salsa and guacamole are cleanse-friendly snack items. Just make sure your chips aren’t processed and your salsa and guac are fresh.

Have a little popcorn

And then there’s popcorn. Popcorn is great as a snack. Dress it up with some butter, salt and brewer’s or nutritional yeast. Or add a little salt, truffle oil and parmesan cheese for something fancier. My latest favorite involves butter, salt, parmesan cheese and lots of black pepper. You can even make a “dessert” version using butter, agave syrup and lots of cinnamon—just make sure to mix the agave and cinnamon in with the hot, melted butter first before you add the popcorn, or you’ll end up with a goopy mess!

Try something new and something old

I actually love to experiment with new snacks. I just made one today that involved roasting chickpeas (garbanzo beans) until they were crispy. The recipe actually comes from Heidi Swanson’s Supernatural Everyday cookbook, which is a fantastic vegetarian cookbook by an SF local. A great variation of the recipe can be found on the healthycrush blog. Try your own version—mine included smoked paprika, cayenne and a longer roasting period.

Probably my favorite snack during the yogi diet is a recipe I shared last year for cheese crackers. For me, the crackers are really satisfying, plus they are high in protein and monounsaturated fats, which are associated with reduced risk of heart disease. And they’re a great protein snack after a hard workout.

I hope this gives you some new ideas for snacks during these next 40 days. And if you have any yogi diet-friendly favorites, please feel free to share them with the rest of the group—you can never have too many options for healthy, tasty snacks.

Looking forward to going through this year’s 40-day reset with all of you!

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