When it comes to healthy, low-calorie snacks, you can't beat nature's fast food -- fresh fruits and vegetables. However, it's important to keep things interesting, so the same old apple, banana or carrot sticks day in and day out simply won't do. By adding a few simple ingredients and twists to your fruits and vegetables, you can continue to enjoy a variety of healthy snacks and minimize the temptation to grab junk food when you are hungry.
Grapefruit Smoothie
Low-calorie, packed with vitamin C and refreshing on a hot summer's day, the grapefruit smoothie couldn't be easier to make. Just peel a whole red grapefruit and add it to your blender with some ice cubes or frozen strawberries. Blend the mixture until it is a smooth, frozen concoction. If your blender has trouble processing just the grapefruit and frozen pieces, you can add a little water to help it along. Each cup of this smoothie has less than 75 calories, with a decreasing number of calories if you add ice cubes.
Cucumber Salad
Combine sliced cucumbers with very thinly sliced red onion and lightly dress them with red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar for a snack with less than 20 calories per cup. For a few more calories, you can lightly drizzle the salad with olive oil. Make this salad in large batches and keep it in the refrigerator to eat over several days time.
Fruit and Cheese Plate
Wash and slice any fresh fruit that you have available -- apples, pears, strawberries, blueberries or any other fruit. Lay the fruit out on a plate with one or two miniature low-calorie cheeses such as mini gouda wheels or spreadable cheese wedges. Each mini cheese averages 25 to 60 calories and each cup of fruit averages 80 to 100 calories. For an additional 100 calories, you can add a few whole wheat crackers.
Chocolate-Banana Shake
Bananas are naturally creamy and lend a decadent feel to this healthy shake. For best results, peel bananas ahead of time, break them into two or three pieces and store them in freezer bags in the freezer. Then, whenever you need a sweet fix, toss 2 to 3 pieces of broken and frozen banana into the blender with 1/2 cup of skim milk or soy milk, 1 tbsp. of cocoa powder and 1 1/2 tsp. of sugar or other sweetener. Blend the mixture until it is creamy and smooth. If it comes out too thin for your taste, toss in another piece of frozen banana or some ice cubes and blend it again. Each cup of this shake has less than 150 calories.
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