Hi guys! So excited to share with you some amazing tips from Tracey on how to make some simple healthy snacks for the family. Enjoy!

Like many moms, I’m busy. I spend a lot of time shuffling my kids to various practices, after school clubs, scouts meetings and birthday parties. I try to fit in grocery shopping, exercise, cleaning house and working whenever I can. If I am lucky, I even get a few minutes of “me” time when I can figure out how to squeeze it in between all the chaos.

Life can often seem like we’re on a treadmill that you can’t slow down or turn off. Demands of family and work leave our heads spinning and just surviving the day-to-day seems like a major accomplishment. In these times, healthy eating can easily fall by the wayside if we aren’t careful.

While it feels easier to buy packaged foods and snacks, it really comes down to a choice. Feeding myself and my family nutritious foods are on the top of my priority list, so I make sure I don’t put it on the back burner and neither should you. Eating healthy food doesn’t have to be hard, stressful or time consuming but you must have a plan. I repeat, you must be prepared and have a plan. Without a plan you will make unhealthy choices. Guaranteed.

With two growing kids in our house they seem to utter the words, “I’m hungry” a thousand times throughout the day. When hunger strikes in between meals, I make sure that we have smart choices on hand. Let’s take a look at some simple, healthy, real food snack ideas that are always good to keep stocked in your kitchen, desk drawer or even in your purse.

Fruit

– The ultimate “fast” food. Keep a variety on your counter, in your refrigerator or in your desk.

– When you bring fruit home from the grocery store, wash it and dry it fully before putting it away. This simple step will make it easier to grab fruit on the go.

Veggies

– Carrots, Cucumber slices, Broccoli flowerettes, Bell peppers, Sugar snap peas, etc.

– Slice up veggies and keep them in a container in your fridge at all times for easy snacks. My kids are allowed to access that container without asking whenever they feel hungry.

Trail mix

– Make your own with raw (unsalted, unroasted) nuts. Include almonds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, cashews, brazil nuts and raisins. Don’t go crazy, though, as one serving is approximately a handful of nuts.

Smoothies

– Smoothies can be the ultimate grab and go snack. Make them the night before and store in an airtight jar such as a Ball jar. Smoothies can even be frozen and pulled out the night before to thaw in your refrigerator overnight.

– Pre-package your smoothie ingredients and freeze them. I often wash, chop and label smoothie ingredients together in a ziploc bag and place them in the freezer. In the morning empty the contents into the blender, add water, any last minute ingredients and blend.

– Make a double or triple batch. If stored properly, smoothies can be consumed for up to 3 days after making them.

– Try for a predominantly “green” smoothie as greens are packed with nutrients. A great recipe to start with is here.

Larabars

– Traditional bars are usually made with nothing but chemicals and refined sugars. Made with only dates and nuts, Larabars are a great alternative you can feel good about grabbing for a quick snack.

Brown rice cakes with nut butter.

– Choose nut butters with only one ingredient…RAW NUTS! You don’t need added oils, salt or chemicals.

– Because brown rice has all the bran and germ layer still in tact, it avoids the unnecessary loss of nutrients that happens with further processing like it’s white rice counterpart.

Muffins or breads

– I love making a double or triple batch of breads or muffins and freezing them. Pulled from the freezer, they make easy snacks to throw into lunch boxes or to bring to work. They typically take only an hour or so to thaw.

– Try whole grain muffin and bread recipes such as chocolate zucchini muffins, strawberry goji muffins or maple banana bread.

Popcorn

– Pop your own popcorn on your stovetop. I use this method and it turns out great. Make sure to use organic popcorn kernels to avoid GMOs, and grass-fed butter like Kerrygold brand or organic, grass fed Ghee.

Pudding

– Just because you are trying to be healthy doesn’t mean that you can’t indulge in some good-for-you treats! Try chia seed pudding or chocolate peanut butter avocado pudding. And, I’d probably make a double batch of them if I were you…just sayin’.

Hummus

– Hummus is the ultimate dip. It’s super easy to make in your blender or food processor or can be found in any supermarket. Try dipping veggies, apple slices, or whole grain pita triangles (Ezekiel brand is my favorite) into it. It’s also great on top of 365 brand woven wheat crackers or Mary’s Gone crackers.

You deserve to look and feel your best and the perfect way to do that is to feed yourself and your family wholesome, nutritious foods. Take an hour or two in the beginning of the week to wash, package, prepare and plan out snacks for the entire week. This will help eliminate grabbing lousy choices when hunger sets in.

Remember, if you only keep real food in your home, then you will only eat real food.

Until next time, keep it real.

*Choose organic ingredients whenever possible*

Tracey is a wife, mother of 2 adorable munchkins, green smoothie junkie, spinning enthusiast, real food fanatic and mastermind of Keepin’ it Real. She has a BS in Kinesiology and is certified in massage therapy and plant-based nutrition. She teaches people how to make better choices when it comes to what they eat and gives you simple “how to” steps to ditch processed food to the curb by filling your kitchen with whole, natural, real food.

In between helping with homework, wiping sticky fingers, folding mountains of laundry or snuggling with her hubby for movie night, you can find her blogging at www.realfood.life.