20 Healthy Snack Bar Recipes You Can Meal Prep (2024)

FAQs

What makes a healthy snack bar? ›

Look for snack bars made with whole food protein sources such as nuts, seeds, and quinoa. Chocolate: Not all chocolate is created equal. Many snack bars contain these mini chocolate chips that may be made with unhealthy oils, artificial flavors, and excessive sugar.

Choose a bar that contains mostly "real" foods, such as fruits, nuts, oats, or eggs. It's even better when those ingredients are near the top of the list—for example, RXBar Chocolate Sea Salt lists dates first. And look for a bar with about 3 to 5 grams of protein and fiber.

Fruits and vegetables are good choices for healthy snacks. They are full of vitamins and low in calories and fat. Some whole-wheat crackers and cheese also make good snacks.

Other simple, healthy snacks

Fat-free/low-fat plain with fruit. Fruit and veggie smoothie. Whole-grain crackers with canned very low sodium tuna or low-sodium salmon. Canned fruit (packed in its own juice, water or light syrup).

Choosing snacks that are lower in sodium can help you stay healthy. Fruits, vegetables, unsalted seeds, and nuts make great lower-sodium snacks. Choose "unsalted," "low-sodium," or "reduced-sodium" versions of other foods like popcorn, baked chips, and cheese.

Benefits: Nutrition and Satiety

As with anything, the key is to read labels. Melissa Joy Dobbins, MS, RDN, CDCES, of Sound Bites, Inc, in the Chicago area, advises looking for protein, fiber, and healthful fats, as these are the three things that will provide nutrition and satiety.

So what food can be prepared in advance? Stash a family-friendly dinner such as a casserole, baked pasta, stew or soup in the freezer or stock your fridge with pre-cooked proteins, chopped veggies and homemade dips, dressings or sauces so you can make healthy (easy!) choices all week.

One important note though: as long as you cook meals properly, food will be perfectly safe to eat within seven days. However, by day five, it might not be as tasty. If there's one number to remember from this cheat sheet, it's four. Most meals are good (safe AND tasty) in the fridge for up to four days.