What’s the best meal of the day? Trick question! Above breakfast, lunch or dinner, we’d choose snack time any day of the week. But if you’re watching your fat intake, you’re likely looking for some delicious, low-fat snacks to enjoy in between your main meals.
Before you overcomplicate this, remember that many of your favorite snacks are already low in fat. Fresh fruit and vegetables come with very little fat and calories, making them viable options for your midday cravings. Plus, many of your favorite snacks and appetizers can be modified to make them better for your health. To prove it, we’ve collected 10 tasty low-fat snack ideas.
10 Low-Fat Snacks You Can Enjoy Anytime
Below, you’ll find popular snacks prepared with minimal fat and calories. From healthy nachos to deliciously sweet smoothies, you’re sure to find something to tantalize your taste buds and keep your health goals on track.
1. Peanut Butter Chocolate Protein Shake
Image: Food Faith Fitness
If you’re looking for a low-fat snack — one that doesn’t leave you with hunger pangs two hours later — protein smoothies provide a tasty option. Use fruit, veggies, and other ingredients on hand to make a healthy snack that tastes like dessert but fuels you with protein, vitamins, and minerals.
This delicious peanut butter and chocolate smoothie contains bananas, plain Greek yogurt, almond milk, peanut butter, and cacao powder. If you want more health benefits, add a dash of raw maca powder, which has been shown to boost energy levels and libido.
2. Roasted Cauliflower Hummus
Image: Key to My Lime
Whether you make your own or buy it at the store, hummus makes an easy low-fat snack. Most often made from olive oil, chickpeas, and tahini, it’s a high-protein, high-fiber side dish. Chickpeas are usually the star ingredient, and contain nearly 15 grams of protein per cup and high amounts of iron, phosphorous, and potassium.
The classic hummus recipe has been reinvented dozens of ways, incorporating black beans, red bell peppers, and roasted garlic. This creative low-calorie hummus recipe replaces chickpeas with cauliflower, making this version paleo, keto-friendly, and incredibly low in fat and calories.
3. Paleo Blueberry Muffins
Image: The Endless Meal
Many muffin recipes are loaded with sugar, butter, and white flour. And that’s just in the cake — don’t even get us started on the frosting. Just like the treats you buy at the corner coffee shop, many muffin recipes place flavor first, health second.
Lucky for you, some inventive bakers on the Internet have recreated the classic muffin recipe. These blueberry muffins are paleo-friendly. By combining coconut oil, bananas, eggs, almond flour, and fresh blueberries, these make a healthy, sugar-free snack you can enjoy as a mid-morning munch.
4. Avocado Ranch Deviled Eggs
Image: Mindy’s Cooking Obsession
Hard-boiled eggs make the perfectly easy snack option all on their own. When doing your weekly meal prep, simply hard boil half a dozen eggs and keep them in the fridge. Toss one in a Ziplock bag with a handful of celery sticks or carrots, and you have a portable, simple snack.
That said, if you feel like jazzing things up a bit, you can make a batch of deviled eggs instead. This particular deviled eggs recipe combines some of your favorite ingredients — avocados, ranch dressing, and eggs — for a tangy, delicious snack.
5. Melon Caprese Skewers
Image: What’s Gaby Cooking
Here’s a healthy snacking tip for you: Alternate protein, veggies, or fruit on a skewer, and make a healthy kabob. You could use bell peppers, red onions, and salmon. Or, try cherry tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella. The combinations are endless.
With this skewer recipe, you’ll layer basil leaves, cantaloupe, and prosciutto for a refreshing, low-fat snack option. Don't have any skewers lying around? No problem. Create cantaloupe roll-ups instead by wrapping melon with prosciutto and inserting a toothpick.
6. Crispy Kale Chips
Image: Pip Pie Ebby
When we think about snacks, we immediately think of the potato chip aisle at the grocery store. Salty, crunchy, high-fat foods like chips, pretzels, and cookies may taste great, but many of these calorie-loaded snacks could be reinvented in much healthier ways.
A number of different veggies, including beets, spinach, and sweet potatoes, can be baked until crispy to make a healthy “chip.” With this crispy kale chip recipe, you’ll drizzle kale in olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt, and bake until it’s nice and crispy.
7. Chocolate Chip Cookie Apple Sandwich
Image: Eazy Peazy Meals
Pro snacking tip (and yes, this comes directly from the experts): Instead of layering your foods on pita bread or bruschetta, use fruit or veggie slices. The classic example of this snacking technique is smothering a layer of almond butter onto celery slices, then sprinkling raisins on top.
With this low-fat snack recipe, all you need to do is smother honey cashew butter on apple slices. You could also use pears, melons, or other favorite fruit. To top things off in the most delectable way possible, add a few dark chocolate chips for good measure.
8. Healthy Zucchini Nachos Baked With Chili
Image: Low Carb Yum
If there’s one thing you can take away from this list, it’s this: Virtually all of your favorite snacks can be made healthy. You just need a few clever swaps in the ingredients list.
This low-carb nacho recipe replaces tortilla chips with zucchini, removing quite a few carbs and considerably lowering the calorie count. Here, you’ll cover zucchini slices with cheddar cheese and vegetarian chili, packing vitamins, minerals, and fiber into every single bite.
9. Whipped Cottage Cheese With Almond Butter and Banana
Image: Babaganosh
You’re probably well-versed in smoothie bowls and acai bowls, but have you tried a cottage cheese bowl? Packed with protein and healthy fats, cottage cheese bowls are a delicious, low-calorie snack.
A cottage cheese bowl can be made sweet or savory, depending on your favorite toppings. This recipe uses cottage cheese, almond butter, bananas, hemp hearts, and chia seeds for a protein-rich, crunchy, delicious bowl.
10. Spicy Edamame
Image: Explore Cook Eat
While it’s fun to explore new recipes, remember this: Snacks don’t have to be complicated. Baby carrots with ranch dressing dip, homemade trail mix, and air-popped popcorn are simple snacks that take virtually zero effort.
Another easy snack idea? Edamame. You can boil, steam, microwave, or pan-sear these little bean pods, top them with soy sauce, and enjoy. With this spicy edamame recipe, you’ll top the soybeans with hot chili oil (you can also use Thai chili sauce) for an added kick.
Schoolyard Snacks Is the Low-Fat Snack You Don’t Have to Cook
If you’re browsing through the above recipes thinking, “Alright, these look incredible, but Julia Child frowns upon my cooking skills,” we feel you. Our Pinterest boards are filled with recipes we’ve yet to create, and our oven is really just used for storage.
Fortunately, Schoolyard Snacks is the perfect high-protein, low-fat snack that fuels you through the day. And with incredible flavors like Fruity, Cinnamon Bun, Peanut Butter, Berries, and Cocoa, it’s a snack hardly anyone can resist.
Packaged in single-serving bags, you can toss them in your purse, backpack, or desk drawer, so they’re there for you whenever hunger hits. Plus, we ship straight to your door. Healthy low-fat snacks have never been easier.
