Svelte Snacks: Healthy Treats Under 250 Calories!

“If I had my little way, I’d drink coffee everyday…”

You know that feeling. That 2:30 afternoon feeling. No, this is not a review for 5 Hour Energy (which, in case you were wondering, tastes gross and makes me awkwardly jittery). But that mid- to late-afternoon slump has been extra tough for me lately, especially as I have ….wait for it…GIVEN UP COFFEE. That’s right – no more of my three cup a day Joe habit; energizing my body naturally is the way to go.

So how have I been keeping my focus strong without the help of my caffeine IV drip? By imbibing on nutrish and delish mid-afternoon snacks. For the past week, I’ve replaced my 2:30pm Starbucks’ Tall Vanilla Iced Latte (~250 calories) with healthier yet still satisfying and convenient snacks.

My snacks last week as follows...


Day 1: 210 calories
8 oz Earth Balance Chocolate Soy Milk (130 calories) and one medium apple (80 calories)
Since I’m slightly lactose intolerant (like most Asians), its soy milk to the rescue for my calcium needs on my brittle Asian bones! Earth Balance is the only refrigerated soymilk product that is both organic and non-GMO project verified, so drinking this product is not only good for me but good for the environment as well.

Day 2: 190 calories
6 oz serving of Roba Dolce Lemon sorbetto (120 calories) and 16oz bottle of Honest Tea Lemon Ginger Kombucha (70 calories)
I love Roba Dolce’s Lemon sorbetto, as it tastes like a less artificial version of Lemon Ice from my childhood days at Six Flags. But in all “honest(ea)”, I only drink kombucha because aids in digestion and supports a healthy G.I. tract (the slightly medicinal flavor of kombucha is not something I run over obstacles for). However, Honest Tea’s organic and Fair Trade Certified kombucha is enhanced with a touch of cane sugar and flavoring to make this beverage more drinkable than its competitors.

Day 3: 240 calories
Four Pillsbury Sweet Moments Chocolate Caramel Bite Sized Brownies (60 calories each)
Ok so this isn’t super nutritious, but a girl has gotta indulge once in a while right? (Plus that’s why I take my multivitamins :). These bite-sized treats are just the right size to grab and go for a quick pick-me-up.

Day 4: 250 calories
2oz Jovial penne pasta (200 calories) topped with 6 Tbsp Picante Sauce (50 calories)
I love picante sauce on everything – including pasta (weird combo, but it works)! I especially love Jovial’s Einkorn pasta because this PASTA IS INHEIRENTLY FLAVORFUL ON ITS OWN (sorry Barilla – but you cannot compete against this wonder pasta)! Einkorn pasta is also higher in fiber and protein than other whole wheat pastas, and has a higher concentration of important vitamins and minerals (i.e. thiamin, phosphorus and magnesium). And those are all good stuff my body and mind can use!

Day 5: 250 calories
2 Tbsp of Rigoni’s Fiordifrutta Seville Orange organic fruit spread (70 calories) on 5 water crackers (180 calories)
Imported from Italy, this line of no sugar added jams are bursting with fruit in every bite (literally – as over 2 kg of fruit is used in each jar). These jams are so fierce – it would be an atrocity to my tastebuds and body if I went back Smuckers after having these organic fruit filled babies!

Simple, healthy, and satisfying (SHS)! I’ll follow up this post next week with more SHS snack options (that is, if I manage to stick to my no coffee plan). So until then – happy and healthy snacking!

***Giveaway***

Congrats #10- Courtney

"My grandma deserves a sweet treat! She's been a bit depressed lately & I think this would cheer her up a bit."

Pillsbury wants one of my lucky readers to indulge moderately while snacking by sending them a "Sweet Moments" prize pack. The prize pack includes 2 VIP coupons for Sweet Moments Brownies and a Sweet Moments t-shirt, magnet and very pretty necklace.

There are THREE ways to enter:
1. In my comments section, tell me who in your life deserves a “sweet moment”
2. Follow Finance Foodie on Twitter (leave separate comment telling me this)
3. Reblog / Retweet this giveaway (leave separate comment telling me this)

Contest ends October 25, 2010 at 5pm EST. Winners will be chosen via random integer generator on random.org announced on the financefoodie.com site shortly afterwards that night!

Pillsbury provided me with the Sweet Moments brownies to review and the products for the giveaway through MyBlogSpark.