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Healthy-ish Snacks On the Go

For all of our food changes over the past few years, snacks are consistently the hardest part. I feel like we do really well for breakfasts and dinners (you can see posts on what we do for those two meals) and for lunch we do okay. But snacks. ARGH. It’s hard to find healthy snacks that the kids enjoy.

So many snacks are grain-based and sugar ridden. I’m not in the All-Grains-Are-Bad camp, but I think we as a culture eat waaaaay too many of them — and usually the wrong kinds. And let’s face it, a kid can only eat so much string cheese before . . . you know.

I’ve had several companies reach out to me lately and ask me to try their snacks. Each company has a list of reasons why their snack is a wise choice, and I chose to try each of these for different reasons. Some were bigger hits than others, but I would recommend each one depending on what you’re looking for.

Beanfields Chips

As you know, I eat a strictly gluten free diet. I love chips – tortilla chips, corn chips, potato chips . . . I love ’em. Although I think I like corn more than it likes me. I try to limit my consumption of corn-based chips. Plus almost all corn is genetically modified unless it is organic, and that gets to be a little bit pricey!

Beanfields Chips are made from black & navy beans and rice. They are both gluten and corn free and non-GMO. They are also free of the top 8 allergens so kids who are allergic to milk, soy, nuts, and peanuts can enjoy them too. They also contain 4 grams of complete protein and 4 grams of fiber per serving.

They are tasty on their own or as a vehicle for your favorite dip. We particularly liked the pico de gallo flavor.

Angie’s Kettle Corn

I won a box of Angie’s Kettle Corn from R‘s blog giveaway, and I’m here to tell you, this is one tasty treat. Angie’s Kettle Corn is made with only four ingredients: Popcorn, Corn Oil, Cane Sugar, and Sea Salt — again, with no wheat or nuts or dairy products at all, making it the perfect treat for those allergy families you may know and love. In fact, it is certified gluten free. My only concern is GMO, as it is not organic and most non-organic corn is GMO. I didn’t inquire about that, though, so I can’t say for sure. This is one of those times when ignorance is bliss!

As it turns out, Angie’s claims to be GMO-free.  Here is their GMO statement for those who are geeks like me and like to read up on this stuff.

By far and away, my favorite flavor is the Classic. The Caramel was a bit too sweet for me, and the Lite was too, well, light. You know me, give me the full fat please!!! The kids ate that, though, and didn’t seem to notice. And the Caramel WAS good. I just really, really love the Classic. I’ve found Angie’s Kettle Corn at my local whole foods mart so I can keep myself well stocked. YAY!

HALO Bars

I do have a penchant for sweets, and candy bars are no exception. With my new real food lifestyle, a candy bar is a rare treat — usually when I find myself in a hotel room stocked with food. I cannot deny myself a Snicker’s bar when it’s sitting right in front of me. But I digress.

HALO bars, from the makers of PROBAR, are designed to be a healthy candy bar that you can feel good about giving your kids (or sneaking in a hotel room late at night). HALO bars are organic, dairy-free/Vegan, low-in-sugar, and some varieties are gluten free. I asked about GMO and this is what they told me: “we are 99% sure that there are no GMO ingredients involved. The little bit of canola we use is organic and the only soy involved is in the making of the Vegan Marshmallows, which are made by another company (https://www.chicagosoydairy.com/). The only bit we aren’t 100% sure about is if our marshmallow vendor can independently certify all their ingredients are GMO free (they make the claim, but have not finished the independent audit).”

We received our box and dove in. I have to say, they aren’t as good as I was hoping. The only one I tried was Rocky Road, and they are right about them not having a ton of sugar. As a result, they aren’t very sweet. Some of my kids liked them, though, so they certainly didn’t go to waste. I really like the concept. I definitely appreciate having a candy bar option that isn’t totally junkfood, and this is something I’d buy for my kids to put in their lunch boxes or to take on road trips so they can have a sweeter snack that is made with wholesome ingredients.

ZESPRI Kiwifruit

When you’re talking about healthy snacks, you can’t go wrong with fruit. ZESPRI reached out to me and offered to send me some kiwifruit to try. My kids love kiwi so she didn’t have to ask twice! Kiwifruit originated in China and was brought to New Zealand in 1904. Exports to Europe began in the 1950s, and it came to America in 1959. That’s a bit of kiwifruit history for you!

ZESPRI  is the brand name for all kiwifruit grown in New Zealand, a country known for its green, clean environment. Kiwifruit is one of the most nutrient dense fruits, and it is delicious. I’ve hardly met a person who doesn’t like it. It’s also easy to eat. Just cut it half and scoop it into your mouth!

There are also tons of recipes using kiwifruit, many right on the ZESPRI website. I am ashamed to say that I didn’t use my kiwifruit to make anything. I’ve been so busy between getting back from Type A and leaving today for a family beach getaway that we just ate them straight up. But the recipe possibilities are endless, and I’d encourage you to try some new ways to eat this fabulous fruit!

And also? There are some cocktail recipes in that link. I’m thinking of trying the Frozen Golden Kiwifruit Margarita with Grenadine for the 4th of July. I mean, really. How yummy does that look!?

WIN IT!

Win a prize pack with some of these delicious snacks. Just leave a relevant comment on this post. I’ll randomly select a winner sometime next week! The winner must have a U.S. mailing address.

UPDATE: The prize pack will include a variety pack of Beanfield Chips, a box of HALO bars in assorted flavors, a variety pack of Angie’s Kettle Corn and a sampling of ZESPRI Kiwifruit.

Also, Probar is offering a one-time 40% off to all Musings readers — just enter BLOGGER in the discount code section, upon checkout.

Disclosure: I received samples of these snacks to facilitate this post. All opinions expressed are strictly my own.

Join The Conversation

43 Responses

  1. I just introduced kiwi to our 14 mo old baby- she LOVED it! I would love to the try the “candy bar” for my 5 yo who has a sweets addicition.

  2. Those snacks look yummy!! I’ve never really had kiwi, but I’m not big on “fuzzy” fruit, such as peaches and the like. Does it have the same texture / taste as those?

    1. A kiwifruit tastes much different than a peach! Although it has a fuzzy skin, the skin on a kiwifruit is not eaten and what’s on the inside is sweet, succulent, and refreshing 🙂 I certainly recommend trying Zespri kiwifruit!

  3. I usually stock up on fruit purees in BPA free pouches and whole grain puffs. Bananas work well for car trips too, I just have to remember to bring a plastic bag to put all the peels in and a wet wipe 🙂 since bananas are the worst stainers

  4. Snacks are insanely difficult to find for kids!! I am home a lot so I can make them stuff instead of pouring out the goldfish, but when we are on the go, it’s hard to find something healthy. I need a go-to snack on the go. I have yet to find it!

  5. I’m always on the look out for healthier snack options… and I really do enjoy Kiwi fruit. I usually put them in my morning smoothie. Doesn’t make for the prettiest drink, but they are darn tasty!

  6. Thanks for this post! It is hard to find portable snacks for the kids. It seems even more of a struggle during the summer when we are traveling more and not everything keeps at car/room temp. We would love to try these suggestions…the chips sound really good. Thanks for the giveaway.

  7. Snacks are definitely tough!
    We are always on the go with sports so my cooler usually has cheese, olives, beef jerky, pepperoni, fruits (regular & dried), veggies and nuts.
    Luckily my guys love kiwi! It also goes great in a strawberry-kiwi smoothie!

  8. All my kid like bananas and raisins, so that is my go-to snack out of the house. They love guac so I am always on the search for affordable non-GMO chips. We like the Food Should Taste Good brand, which I believe is gluten-free.

  9. We’re all trying to eat healthier around here. It would be fun to try some new healthy treats! 🙂

  10. I bring fruit in containers in a cooler bag almost everywhere to avoid the bad snacking, but it’s hard when we around other kids who are eating snack foods.

    Kiwi’s are yummy! We eat a lot of them. Didn’t know they originated in China.

  11. I prefer to bake our treats – but lately my waistline has expanded with this 🙁 These look great – the kids can enjoy and I don’t have to worry about finishing off a pan of wholesome cookies in the process!

  12. Ugh…snacks! We rely on fruit and raw veggies a lot…as well as trail mix. But these all seem like interesting snacks to try!

  13. I would definitely be interested in trying some of these snacks, especially the chips! Kiwifruit is already a favorite in our house, but we’ve only ever eaten it alone – the recipes provide some good ideas for incorporating it into our diet more.

  14. healthyish snacks would be a wonderful, wonderful addition to my ever trying to improve diet! i would be grateful to win this prize. I have been trying to win a prize from you for years 😉 thanks for yet another opportunity!

  15. The chips and popcorn look interesting. I’m a popcorn fanatic, so it would be great to try them.

  16. My daughter LOVES kiwi and is always begging me to buy it. You don’t peel it before you eat it? I always do. Do you have a simpler method?

  17. With the kids home from school all day, they are eating many more snacks – – I would love to have healthy options that they love!

  18. Hi Jo-Lynne. Timely subject – my 2 yr old ate about 10 graham crackers on our trips in the car today. Yikes. I need to find some healthy on-the-go options. Bet my kids would like the Halo s’mores. Its always difficult to find Vegan marshmallow treat bars. Cheers!

  19. We are huge kettle corn snackers over here. We only eat one kind and for the life of me I cannot remember the brand and I am too snug in my bed (insert lazy) to go downstairs and check. But its the big red bag at whole foods :-). But I will need to try Angie’s!

    And I absolutely love this giveaway, because its my favorite thing — food! Even if its vague, I am sure it will be tasty!

  20. Thanks for the healthy snack options! I’m always trying to find better snacks for my little one to try.

  21. Thank you for the info. I love the fact that there are so many companies coming up with healthy, tasty, kid friendly snacks. I can’t wait to try some!

  22. I am excited to try some gluten free foods that I have not tried before, always looking for easy gluten free foods for on the go! Thanks

  23. I love that you did a post on this topic! It is SO hard to find healthy snacks. I have the Beanfield chips and the kettle corn on my shopping list and can’t wait to try them. Thanks for sharing them!

  24. I agree that snacks are the hardest to keep in the real food category. We all get tired of fruits and veggies after a while! Everyone loves chocolate, right?!

  25. I would love to try these. The Kettle Corn sounds amazing! My kids would enjoy it all too… I am sure. Thanks for continually encouraging me to feed my kids real healthy food!

  26. I would love to try the Kettle Corn! One of my favorite “healthy” snacks is homemade LaraBars. They are pretty easy and taste so good. 🙂

  27. I am always looking for new and healthy gluten free, peanut safe snacks for myself and my 4 year old. I thought I knew everything out there but some of these are new to me! I’d love to try them!

  28. Ahh you hit the nail on the head…snacks are sooo hard for us too! I too am not a grain hater but realize we eat waaaay too many in our house on a given day… in an effort to change that we have been trying out dried fruits and veggies and making our own trail mixes.. although I haven’t found dried KIWI yet! The Just Tomatoes company is a good source for all things “dried” with no yucky chemical preservatives!

  29. I have been inspired by so many of your food postings. Thanks for educating me on how to make healthy choices for me and my family. I wonder if Trader Joe’s has any of these products?

  30. I would LOVE to try out these snacks! I’m trying to eat healthier and I, too, struggle a lot with finding good snacks!

  31. Have you tried the Cliff Z bars for kids? That’s what I usually go for when it comes to “junk”… I also often pop fresh pop-corn and make little baggies when we’re on the go – super easy to do in a plain paper bag and the microwave! But when it comes to sweets, give me a fair trade organic chocolate bar any day. 🙂

  32. As a fellow Gluten-Free gal there are some great sounding snacks I have never heard of! The kettle corn sounds divine, and my kids adore kiwi! Such a great snack food since it has so much flavor and is full of vitamins. Would love to win this prize pack. 🙂

  33. Thanks for the ideas! I have a hard time finding snacks my kids will eat, or will eat again and again. It seems there is only so much plain fruit and veggies I can stuff into them. I’d love to win the prize pack for my family.

  34. I’m always looking for healthy snacks and I had not heard of most of these. Now the challenge will be to find them in my little town! Or maybe I’ll win the prize pack!! 🙂

  35. This would so help our family’s healthy snacking dilemma! We’ve already tried the Angie’s popcorn – sooo good!!