Eating healthy is always the biggest struggle. And eating healthy as a college student is even harder. For one, it is impossible to find healthy food that is palatable on campus. If that isn’t bad enough, every time you resolve to eat the wilted lettuce leaves and dry mushrooms from the salad bar, your House Council orders in Enzo’s Pizza or Chipotle. You can see the Freshmen 15 turn into a horrific reality…
To help you out, here are some quick, easy and delicious (note: delicious) HEALTHY snacks:
1. Freeze Grapes instead of chewing gummy bears:
Freeze the grapes in an airtight plastic bag or Ziplock bag so that they don’t dry out.
2. Roasted Edamame
Ingredients required: 16 ounces of frozen shelled edamame, extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt, & freshly cracked black pepper
a. Preheat the oven to 375 F.
b. Pour the edamame in a strainer and run it under warm/hot water to melt ice crystals.
c. Dry the edamame using a dish towel.
d. Toss the edamame with 2 teaspoons of the olive oil, 1 teaspoon of sea salt and ½ teaspoon of pepper.
e. Spread the edamame onto a sheet pan and roast it for about half an hour.
f. While roasting, stir the edamame every 10 minutes and watch the edamame “pop” and turn golden-brown.
g. Once the edamame are colored, take them from the oven and transfer them into a serving bowl.
3. Tuna stuffed tomatoes
Head to Harris Teeters or Whole Foods and fill the shopping bag with 3 medium big tomatoes, 1 can tuna with water, plain yoghurt, lemon juice/lemons, balsamic vinegar, salt, paper, fresh basil and peas.
a. Cut the tomatoes into 6 halves and scoop out the pips using a spoon
b. Take the tuna, 2 tablespoons of yoghurt, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and add them to a food processor. Blend until it is of fine texture.
c. Season this mixture with salt and pepper
d. Take the seasoned mixture and add the peas and basil to it
e. Store this final mixture in the refridgerator for approximately ten minutes
f. Spread the mixture onto the tomato halves
4. Cucumber Hummus Cups
You’ll need 4 to 6 washed and partially peeled medium sized cucumbers and a cup of hummus.
a. Cut the cucumber into ¼ inch slices
b. Scoop out the seeds from each slice
c. Turn over the cucumbers (side down) and allow them to sit for approximately 15 minutes to get rid of the moisture
d. Place about a teaspoon of hummus into each cucumber