Snack Bites Two Ways (and the importance of snacking)

Snacking, like many other things in diet culture, gets painted in a bad light. There are so many messages out there about “ways to curb hunger” and “tips to prevent snacking”. Snacks are viewed as something negative and we’re told we should avoid snacking at all costs. But snacking is an integral part of eating!

Our bodies need food all day long. That’s non-negotiable. There’s nothing we can do and no diet strategy we can use that absolves us of our biological need to eat. That’s just part of being alive. So, when we use strategies to replace real, calorie-containing food with other things- water, sugar-free foods, “air foods” like light popcorn or low cal rice cakes- we’re not giving our body the energy source it needs and craves to survive.

The average person is awake for 16-18 hours a day. Our bodies need consistent food to keep us energized and focused, and to keep our blood sugar levels normal. The human body can go about a max of 5 hours between eating. That’s about the longest we can maintain a normal blood sugar level before our blood sugar gets too low and we start to experience really unpleasant side effects of extreme hunger (dizziness, shakiness, weakness, nausea, fainting).

That’s a lot of energy needed to keep us going, which means a lot of eating opportunities! That’s where snacking comes in. Snacking is an important bridge between meals. It helps keep us energized and satisfied and prevents us from going too long between eating. It helps prevent extreme hunger between meals, so that we’re not ravenously hungry and feeling out of control when we finally get a lunch break. Snacks also provide another opportunity throughout the day to find pleasure and satisfaction in eating. Lunch wasn’t that filling or satisfying? A snack between lunch and dinner adds to satisfaction and fullness.

And it doesn’t just have to be a typical “snack” food. A snack can be anything! Any food you like to eat, even if you usually only eat it for a meal, can be a snack. Think of snacks as mini-meals.

As a snack advocate, I love these snack bites (also known as “energy balls”). They’re easy and fun to make and fully customizable to whatever you like. They can be easily made vegan by subbing out the honey for another sticky sweetener like agave. You can put in any fillings that you like- chopped nuts, dried fruits, cinnamon, white chocolate, or even leftover chopped up Easter candy. I used peanut butter since that’s what I usually have around, but you can sub any nut butter you like.

They’re sweet, satisfying, filing, and have all the macronutrients (carbs, protein, fats). Easy to grab and go. Try them out and leave a comment below to let us know what you think!

No-Bake Snack Bites Two Ways

Base Ingredients:

2 cups oats

1/3 cup honey

1/2 cup peanut butter*

Pinch of salt

1/4 cup ground flaxseed (optional)

Chocolate Candy Snack Bites Add-Ins:

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

1/3 mini M&Ms

Coconut Cherry Chocolate Snack Bites Add-Ins:

1/3 cup shredded coconut

1/3 cup dried cherries

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Directions:

Add all ingredients to a large bowl and mix together. If you’re using a natural nut butter that’s a little thicker or harder, I find that hands work best to knead everything together.

Roll them into balls (each version makes about 20 depending on the size), chill in the fridge for an hour, and enjoy!

*Depending on the type of sweetener and nut butter you use, you may need to add a little more nut butter to get the mixture to bind into balls.