As Bon Appétit’s resident snackers (conveniently seated across from each other in the office), we spend a lot of time passing snacks over our monitors between writing sessions and meetings. At this point, we know a thing or two about healthy snacks—as nebulous as the term “healthy” may be. We’re constantly on the lookout for little treats between meals that also feel satiating and nutrient-rich, but are more exciting than an apple or a handful of nuts.
Of course, we also want snacks that taste really good—the kind of snacks that tempt us to eat the entire bag in one sitting. Sometimes that means nut-butter filled dates, while other times what we really want is a bag of sweet potato chips. In general, we reach for healthy snacks with protein (from nuts, beans, or meat), healthy fats, and fiber.
Could you make your own healthy snacks, like these nut butter granola bars? Yes. But sometimes you just want a quick bite that requires absolutely no effort. Everything on this list is store-bought, and since the market for healthy snacks is constantly growing, we’ll be trying all the newest ones and updating this list on a seasonal basis. Read on to see our favorite healthy snacks for spring, or scroll down to see our all-time favorites.
Spring Favorites
Nut butter, oats, and seeds make up a substantial part of my snacking routine, and these Sweet Nothing Nut Butter Bites are no exception. Lately, I’ve been tossing the chocolate peanut butter ones into my bag for a satisfying, just-filling-enough snack on the go. They’re sweetened with dates, but I really appreciate how mildly sweet they are (especially with the addition of sea salt). I also love the chewy exterior and creamy peanut butter interior. My only complaint? I wish there was one more per pack. —Kate Kassin
I am constantly searching for all things black sesame—lattes, popcorn, mochi, and mochi cakes—so these bars immediately caught my eye. YES Bar’s Black Sesame Sea Salt with Toasted Nori flavor is simultaneously sweet and savory and chewy and crunchy. The base is a familiar nut-and-seed mix: almonds, cashews, macadamias, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds. But what takes it to a more unexpected place is the furikake and sesame seed butter. It’s great to reach for when you want something a bit funkier and more savory than your average snack bar. —K.K.
Amazi makes dried fruit that isn’t just your run-of-the-mill dried mango or apples. The brand makes craveable flavors like ginger turmeric or chili lime jackfruit, moringa hibiscus pineapple, and salted olive oil plantain chips. All the flavors are free from added sugar and boast just three ingredients in every bag. I can’t stop reaching for the ginger lime jackfruit—it’s sticky, chewy, and lightly tangy. Plus, what sets Amazi apart is the brand’s commitment to both sourcing and producing the snacks in Uganda right at the source. —K.K.
If you’re a fan of standard seaweed snacks, you’ll love the ones from Nora. Both the spicy and original flavors are crispier and better seasoned than any other nori brands I’ve tried, but the real winners from Nora’s product line are the tempura-coated offerings. After taste testing all of the flavors at the office, I put the leftover bags up for grabs, and I’ve never seen a snack disappear so fast. My only qualm is that the three-serving bags aren’t resealable, which is really just an excuse to eat them all in one sitting. —Alaina Chou
Popcorn has always been one of my all-time favorite snacks, so I’m constantly on the lookout for new brands and flavors to try. Better Together Foods’ QuinoWow isn’t technically popcorn—it’s popped quinoa, which has a remarkably similar taste and texture with the added benefit of a couple extra grams of protein. But what I really love about QuinoWow is that a lightly sweet maple sugar-based coating ensures every piece is satisfyingly crunchy. It’s kind of like kettlecorn… if kettlecorn came in flavors like chili lime, salted maple, and dark chocolate. —A.C.
All-Time Favorites
I grew up on mostly Ritz and Saltines, but these days I tend to gravitate towards crackers with some oomph like nuts, seeds, or fun flavor combinations. Nufs makes crackers free of gluten, dairy, and seed oils and are just as good eaten on their own straight out of the bag as with cheese or a dip. The crackers, which come in sea salt, hot honey, and everything bagel varieties, pack just enough subtle flavor without being overpowering and are the perfect size for snacking (they also make “plank crackers” for a wider canvas). They nail the texture— just the right amount of crispy and boast a nice heft from the combination of almond, rice, and cassava flours. —K.K.
I aspire to make my own nut butter protein bites at home, but Chia Smash has made it impossibly easy to just buy their superfood bites instead. The jammy, nut butter bites, which taste and look homemade (in a good way), come in bags of five each and pack in seven to nine grams of protein. The best part is that the ingredients are ones you could find in your own kitchen. The bites star their chia-studded fruit jams, which get their sweetness from date syrup and lemon juice, and your preferred nut butter—there’s peanut butter with grape jam, sunflower butter with strawberry, cashew butter with blueberry, and my personal favorite, the chocolate peanut butter with raspberry. They scratch the itch for a PB&J craving and also have enough protein to hold you over until your next meal.—K.K.
No nighttime routine is complete without a few squares of dark chocolate, and Hu’s fair-trade organic dark chocolate bars are among the best you can get. We love the dark chocolate variety pack, which offers a sampling of flavors like almond butter and puffed quinoa and crunchy mint. The cashew butter-filled chocolate bar is one of our favorites for a quick midday pick-me-up. And don’t miss the hunks, a.k.a. almonds and cashews dipped in dark chocolate, and gems, gumdrop-shaped chocolate chunks that are, well, gems.—K.K.
I brought these to a barbecue, mostly and selfishly so I could grab a bag for myself and eat them while I grilled all night long. The chips are kettle-cooked in avocado oil and come in flavors like spicy jalapeño, farmhouse ranch, and habanero nacho—my personal favorite of the bunch because they actually have a kick to them. For Ruffle’s fans like myself, there are also wavy varieties in cheddar and sour cream or sea salt (which has only three ingredients!). The chips aren’t greasy and have a nice thicker heft for dipping while still maintaining that optimal crunch for eating them by the handful. The only downside is that I wish the bag were fuller.—K.K.
The mug cake trend has had a few resurgences and for good reason—who wouldn’t want dessert for one whipped up in a few short minutes at the drop of a hat? Naturally, I was thrilled to see the latest release of Instant Treats from Stellar Eats, my go-to brand for gluten-free baking mixes. They’re single-serve portions of their mixes like banana bread, carrot cake, and fudge brownie (my personal go-to) and are ready to eat in less than two minutes—all you need to do is pour the contents into a mug, add an ingredient or two like water or oil as instructed, and patiently wait a few minutes for your cake to cook and cool.—K.K.
Ella’s Flats are, without a doubt, in our cracker hall of fame. The small family-owned brand makes savory crisps just from seeds, from sunflower to pumpkin to flax, and spices like cumin and caraway. Ella’s Flats are sturdy enough to dip into hummus or work as a bread substitute for avocado toast, yet they’re light enough to eat on their own for a protein-and-fiber-packed snack. We also love the Everything or Spicy varieties crumbled into a salad or the Sesame or Hemp ones into a yogurt bowl for an added crunch.—K.K.
If you told us a few years ago that everyone would be walking around eating beef jerky sticks, we’d might not have believed you. But the desire for high-protein, low-sugar, and keto- and paleo-friendly foods has led to an influx of packaged snacks in this category. Chomps offers our current favorite meat sticks in beef, turkey, and venison. These sticks contain no sugar and no fillers, and they also come in a half-size option that can fit in your pocket. This is a satisfyingly savory snack that’s great for when you need to each something filling on the go.—K.K.
If you miss the fruit snacks of your elementary school days, you’ll love Solely’s fruit gummies, which are filled with nothing but whole organic fruit and vitamin C. The mango-and-guava or mango-and-orange single-serving packs are perfect to toss in your bag for when that mid-afternoon sweet craving hits. If dried fruit is more your style, we love the brand’s fruit jerky, which packs a whole mango, banana, or pineapple into a single stick, as well as its dried fruit pouches (both of which also come drizzled with 100% cacao if that’s more your style).—K.K.
