Snacks are Good for Me.

snack |snak|

noun

a small amount of food eaten between meals.

• a light meal that is eaten in a hurry or in a casual manner.

verb [ intrans. ]

eat a snack : she likes to snack on yogurt.

Um, Webster's dictionary does a poor, poor job of describing the wonder that is "the snack." And yogurt? That's the best snack they could think of? What about pistachios, or crackers... or better yet cheese and crackers? How dare they for diminishing the snack to something to just get you through to the next meal. Don't they know that meals are the segues to more snacks and not the other way around?

I am so very much all.about.the.snack. I often get more excited about snacks then I do about meals *if you couldn't already tell. When you go on a car trip, what's the most exciting part? The soundtrack you make and the snacks you pack. What's the best part of your lunch? The snacks (also known as "sides")  I mean, ok, sometimes the sandwich and the chips are equal when its something like a turkey club. But chips always bring a certain fevered anticipation to the meal. Few people crack into them right away - usually you take those first polite, obligatory bites of sandwich as a nod to proper etiquette. But we all know that everyone is just anticipating the chips.

Snacks are also best eaten on the car ride home from buying them. I do this all the time. Tim had never even considered doing this before we got married. He still thinks it's weird that as soon as we get in the car I get the crackers out and start eating them. My mom used to let us eat in the snack in the store while she was still shopping (and then paid for it at the check out of course) so I hardly think having it on the car ride home is unreasonable. I mean, why wait?!

But I digress. The point of this post is to tell you all about the Top 5 picks in my current snack bank and why they deserve to be there. FYI: you'll want to take notes because not only are these snacks delish, they're pretty healthy (comparatively).

 Here's The Lineup:

1. Way Better Snacks Simply So Sweet Chili Tortilla Chips : I had these for the first time just the other day at my sister's house. I almost ate the whole bag. And I typically don't even like chili flavored things. Whenever Tim puts some sort of spicy snack in the shopping cart I usually make him trade it (sorry Tim). I don't know what it is about these chips, but they have just the right amount of heat, sweet and savory. And Way Better Snacks use simple, nutritious, sprouted ingredients. You can read about why using sprouted ingredients is so good for you here. Or you can just take my word for it :)

2. GoodGreens "Chocolate" Bars : Also introduced to me by my sister. I know the name"GoodGreens" doesn't bolster much confidence in the taste department. But these are seriously good for when you have a chocolate bar craving but don't want the calories. Not only does one bar provide 100% of your daily fruits and vegetables (I still find this hard to believe), they are packed with tons of other good things: see here. Oh, and Tim loves them. And Tim is not always as gung-ho about healthier options as I am. Let's just say, if Tim likes them, you probably will. FYI - my favorite flavor is Chocolate Coconut.

3. Trader Joe's Kosher Dill Pickles : Growing up, the pickle plate was a staple at the big family dinners we'd have at my grandparents. It was always set out before the meal and by the time we sat down to eat the pickle plate would be empty. My uncle once ate so many pickles the lining of his stomach started to erode - or so the legend goes. I come from a long line of pickle lovers. And not all pickles are created equal. In Canada, we always eat Bicks. For a while, I switched from dills to Claussens. Now I'm a faithful consumer of Trader Joe's Kosher Dills. With pickles, it's all about the crunch. No one likes a rubbery pickle. TJ's delivers on the crunch + taste factors, although every now and then the pickles on the very top are duds. For the most part though, they are the cream of the crop. And their the smaller size pickles, which are better for snacking. Perfect.

4. LUNA "Granola" Bars : When Tim was experimenting with making these, he kept referring to them as LUNA. LUNA bars are marketed as "The Whole Nutrition Bar for Women" that are "created by women, for women." So at first, before he realized his error, I was having a laugh over the fact that my manly husband was a vocal enthusiast of such a girl power product. And for the record, I still feel that creating a food "by women for women" seems a bit unnecessary. Is there really such a gaping hole in the market that a group of women needed to get together to create a nutrition bar with key "feminine-specific" ingredients such as.....? Anyways, these are awesome. They are delicious. They are more than a granola bar. They are an amazing, on-the-go snack. And they aren't just for women. My favorite flavor is Peanut Honey Pretzel.

5. Air popped Popcorn : This is pretty basic. Much like the dinner table, people just like to gather round the popcorn bowl. It brings communities together. Promotes world peace. What's not to love? We always ate air popped popcorn growing up. There was something so fun about watching the popcorn spill out of the machine into the bowl while my mom poured hot butter and salt on top. So good. Sure, microwave popcorn can be good in a pinch. But air popped is cheaper and way better for you (depending on how much butter you use...) Being a veganite means we use soy butter, but it tastes the same and looks the same and so...win win. Unlike the other four, this actually isn't a snack I eat "whenever." I think, like  most popcorn fans, I prefer to eat it with someone, in a giant bowl, while watching t.v. or a movie. This snack is also a family favorite - except for Moses who would probably choke on a popcorn hull.

Well that's it for me.
What about you?
What are your favorite snacks?

Hint: It's time to comment guys - 

Don't leave me hanging!