Grocery list for a constant snacker

mikaselm
mikaselm Posts: 32
edited September 22 in Food and Nutrition
Hi! I have some grocery questions fro all of you! First off, I'm flat broke. Like, 76 cents in the checking account broke, so when my honey gets paid on Monday, we'll still have to ride the budget pretty hard. Secondly, I'm one of those constantly hungry people. I've found that I can pretty easily stick to my diet if I keep snacking on tiny tiny snacks throughout the day. So I'm looking for CHEAP, low cal snacks that I can slowly munch on while at my computer or while while sitting at my desk at work. (easily my highest craving times!)

One note, Cereal's already on the list, my fav is honey bunches of oats, because I just can't get enough of that strawberry flavor! IS there any other cereal that 's healthier but still sooooo flavorful?

i've already eaten so many celeries and raw carrots taht I hope I never see another one ever!


THANKS GUYS!!!!!

Replies

  • gadzu
    gadzu Posts: 7
    Popcorn!
  • Soccerstar19
    Soccerstar19 Posts: 56
    Potatoes are pretty cheap and they keep you full longer.
  • 2much32
    2much32 Posts: 2 Member
    I would suggest vegtables...they're usually cheap, and you can snack on them all day without gaining many calories...carrots, celery, cherry tomatos, anything like that will do the trick...avoid snacking on peanuts (all kinds)...they're really high in calories and can add up quick

    good luck!
  • aspeck23
    aspeck23 Posts: 13
    Definitely popcorn. As far as the cereal goes, what about mixing in some Fiber 1 (the original kind) with the cereal that you really like? The nutrition stats for Fiber 1 are pretty amazing and I definitely prefer it mixed with other cereals or stirred into a cup of yogurt, as opposed to eating it on its own.
  • scjohnson420
    scjohnson420 Posts: 5 Member
    Fiber one chewy bars, delicious!
  • lanadee
    lanadee Posts: 14 Member
    I am not setting myself up as any type of expert, but it has been my experience I am hungry all the time when I have too many carbs/sugar. So I eat protein. Eggs are cheap. One egg can hold me for hours. What type of diet are you doing? You might want to check to see if something you are eating is giving you too much of a sugar high..then a drop. Or perhaps you are just not eating enough to satisfy you when you DO eat.

    Hope that helps!

    your friend,
    lanadee
  • sherilynn65
    sherilynn65 Posts: 26 Member
    i agree, popcorn. we just went shopping and i got the pop secret 100 calorie single serving packs, 10 packs in a box, and i made one last night for my snack, geez i couldnt believe first off how good it actually is, i got the butter kind, and second those little bags hold alot more than you think, there was so much in there i couldnt hardly finish it, the dog liked the leftovers lol. i do eat the small carrot sticks and i also love cutting up bell peppers and munching on those, good luck it is a hard journey but it is so worth it, keep up the good work and avoid temptation,
  • reese66
    reese66 Posts: 2,920 Member
    Carrots, celery, radishes
  • BOGmama2010
    BOGmama2010 Posts: 599 Member
    I agree about the eggs and string cheese and an apple are great snacks as well. I, too, find that too many carbs during the day make want to continue eating, so I try to focus on protein. Of course look for the markdown meats that have to be frozen or cooked that day. What about tuna fish and yogurt? Something to round out the carbs? I don't do cereal so I can't recommend one to replace the HBO.
  • mikaselm
    mikaselm Posts: 32
    I do n't much care for the popcorn that comes in the microwavable baggies, but I LOVE the pop on the stove kind. I've put it away, though, because my habit was to drench it in butter. Anyone have suggestions for upping the taste of popcorn without using butter? Margarine or olive oil spread is a no, because it seems to MELT the popcorn in a very unappetizing way :D

    I'd love to be able to eat popcorn again! It;s one of my favs!
  • ctheslayer
    ctheslayer Posts: 79
    I'm fortunate enough to work for a company that provides organic fruits in the lunch/break room. I try to snag apples and bananas before they are gone.

    I try to bring the following from home for my snacking items at the desk:

    boiled egg
    tuna (from can, packed in water)
    rice cakes with hummus
    cottage cheese (lowfat)
    nonfat yogurt
    mixed nuts
    carrots, celery, broccoli with hummus or masala/lentil dip
    sugar snap peas
  • cheshirequeen
    cheshirequeen Posts: 1,324 Member
    first thing i thought, popcorn, which is what im eating now. but buy the popcorn and oil for it. one of those bags has a bunch of calories sometimes. fixing it you can control the oil and the popcorn. haha. smoothies work too. i buy organic pineapples and organic strawberries(frozen) and one is 2.39 and the other is 2.99. some juice, take your pick, is 2-3 dollars. this usually last me 3 nights or so, and i dont eat them every day, every other day. also get some peanut butter and crackers.
  • cheshirequeen
    cheshirequeen Posts: 1,324 Member
    to up the taste of popcorn two things work for me. lots of spices, salt, or peppers, or garlic, i know weird, but it works. also, when im not super hungry, i eat a little bit less popcorn and a bit more oil. not a lot, but enough for a bit of taste.
  • sweetestthing
    sweetestthing Posts: 102
    i love to pop green peas in the microwave and put a couple of fat free slice cheese on it. Then I sit in front of tv and eat one by one! with my fingers. (wash hands, lol ) a whole frozen bag lasts hours and its only a couple of bucks!!
  • anovasjo
    anovasjo Posts: 382 Member
    Yesterday I bought two huge grocery bags of vegetables for $ 13 and change! That includes:

    - 2 lbs carrots
    - white button mushrooms
    - 2 matsu apples
    - field cucumber
    - green pepper
    - bulb of fennel
    - 2 beets
    - 2 grapefruits
    - head of cauliflower
    - 4 tomatoes

    Any and all of these things can be combined into awesome snack foods. For instance, you could make roasted beet chips, stuffed mushrooms, salsa, baked apples, apple sauce, stuffed peppers, beet-grapefruit-fennel salad, faux sushi.... the list is endless. Vegetables are cheap- you just need to let yourself get excited about them!! :glasses:
  • mikaselm
    mikaselm Posts: 32
    Thank you all very much! I really appreciate it! Does anyone happen to know the nutritional information of those popcorn flavour slrinkles? Supposed to taste like butter or cheese or whatever?
  • kristy12379
    kristy12379 Posts: 239
    For your popcorn dilemma, I like to spray mine with the parkay spray butter that is 0 cals. It doesn't make it soggy. I like to make sugar free jello/pudding (50-80 cents a box) and have 1 cup with a couple of dolops of light whipped cream for a snack. And rice cakes make filling cheap snacks also!
  • mikaselm
    mikaselm Posts: 32
    oooohhhhh, pudding... I 'm SO getting some of that! AS for the butter sprinkles, I found them with a different DB search. Turns out I can use a whole container of butter sprinkles to equal the same calories worth of real butter I usually use. Yikes! I wonder if they taste good? I hadn't t thought about the Jello option, they have a ton of fat free products, I 'll have to take a look at the store when I'm there. I 've never tries fat free jello, but when my diabetic grandfather lived with me, we used to eat sugar free jello, and I actually like it better :D
  • 33KIKI
    33KIKI Posts: 304
    just another thought for would be freezin fruit - especially grapes, apples with a protein like peanut butter that keeps me pretty full and i used to not eat peanut butter oh and sometimes cucumbers in leiu of chips especially hummus or something. Hope that helps- keep up thepositive attitude :)
  • momtolose
    momtolose Posts: 1
    My new light snack is the laughing cow light wedges. They come in a bunch of flavors.
    What I do is take one blue cheese wedge (35 cal) and spread it on pieces of apple, maybe with a walnut or two.
    Or, the queso cheese one smeared on strips of bell pepper.

    Each wedge is 35 calories, but it jazzes up fruit or veggies well.
  • pixelblossom
    pixelblossom Posts: 10 Member
    I agree with the one who said to eat protein. It is lower in calories and you aren't hungry for a long time after. When I eat carbs I can't fill up and I'm constantly hungry. The boiled egg idea is a good one and string cheese too. I'd stay away from cerals of all kinds. Look at the carbs on the nutrition information and you'll find they're way too high.

    Also, a cheap idea is Wasa multigrain crackers. Real cheap, very crunchy and you can spread them with a thin layer of low fat cheese, or natural peanut butter as long as you don't over do it.
  • Shamrock40
    Shamrock40 Posts: 264
    I am a popcorn addict, too. I have completely kicked the butter habit by buying something called "Kernel Seasons" - I find it at Target. It is SOOO good. They have white cheddar and nacho cheese flavors,and I haven't even bought those (or checked the nutritional info) because I love the butter flavor one so much. It is something like 3 calories for 1/4 tsp - which isn't a lot of seasoning, or a lot of calories, but if you look at it this way, you can put 5 teaspoons of it on a couple of tablespoons of popcorn, and the whole thing is around 400 calories, give or take. 60 calories for the seasoning and around 350 or so for the popcorn. (I can't remember exactly.)

    Other carb snacks that aren't too high in calories are goldfish and pretzel sticks. I buy Target brand pretzels and you can eat 48 for 100 calories. And 43 goldfish (I buy the flavor-blasted cheddar/pretzel mixed bag) for something like 120 calories. Wait until Target or Wal Mart has them on sale and stock up. They're not particularly cheap, but are pretty satisfying.

    On the other hand, what others have said is true about protein. You will fill up faster and stay full longer if you eat almonds, peanuts, cashews, or some combination of those. Or cheese. Or when you're eating a meal and not snacking, eat beans, lean meats, low-fat cheeses. All those things are good protein sources without being too high in calories. The nuts are high in fat, but good fat. Try to switch to brown rice and whole wheat or whole grain pasta (or if you're adventurous, something like quinoa.) They are complex carbs, and will fill you up, but take longer to break down, so they keep you full longer.
  • shelly_lee2000
    shelly_lee2000 Posts: 10 Member
    Snap pea's and carrots
  • AP2011
    AP2011 Posts: 2
    I would try to drink lots of water and try to have a breakfast with more fibre to help keep you feeling full longer.... In terms of cheap snacks veggies are probably one of the best choices.... Good luck!
  • katbass
    katbass Posts: 351 Member
    My current favorite snacks:

    Popcorn (i drench it in "I Cant Believe its Not Butter" spray...im talking 800 squirts)
    carrots
    snap peas (1 cup is a TON and takes a while to eat)
    cherry tomatoes
    broccoli
    cauliflower
    edamame (cheap at Walmart, 4 mins in the microwave and takes a WHILE to eat...very filling and healthy)
    animal crackers (not great, but better than chips)
    raisins (sugary, but better than ice cream)
    great value chocolate ice cream cups (100 cals and hits the spot)
    string cheese
    hormel turkey pepperoni (17 slices is 70 cals) I eat this with wheat thins (100 cal) and Laughing Cow garlic herb cheese
    green peppers
    Sabra hummus (indiviudal servings, or i'd eat the entire tub at once)
    eggs (hard boiled)
    lightly salted rice cakes with peanut butter
    white cheddar rice cakes (yumm)
    Quakes Ranch rice cake minis
    yogurt with granola
    cottage cheese
    celery (i eat this with ranch dip, but 1 tbsp of ranch can go a looong way)

    Hope this helps!!
  • lisarazz79
    lisarazz79 Posts: 13
    Cottage cheese or baby bell cheese, hummus and veggies....go for the protein it will keep you full longer...carbs you need but not as snacks...and make sure carbs are under 17g per serving in anything you eat!! best of luck with your healthy lifestyle!
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