In January, I experimented with eating 3 square meals a day, with perhaps one small snack if necessary. For a while, this worked well . . . but sometimes, especially later in the month, I found myself consistently getting rather peckish in between meals. At first, I attempted to ignore these hunger pangs and just wait for my next meal; however, this caused me to a) eat much larger quantities of food in one sitting than my tummy can handle, thus resulting in bloating, and to b) shove the food into my mouth with such haste and gusto that it really didn’t satisfy me on that necessary psychological level. Or, I didn’t snack all day, which caused me to be super-hangry at night, which led to consuming most of my calories in the evening, which led to a rumbling tummy and poor digestion throughout the night, which led to . . . you get the picture.
So, I’ve decided to at least temporarily re-introduce snacking into my diet—100- to 200-calorie noshes that will appease my appetite between meals, especially during my long afternoons. Some days, my schedule requires me to eat an early lunch at 11, so in order to survive until dinner at 6 or 7, it’s an absolute MUST that I re-fuel, or else I’m one crabby lady, complete with headaches, stomach cramps, and an inability to concentrate on my studies.
So, today, on this beautiful Wednesday, I snacked, and it was glorious. A quick thanks to Jenn for being such a stellar WIAW hostess!
Breakfast & Morning Tea
Oatmeal with homemade almond milk, 1/2 apple, raisins, flaxseed, and PB on top.
I must admit, I’m looking forward to Spring and Summer—not only for the sunshine, warmth, butterflies, and blossoming flowers, but also for a larger variety of seasonal fruits to garnish my breakfasts with! I miss fresh strawberries, raspberries, plums, and especially peaches.
My ever-growing yearning for Spring inspired my choice of tea this morning, too: Spring Cherry Green Tea from The Republic of Tea.
[Source]
Mid-Morning Snack
A bright PINK smoothie--recipe to come on Friday!
About an hour & a half before lunch, my tummy felt quite empty, so I had a smoothie and . . . surprise! A couple homemade crackers, my newest culinary endeavor! Since I’ve started making my own almond milk, I have a lot of leftover pulp that I’m creatively re-using, for crackers, stirred into oatmeal, added to smoothies, you name it!
Lemon-Herb Almond Pulp Crackers
A couple quick notes about these crackers. First, don’t expect super crunchy crackers. These are crisp, but also a bit crumbly, too. I’m guessing it’s because I baked them in the oven rather than using a dehydrator—so if you have dehydrator, you’ll probably have better luck!
Makes as many crackers as you so desire!
Inspired by this recipe
Ingredients
2 Tbs. ground flaxseed + 6 Tbs. water
2 cups packed almond pulp*
2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh basil
2-3 garlic cloves, finely mined
2 tsp. lemon zest
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. cracked black pepper
*I’m not a raw food purist—I do roast the almonds I use to make almond milk because I think the flavour is better. Therefore, my pulp isn’t raw as well, so I can’t attest as to how raw pulp crackers will taste.
Directions
- Whisk flaxseed and water in a small bowl, and put it in the fridge for at least 15—this is your flax “egg”.
- Preheat oven to 300° F. In a bowl, combine pulp, herbs, garlic, lemon zest and juice, and salt & pepper, mixing together well. Add flax “egg”, and stir until a dough forms.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and transfer the dough. Take a second piece of parchment paper, cover it, and using either a rolling pin or your hands, flatten the dough evenly on the sheet. Brush crackers with a little olive oil.
- Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes, watching very carefully and rotating the baking sheet every once in a while. When the crackers start turning a golden brown, turn off the oven and just let them sit inside until cool.
Sort of like pita chips . . .
Lunch
I wanted something other than a salad today, so I threw together a stir-fry in less than 10 minutes.
Lots of colour, lots of flavour! Recipe coming soon!
Post lunch: half an orange, 1 dried fig, some 77% dark chocolate from Chocolove.
Afternoon Snack
As a normal student, I rely on quick and easily-portable snacks that I can throw into my backpack without worrying about a potential mess. As an unconventional student, I make everything from scratch. Simultaneous solution: homemade protein granola bars. Recipe to come on Friday!
Dinner
Since I didn't have a salad for lunch, I decided to have a side salad with dinner--mixed greens, celery, Bragg's Seasoning + extra dill, Liquid Aminos, lemon juice, mustard, and cashews.
Brown basmati + Indian Aloo-Gobi, with a secret twist . . . recipe coming soon!
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So, what did I think about snacking again? Well, to be honest, I’m torn. Part of me prefers not eating in between meals because it’s something of a chore and sometimes inconvenient; another part of me still believes that snacking has its place, but you can overdo it, too. I need opinions please!
Question: What do you think? Do you snack, or do you prefer 3 square meals a day?
While I find that snacks in themselves typically are never satisfying, I like to have small meals spaced throughout the day whenever feasible. I mean, I like a good piece of fruit as much as the next person (I’m actually starting to enjoy oranges on a regular basis), it’s nothing compared to fruit with a bit of yogurt and milk with nuts or something more substantial.
Nonetheless I’m (trying to) just go with eating whenever I get hungry and I think once I get those signals down that’ll work out just fine!
Thanks, Dan–yeah, I’m still trying to eat intuitively, but it’s hard sometimes because I find, too, that my class schedule also dictates when I must eat, so even if I’m not hungry at noon, I still must eat lunch then because I wouldn’t have a chance otherwise, le sigh.
I’m not gonna lie, I’m a snacker. I have three small-ish meals each day (usually lunch is the smallest and breakfast is the largest), but I definitely snack between meals. I just get too hungry with the three squares. Also, I’m hypoglycemic so I have to be a little careful.
My snacks are simple, often a piece of fruit and a few nuts or a couple almond-butter stuffed dates with a hot cuppa yerba mate, or a little bit of leftover-something that I have on hand. Right now, I have some homemade rice pudding made with black rice and cinnamon. A half-serving makes a good snack indeed.
So yeah, I’ll probably always be a snacker, but a 100-200 calorie snack (preferably a healthy one that has fiber and protein) is usually sufficient enough to hold me over. Although, sometimes if I’m not hungry during the day, I’ll skip it and eat it later. Bananas with some almond butter and hot caffeine-free herbal tea make an awesome bedtime snack. I do think snacking has it’s place, but I don’t really plan them, I just make sure I have healthy things like fruit, mini Lara bars, dry-roasted nuts, or sprouted bread on hand for when I get the urge.
Thanks for the detailed comment, Jess! I so appreciate your input. I was diagnosed with reactive hypoglycemia in early 2011, but since it was “reactive,” I was able to reverse it by gaining a few pounds and achieving a healthier weight for my height. That doesn’t mean I don’t get hangry, sometimes, especially during the long afternoons.
I have a really crazy suggestion for you- eat when you are hungry. Where, what time it is, and how much is not a decision your brain gets to dictate- listen to your body. Its that simple.
Thank you, Tt, for your comment. I wish it were as simple as you said, but there are other factors of which you may not be aware. I will be writing a post about it today, in response to your philosophy.
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