Welcome to our 13 Steps To Go Vegan's challenge number 5: Have Vegan Snacks on Hand
If you are following our ‘Steps to Go Vegan Program’, you are now on step 5!
You are rocking this vegan thing!
You know how to:
- Create a range of vegan breakfasts!
- Make a vegan choice and explore vegan communities.
- Find and engage in vegan communities
- Whip up vegan lunches that are healthy and delicious.
The Challenge
Get ready for the afternoon hunger pangs by making sure you are always prepared with access to delicious vegan snacks, our 5th step in our Steps To Go Vegan Program.
Introduction
Let’s think about snacking. Perhaps, after or before a workout, with a coffee or tea at work; something to tide you over before the next meal; maybe you are out and about, and suddenly, your blood sugar levels dip, you get “hangry”, and perhaps, you want something sweet!
We all need to snack occasionally, and as vegan foods often digest more quickly, you might find yourself snacking more than before. Finding things quickly can be tough if you’re unprepared, and undoing all the positive progress you’ve made can be disheartening, so start by increasing your awareness.
To do that, get a piece of paper and create a table like the one just below.
- List as many times and places that you usually snack.
- Then write down what you usually snack on.
- Lastly, write down what you can do to make sure you have a vegan substitute.
When I usually snack? | What non-vegan snack do I usually snack on? | Vegan snacking substitutes? |
|---|---|---|
Tea break during the afternoon | Cookie provided by a coworker | I’ll keep some a batch of vegan cookies in the staff kitchen refrigerator as a mid afternoon treat. |
A snack while watching TV in the evening | Ice cream | I’ll buy vegan ice cream and keep it in the freezer. |
While shopping | Donut | I’ll keep a granola bar in my purse in case there aren’t any vegan donuts really close by. |
Get prepared
Once you have snack attack times identified, now all you need to do is prep for them.
Snack ideas
When grocery shopping, consider buying packs of granola bars, cookies, fruit leather, seaweed snacks, trail mixes. Buying single serve multi-packs that can be stored where you and your family will need them, e.g., in your bag, the glove compartment of your car (depending on how hot your car gets), the office kitchen, or desk drawer etc. Try to make them as healthy as possible.
If you’re out and about and need something on the go, try sourcing the following:
- Mini tubs of salads;
- Pre-cut, ready to eat fruit;
- Small bag of nuts or dried fruit;
- Dark chocolate (often, this is vegan but don’t forget to check - cocoa butter is fine).
- Granola bars ; many of these are vegan
You can of course prepare your own snacks at home and take them with you when you go; some options we love include:
- Sliced apple with nut butter;
- Sliced mango with a wedge of lime;
- Homemade trail mix put in small containers;
- Grapes;
- A container of hummus with baby carrots or celery sticks;
- Bags of edamame;
- Popcorn
If you want to make delicious and healthy snacks from scratch, here are three options for you:
There you go! Easy and fun vegan snacks ideas! When you are ready, let’s head on over to Step 6 - Cheese…. Yes…. Cheese!.
Let's Discuss!
We'd love to hear from you! Do you have any questions? What's your favorite vegan snack? Let us know in the comments below!