My top 10 go-to snacks – all low in cals
Hi, I’m Rhian, mum to two little boys and the founder of The Healthy Mummy and the 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge.
The Healthy Mummy is a health and weight loss program created for busy mums. It all started back in 2010 when I was pregnant and wanted to create a supportive and holistic program for mums (you can read my story here).
Fast forward eight years, and now millions of mums use our famous 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge and Healthy Mummy Smoothies every day.
Eating the wrong snacks can be detrimental to our weight loss success. It is so easy to be tempted by chocolate bars, chips, biscuits and other high-calorie snacks when we don’t have healthy alternatives on hand. Even products like muesli bars that are marketed as ‘healthy’ often contain a boatload of sugar, fat and very little nutrition.
So here at The Healthy Mummy, we have created hundreds of delicious guilt-free savoury and sweet snack recipes that you can enjoy as part of your weight loss eating plan.
Whether you have a sweet tooth or prefer savoury, these guilt-free snacks can be enjoyed any time of day or night which makes them perfect for busy mums. And did I mention children and husbands love them too!
My top 10 snacks – all under 100 calories
My top 10 healthy and delicious snacks below are easy on the wallet and take minimal time to prepare. So easy, I often get my boys involved.
We put on music and turn it into a fun activity. Stirring together muffins ingredients, dropping chocolate chips in the bowl and shaping bliss balls. And the best part for them – they get to lick the bowl afterwards!
With my kids being fussy eaters, I find that when they are involved in the cooking process they are more likely to eat what we prepare. And that’s a big WIN!
The beauty of these snacks below is that you can prepare them in bulk and store them in your freezer or refrigerator.
And when hunger strikes you know you have something that not only tastes great but is good for you and the whole family.
1. Banana, Raspberry and Chocolate Chip Muffins
97 calories
These are a lunchbox favourite for my boys. Delicious and moist with just the right amount of sweetness from the raspberries and dark chocolate.
Banana, Raspberry and Chocolate Chip Muffin recipe
2. Chocolate Heaven Bliss Balls
80 calories
I love chocolate as much as the next person and when my chocolate craving strikes (often mid-afternoon) these Chocolate Heaven balls hit the spot!
The combination of dates, walnuts and cocoa coated in a chocolate topping satisfies not only my hunger but my chocolate craving too. Super easy and quick to prepare and absolutely no baking required.
Chocolate Heaven Bliss Ball recipe
3. Healthy “hidden veggie” sausage rolls
70 calories per roll
Did I mention I have two fussy eaters in my household? Oh yes! So it’s a no-brainer why these Hidden Vege Sausage Rolls are on my Top 8 list. Although best served hot, they are a tasty chilled too, so I often pop a few in a lunchbox when we go on picnics and to the playground.
Healthy “Hidden Veggie” Sausage Roll recipe
4. Chocolate chip cookie dough bliss balls
82 calories
Ahh, that taste of eating cookie dough has never gets old!. These are the perfect pop and go snack and a firm favourite in my household.
I take them to work, picnics, sporting events, and also pack them in school lunch boxes.
Grab the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bliss Balls recipe here.
5. Parmesan Rice Paddies
69 calories each
When I crave something savoury I love to prepare these Parmesan Rice Patties. I often make them when I have left over cooked rice. And depending on what other leftovers I have laying around I like to customize them – adding some corn, chopped ham, leftover roast chicken or even some chickpeas for extra fibre.
They store well overnight in the refrigerator and what my husband and I don’t eat that night, we consume the next day.
6. Salted Caramel Popcorn Cups
96 calories
What’s a family movie without popcorn? The perfect blend of sweet and salty – these little popcorn treats are a huge hit in my household and when served in colourful cupcake wrappers they feel like a celebration.
I’ve taken these to kids and adults parties and they are loved by all ages. Easy to hold in one hand and not too messy.
7. Green mint bites
59 calories
Healthy Green Mint Bites are my healthy alternative to after dinner mints.
Low in calories and high in flavour and green goodness including mint and spirulina.
8. Roasted Chickpea Bites
84 calories per serving
Packed with protein and fibre, these roasted chickpeas are perfect for keeping my hunger at bay and so easy to make. I like them spicy so I roast them in the oven with some oil, paprika, chilli powder and salt and pepper but they are also quite delicious with cinnamon.
9) Weetbix Slice
This one is AMAZING and you can get the recipe here
10) Cherry Slice
This one is so tasty and great for an after dinner snack
Get a FREE copy of my Meal Prep Recipe eBook here
Results from mums using The Healthy Mummy Plans
Amy Sims
Amy has gone on to lose 33.7kg! Starting at 94kg, she now weighs 60.3kg, something she hasn’t weighed since she was 10 years old she says.
“If you’re consistent the result will come. It won’t be overnight, you’ll have to be patient, but consistency will get you there in the end,” Amy says.
Zena Mason
“Look at that smile ladies, I lost 20kg* with The Healthy Mummy 28 Day Weight Loss Challenges and gained a bucket load of body confidence. I still shock myself that I have managed to do this all while working, running a business and managing a 21-month-old breastfed monkey…
“Previously I struggled with time management, prepping, healthy recipes without babies. I made lots of excuses. I drunk lots of energy drinks and I got up just before the alarm for work.. not anymore x
With The Healthy Mummy they have really simplified it for me, made it easy for busy people like me.
I’m forever in awe of the APP on my device that literally changed my mind and thinking.”
Kerrie O’Brien
Kerrie has lost 17kg and dropped 3 dress sizes (from 14-16 to 8) by following The Healthy Mummy 28 Day Weight Loss Challenges and exercises on the App as well as including The Healthy Mummy Smoothies and supplements in her diet.
“I am now lighter, smaller, healthier and fitter than I was in my 20’s and 30’s,” says 48-year-old old mum of two, Kerrie O’Brien.
Feeling fabulous at 48, Kerrie says she is looking forward to confidently wearing a swimsuit this summer for the first time in 10 years. Something she admits she never thought she would say!
“I always used to sit on the sidelines in summer, even though I live in Queensland because I didn’t feel confident enough to wear bathers in public. Now I definitely do!”
Ashleigh Linssen
In two years, Ashleigh has lost her goal of 22 kilograms* and entered maintenance mode. Once again, this mum credits the Healthy Mummy’s 28 Day Weight Loss Challenge for helping her drop the excess weight.
Ashleigh says, “It’s so easy and I love the sense of community. The Facebook Support Groups are second to none and the food [on the Challenge] is actually family-friendly.”