Make-Ahead Healthy Snacks

Simple yummy, make-ahead healthy snacks that are easy to make and great for on the go, meal prep, work, after school, and beyond!

Picture this: you’re in a hurry to pack food for a full day ahead. You don’t have much time and you don’t know what to bring. You have nothing but ingredients in your house. You’re out of all the quick grab-n-go stuff like apples and nuts. You rush out the door empty-handed, not sure what you’re going to eat that day, but too busy to think about it right now.

Whether you’re off to a full-time job, a day of classes as a student, or about to leave on a trip, you need healthy food and prefer it to be homemade. If you don’t pack it, you might go hungry or resort to food that doesn’t make you feel good. Making snacks ahead of time to grab on such occasions can be a total game changer for your health!

Choosing a day to prepare some snacks ahead of time takes intention and follow-through but when you do it, you’ll be less-stressed and feel healthier! Take some time on the weekend or a weeknight evening (pick a time, like Monday nights) to batch prep some snacks for the coming days. While I have several sweet snacks pictured, there are savory ones on the list, too.

Here are some ideas for make-ahead healthy snacks, including plant-based, oil-free, and gluten-free options.

1. Popcorn. I pop mine in the microwave and spray with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Put it in a gallon zip lock bag or individual bags.
2. Chickpea Cookie Dough Bites. Prep these and keep in the container in the fridge as an easy way to eat beans as a snack. Get the recipe here.
3. Baby carrots with hummus. Prepare hummus or buy it. You can grab a bag of baby carrots and container of hummus on the way out the door!
4. Chia Pudding. This is my current favorite. Make a few small jars or containers of this to grab.
5. Energy balls—buckwheat bites, carrot cake bites, brownie bites, or the simple energy bites in my Kids Cookbook.
6. Ants on a Log. Take 5 minutes in advance to prepare a container of these.
7. Healthy cookies, like these Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookies, Carrot Cake Cookies, or Chickpea Chocolate Chip cookies,or Nutty Granola Clusters (all gluten-free!).
8. Healthy muffins. You can make and freeze these Oat Bran Muffins, Banana Muffins, Pumpkin Muffins, or Zucchini Muffins (can all be made gluten free if needed).
9. Trail Mix. I make little ziplock bags of mixed peanuts, walnuts, almonds, cashews, raisins, dates and chocolate chips. We all benenfit from a few bags being kept in the car for hungry times.
10. Veggies and dip. This Caesar dressing makes an incredible veggie dip (my kids fight over it), as does the yogurt ranch dip in the freebie you get when you sign up for my email list. 
11. Seasoned sweet potato fries. These seasoned sweet potato fries are low in oil, yet crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They are seasoned but not spicy, and so delicious!
12. Rice crispy granola bars. Sure, there are tons of granola bar recipes out there, but I feel like I perfected this one to not be super high calorie or sugary, and I made it using only common ingredients (no brown rice syrup or coconut butter and stuff).