Weekend Yum Yums

My husband calls me “Snacks“. Terribly romantic, isn’t he?

Alas, I do have a habit of raiding the pantry a *few* times per day, usually late at night in what I call the “Screw-It-I’ll-Start-My-Diet-Tomorrow” free for all. And it hasn’t helped that lately a ton of delicious goodies have made their way to my doorstep for review – ahem, would you turn away a bin full of President’s Choice treats?

(I don’t think so.)

So I figured I’d do a quick post on my favourite snacks of late – if I can make just one person’s snack time more enjoyable, my work here is done!

PC Banana Bread Little Penguin Soft Cookies
Described as “delectable soft cookies, shaped like fun little penguins that kids will love! Peanut-free and individually wrapped, they’re great for school snacks and lunches”… you’d think that I would have offered one or two to my little guys. Not on your life. These are like handy little banana bread loaves – and are SO DAMN delish! They have a slightly firmer texture to hold their adorable little shape and to classify them as a “cookie”, but just one bite and you will brew a cup of strong coffee, grab your fave celebrity trash rag and proceed to have the perfect 3pm break.

PC Pulled Pork Cooking Sauce
While this technically isn’t a snack it does create a delicious meal that can morph into snack’ems in the blink of an eye (think pulled pork quesadillas, pulled pork sliders, pulled pork blinis…). Now since I don’t actually eat pork I used chicken instead and was mighty pleased with the results. Here’s what I did: grabbed leftover baked chicken breasts, shred ’em up and tossed them in a pot on the stove. Added about half a jar of the sauce and heated through on medium-low (about 10 minutes). Then dropped the whole works on toasted baguette and divvied up in 2.5-inch portions. Hells ya.

popchips

I had heard rumours about a revolutionary snack through some of my favourite blogs (healthy! delicious! no bad stuff! and more…) so when popchips dangled the proverbial carrot chip my way, you just know I had to try them out too. Thanks to a little popping technology, these all-natural chips are seasoned to perfection and come in a variety of flavours (sour cream & onion and original being our fave). And with only 100 calories and 3g of fat per single serving, this is a snack you NEED to have on you to ward off junk food cravings. They’re so yummy! The best part: NO MSG! That’s right, I challenge you to find another seasoned snack that is void of that nasty little flavour enhancer (I remember one sad day when I discovered even those popular rice chips – touted as a “healthy alternative”- contained buckets of the stuff). LOVE popchips.

Bear Paws Cereal & Fruit
Yet another snack designed for kids (made with real fruit, whole grains, a source of iron, no artificial flavours and peanut free!) that I have officially hijacked. BUT, in this instance, I did take a moment to share Bear Paws with the boys and they LOVE them too! Think cereal bars without the overload of sugary filling; in just a few bites you’ll get your quota of sweet, satisfying goodness that just happen to be good for you too. I’m partial to the Raspberry flavour but the kids are drawn to Apple. A bonus: they’re shaped like bear paws, of course!

REESE’S Minis
Bite-sized and unwrapped REESE’S Minis. They’re perfectly tiny. And perfectly scrumptious. Did I mention they’re the perfect “reward” size? Yup. Go on and grab a handful. You’ve been a very good girl.

Orville Redenbacher Power Crunch Bars
As popcorn is a staple in my home, we’re always looking for new ways to change things up. In fact, just recently we started popping kernels the old fashioned way – on the stove top – because our microwave bought the farm and we’ve discovered we don’t actually need to replace it… 6 months and counting!

(If you do have a microwave and are looking for a healthy, convenient snack, I recommend Orville Redenbacher’s Smart Pop! Gourmet microwave popcorn. Each serving is low in calories, a good source of fibre and has no trans-fat – plus it’s not laden with funky preservatives!)

I received this recipe for Power Crunch Bars and just had to share:

INGREDIENTS

1 mini bag (31 g each) Orville Redenbacher’s Smart Pop 100 Calorie Buttery Flavour Microwave Popcorn
1/2 Teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 Cup quick-cooking rolled oats
3/4 Cup dried cranberries
1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 Cup margarine or butter, softened
3/4 Cup all-purpose flour
(1/2 sec spray) PAM Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
1/4 Teaspoon salt
1/2 Teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 Cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 Tablespoon water

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray 15×10-inch jelly roll pan with cooking spray. Combine oats, flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in medium bowl; set aside.

Prepare popcorn according to package directions. Remove any unpopped kernels; set aside.

Combine brown sugar and margarine in large bowl, using electric mixer on high speed. Add water and vanilla; beat until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour mixture and blend well. Turn mixer on low speed; add cranberries.

Cover hands with plastic gloves or sandwich size plastic bags; spray with cooking spray. Mix popcorn into dough. Spread mixture into prepared pan. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Let cool before cutting into 24 bars. Store in tightly sealed container. Makes 24 bars.

That’s all folks! My weekend round up of Yum Yums that will have you snacking with finesse! xo