Snackage: Swapping out for Zero Waste Snacks

I kept it easy this week as this category is tough. When you think of snacks, usually options that come to mind are individually wrapped lovely processed goodness. A couple years back, I started eating healthier and although my snacks became more organic, they are still packed inside packaging.

One could say, well just eat plain ol' fruits and veggies for all snacks. 'One' obviously does not have A. a child and/or B. a lifestyle that has you on the go all the time. Akin to the days when you were at school and your mom packed a lunch and you never finished your whole apple or bag of carrots- where did they go? Well -in your bag, or desk, where they sufficiently rotted and you threw them away.

I love fruits and veggies, but I don't always grab them for a quick on the go snack, nor try to squeeze them whole into my daughter's lunch bag or diaper bag thingy. Small 'snacks' are much easier and can have nuts, grains, cheeses and all sorts of other good things. BUT they tend to come in the store all packaged out to the max. So I chose a few options to 'swap out' this week.

1. fruit snacks

Here is what I usually buy:

Instead, I bought some dried fruit that were bit more on the gummy side- bulk 100% organic dried cantaloupe with a light sugar crust- BIG HIT. My daughter will have one whole slice for a snack, and super easy to pack.

2. granola bars

I usally buy these:

And instead I bought ( all bulk) rolled oats, dried cranberries, sliced almonds, chopped pecans, mini chocolate chips, honey, butter and brown sugar. This is another one, like the easy bread- a super easy granola recipe! Took me about 5 minutes to prep, 20 minutes to make it, then is sits in the fridge for two hours. You take it out, pop it out of the pan and cut it- voila, 12 home made delicious granola bars! ( also, one box of organic granola bars runs me about $3.95, and the box is 6 bars. The ingredients for this came to about $4.50, so I saved almost another 4 dollars by making my own! -and they do taste better, -and they are bigger!!) I found the "Soft and Chewy Granola Bars Recipe" here-http://www.inspiredtaste.net/21462/soft-and-chewy-granola-bars-recipe/ .

The next image shows the size comparison- mine on the right, the packaged one on the left. The packaged bar is not as long as the package- it starts from where you see the crease by the "i" in Annie's and ends near the bottom where you see the crease by the peanut. The homemade option is about 1/5th or 1/4th bigger.

And the true test- yes, the kiddo loves them. The non kiddos here too.

#ZeroWasteRecipe #EasyGranolaBars #DriedFruit #Sawyourpackagedsnacks