Holly's Healthy Cooking Blog

Tips on How to Eat Healthy On the Run – Can I Do It?

How to eat healthy on the run is a question we all ask ourselves. National Nutrition Month is all about promoting making smart food choices as well as creating healthy eating and exercising habits. Sometimes it’s not that we don’t want to Eat Healthy, we are just too busy to think about it! We are busy with work, school, kids, family, and everything else, so we tend not to prioritize our eating and just settle for whatever is quick. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics came up with 30 tips for “healthy eating on the run” in honor of National Nutrition Month.

How To Eat Healthy Picking Up From A Restaurant

The first tip is that if you do end up picking up food from a restaurant, its good to chose a restaurant with a wide range of menu items, especially menu items that are healthier: lower in calories, fat, and/or sodium. Another good suggestion is ordering from the kid’s menu or an appetizer instead of a regular entrée to cut down on the portion size. Beware of all-you-can eat restaurants—even unlimited salad bars!

How To Eat Healthy Snacks By Making Your Own Homemade Granola Bars

Pack nonperishable snacks and foods to take to work or with you in the car and then,  you won’t have to stop.  This will actually save time. When you pack your own snacks and meals, you can choose healthier foods and can pre-portion them. Good snack foods include peanut butter, Granola Bars, fruit, and crackers or popcorn.  Holly has some great recipes for healthy snacks: No Bake Energy Bites, Baked Kale Chips, Chex Snack Mix, Sweet Potato Biscuits, Banana Bread, and Granola Bars.

Homemade Granola Bars from Eating Well Through Cancer

Easy to make these delicious Homemade Granola Bars with toasted oatmeal and honey mixture combined with your favorite ingredients and be sure to use dark chocolate chips. A wonderful snack.

Makes 16 bars

3 cups old fashioned oatmeal
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup assorted ingredients (dark chocolate chips, nuts, cranberries, raisins, sunflower seeds)

1.Preheat oven 350°F. Line baking pan with foil.
2.  Spread oatmeal evenly on pan. Bake about 15 minutes, stirring once, until slightly golden (smell toasty oats).
3.  In microwave safe dish, mix together brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, vanilla, and cinnamon. Microwave 2 minutes or until bubbly and brown sugar dissolved. Line 9 x9x2-inch pan with large piece of foil that will come up sides and cover top.
5. In large bowl, combine toasted oatmeal with honey mixture, stirring to coat evenly. Stir in 1 cup additional ingredients. 6.Transfer mixture into prepared pan. Fold foil over top of granola in pan and press to fill corners and flatten granola to fit pan evenly. Cool at least an hour or refrigerate or put in freezer to help set faster.  Lift out of pan holding foil and slice down middle and cut each half into 8 bars.

Terrific Tip: Keep these pantry friendly ingredients on hand for a quick satisfying snack.

Nutrition Nugget: A gluten free diet has been shown to reduce adiposity gain, inflammation and insulin resistance.

The Healthy Cooking Blog | How To Eat Healthy On The Run: Restaurants to Homemade Granola Bars Recipe | HollyClegg.com