One of my goals this year was to cut back on processed foods. And I’ve been doing a pretty good job at it. I haven’t felt the need to go buy a bag of potato chips in a while, which I’m counting as a success. The less chips or junk that I eat, the less added sodium or sugar goes into my body. But what happens if I get a craving for something salty? And what can I grab (or hopefully make) to get myself to snack healthier in the new year?

I went on a lot of health and food websites trying to discover new ways to make healthy snacks. And trust me, there are a lot of them. One could really get overwhelmed fast by the amount of information and recipes out there. I, personally, don’t enjoy when there are too many options, especially at a restaurant. I want to order what the restaurant is known for, and be done with it.

However, through all of my online perusing, I did find an article about something known as the Nordic Diet. Hear me out. I don’t diet. I don’t enjoy depriving myself of simple pleasures (food) just to reach a specific goal. What I discovered was that the Nordic Diet is really just a way of living in the Nordic countries, in the same manner that the Mediterranean Diet is for countries in the Mediterranean region. It’s influenced by what the Nordic region has to offer at any given time:

Root vegetables
Seafood for protein
Fermented foods
Berries
Legumes
Whole grains
Seeds

This ingredient list stood out to me, especially since we’re currently in the dead of winter when a lot of these ingredients are in season. Why not take advantage of one of the world’s most healthy diet lifestyles? If it can help to increase my longevity (along with regular workouts), then why the heck not.

I typically only eat twice a day. It’s not because of some special diet. It’s because I can only stomach two regular sized meals in a given day. Plus one snack, which in my chip eating days turned into two to three cups of chips. I told you that I was in love with chips :). I’ve already shared my breakfast in a previous post, so I thought I’d share my lunch/dinner and snacks here.

For a late lunch, I’ve started to incorporate elements of the Nordic Diet. I try to prep my food at the start of the week so I can just build it whenever I’m hungry. I like everything to be room temperature or slightly cold, not hot, so meal prepping is vital for me. I also really enjoy lunch bowls, which makes it easy to mix everything together thus making sure that I’m getting an adequate amount of protein, fats, and carbs. Here are the lunch bowls that I’ve been digging lately.

Quinoa (as the base)
Northern white beans
Cucumbers
Arugula
Sweet potatoes
Broccoli (steamed - I let these sit out for a bit to help cool them down)
Olives
Salmon (baked - I usually bake a couple of fillets early in the week, and eat half for each meal)
Onion

I’ll usually add a bit of vinaigrette to make it more of a salad. It’s honestly delicious, and keeps me full until my snack time which is usually around 5 or 6pm. For my snacks, I’ve been craving smoked salmon crackers. I love that they’re protein packed with smoked salmon and cottage cheese. I add in olives for a little more flavor too. Trust me, they’re a fantastic snack that will keep you fuller, longer.

Wasa whole wheat crackers
Cottage cheese
Dill
Olives
Smoked salmon

Snacking in the New Year

Quick Life Update