My Favorite Healthy Snacks

I’ve mentioned it before – I really love snacks. Lots of little meals > 3 big meals. Here are the snacks I most often eat.

1. Greek yogurt. It’s packed with protein, is rich and creamy, and full of flavor. My favorite brands, by far, are Fage and Chobani.. My absolute favorite is Fage’s Cherry 0%. I don’t typically like cherry-flavored foods, but this is the jam.

I also really like their Blueberry 0%.

Of all of the Chobani flavors, Pineapple 2% is the one I buy the most. Just like their Passion fruit flavor, it’s very tropical.

Surprisingly, I love their Lemon 0%. It’s really refreshing!

2. Luna bars. Let’s be honest, these things are “healthier” candy bars. They’re made with 70% organic ingredients and contain many essential vitamins and nutrients. Iced Oatmeal Raisin is ridiculously good.

I’ve noticed that people either love the Iced Oatmeal Raisin or the S’mores flavor, but not both. Weird, right? My other top flavors are Peanut Honey Pretzel, Chocolate Dipped Coconut, and Blueberry Bliss.

3. Nuts! I prefer almonds and walnuts, but put me in front of a can of cashews or peanuts and I won’t deny them. First and foremost, I like plain ol’ nuts in their natural state. I buy them in bulk from either Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s.

4. Fruit. I love almost all fruit in its natural state. Bananas, blueberries, and strawberries are my favorite. I’ll also never say no to pineapple. Have I ever told you I briefly lived in Hawaii with my mom when I was 3? Yep. Check this out. Someone was eating a lot of pineapple in 1987.

5. Back to the food. In high school, chips were my weakness. Nowadays, I reach for popchips. They’re not baked or fried, but instead air-popped. They have the best flavors and are so crunchy. I have little to no self control around a bag of Barbecue or Salt & Pepper popchips.

Their newest flavor, Sweet Potato, is quite different because it’s sweet, but is absolutely delicious.

Have you guys seen the new tortilla popchips? I’m dying to try them!

6. String cheese. I hadn’t had string cheese in years until very recently when I visited my grandparents. I forgot how convenient of a snack this is. And it’s cheese. Come on. We all love it. These bad boys are only 50 calories a pop (stick?) and, well, they’re fun to play with.

Embrace your inner 10-year-old and buy a bag of these.

7. Cottage cheese + jam. Sorry if you just threw up after reading that. It’s a great combo, I swear! Cottage cheese packs a punch of protein, and if you buy a lower sodium or low-fat kind, is a great post-workout snack. Top it with some jam for extra flavor. Just try it! +

8. Carrots + hummus. Sabra’s Roasted Garlic hummus is the best! +

9. Avocado + toast. It’s one of the most simple, yet delicious, snacks I eat. Just top a piece of toast with a couple avocado slices, drizzle with honey, top with salt & pepper, eat munch away.

10. COOKIES! Of course! Can’t stop, won’t stop. These aren’t healthy, but I could never leave them off my list of favorite snacks. ;)

What’s your favorite snack?

Are you team Fage or Chobani?

Favorite Luna bar flavor?

Winner, Winner, LUNA Fiber Bar Dinner!

I could not resist that title.

Random # generators are overrated. Via gchat, I asked Boding to randomly select the 3 winners.

So, there you have it. Valerie, Meg, and Avery! Girls, please email your shipping information (and which bar flavor you’d like a case of) to christinaorso @ gmail dot com.

Congrats!!

Another SWEET giveaway is coming very soon!

What I’m Loving Wednesday

1. At least once a week, I end up at the Blackbaud help desk. Occasionally it’s for tech support, but the majority of the time, it’s for candy. Let’s be honest. Those boys always have a ton of snacks. When I popped in last week, they were really excited to show me this vintage chair they found in a random closet. How huge is this thing?!

To put it in perspective, it comfortably fit me AND a giant bag of candy.

2. My friend Shana knows I like winking, so she sent me a picture of her breakfast.

Sriracha and egg wink at all the fine gentlemen!

3. After stopping by a pet adoption event, I was thisclose to leaving with a pup. Look at this cutie!! It was love at first sight until the volunteer told me he was part malamute and would end up the same weight as me. Ok, woah. He was really excited to take a walk around the building with me. Really excited.

4. More memes!!

WHEN I’M AT THE GYM AND TRYING TO SCOPE OUT THE HOTTIES:

Pardon the language on the next two, but they were too funny not to share.

WHEN ANOTHER ONE OF MY FRIENDS GETS A BOYFRIEND:

WHEN I MAKE A TYPO ON MY BLOG AND PEOPLE GET THEIR PANTIES IN A TWIST ABOUT IT:

5. This chart is so accurate.

6. Hot damn, you guys are excited about the new LUNA bars. Keep the giveaway entries coming! 6 days left to enter!

What’s your favorite breed of dog?

Do you make faces with your food?

Recipes tomorrow!

Giveaway!! *New* LUNA Fiber Bars

I am so excited you guys. LUNA has come out with a new line of fiber bars! Each bar is a delicious, nutritious, and convenient high fiber snack that is sure to satiate you.

Nutritional benefits:

• 7g of fiber
• 110-120 calories each
• contains the Core 4 vitamins and minerals -- calcium, iron, folic acid and vitamin D
• 70% organic

The new bars come in 3 flavors: Peanut Butter Strawberry, Chocolate Raspberry, and Vanilla Blueberry. LUNA Fiber will be available in stores nationwide in May, or you can purchase them online here.

Don’t even tell me you’re not drooling.

I’m equally excited to be able to share these bars with YOU! I have three boxes to give away to three winners (one box/person).

For a chance to win:

• leave me a comment telling me which flavor you’re most excited to try (mandatory)
• follow me on twitter - @christinaorso (optional)
• tweet about this giveaway and tag me (optional)
• become a fan of my facebook page (optional)

*Leave a separate comment for each entry!*

Giveaway ends Monday, April 30th, at noon EST.

GOOD LUCK!

What I’m Loving Wednesday

1. Remember last summer when my team at work hired an intern? I blogged about him here and here. Well, Sean came back over winter break and he’s been a delight to work with again. We’ve exchanged cookies (my carrot cake cookies for his (mom’s) dark chocolate biscotti)…

…and one day he even made me a mask for when I wasn’t feeling pretty.

Sean: “You’re pretty every day.”

Me: “Pssh, that’s a lie.”

Sean: “I know.”

Boys and their brutal honesty.

2. The weather in Charleston and the views from my 10-miler:

3. There’s a new Luna bar and a new Clif Kid Z Bar!

I just picked up the Z Bar from Trader Joe’s, but haven’t found the Luna bar yet. When I find it,  I’ll probably eat it in the store as soon as I get my fingers on it. And then pay for the wrapper in line.

In case you were curious, my top 3 Luna Bar flavors are: Iced Oatmeal Raisin, Blueberry Bliss, and Chocolate Peppermint Stick.

4. Tweets from Men’s Humor. They are sarcastic and often crude, but hilarious and worth following.

5. I’m going back to NYC!! Yes, I went last March and August, but when my best friend Lucy moved there in September, I was determined to visit her as soon as she settled in. I booked my ticket for President’s Day weekend and I’m so excited to go back. 37 days!

Have you tried the new Luna or Clif Kid Z Bar yet?

Whose twitter feed is your favorite to follow?

Favorite place in NYC? Meet-up anyone?

The Friday Five

1. What I’m Reading:

I picked this book up from the library for two reasons: 1)Ellen is hysterical. 2)I say that all the time. I haven’t started it yet, but I’m sure it’s a gem.

2. What I’m Listening to: NOT CHRISTMAS MUSIC. I can’t get into it this year. I do love “Eyes on Fire” by Blue Foundation:

3. What I’m Watching: Dom Mazzetti on repeat. Can’t stop watching this tool. Here’s the latest video about Christmas.

4. What I’m Eating: Um, did you see my post on Hall’s Chophouse? What else… Mmm, these.

5. What I’m Pinning: Oven fried pickles ! ! ! ! ! !

What are you up to this weekend? So far I have plans to work out & have lunch with Amanda, a Christmas party, a photo shoot, maybe some Trio dancing action… HAVE FUN!