20 High-Protein Snack Ideas
Healthy snacking can and should be part of a balanced diet.
The key though, is to choose the right foods, in the right amounts.
When planned ahead healthy snacking can help:
- Provide fuel for your day and workouts
- Ensure you're getting the right amount of nutrients
- Prevent overeating at meals
Snacking as we know can easily turn into overeating and unhealthy eating.
Typically snacks are those foods that are most convenient to grab. You know the ones, I am talking about. They are the ones you see first at the gas station or when you're in-line to pay at the grocery store and include things like chips, candy, and desserts.
When it comes to healthy snacking and ensuring that it aids in your efforts to improve your health we want to make sure:
1. All of your healthy snacks contain a protein source
When creating your healthy snack, we want to start with protein. Why protein?
Consuming protein with each snack:
- Keeps you feeling more full between meals (prevents overeating)
- Boosts your metabolism and helps burn fat
- Improves strength and workout performance
- Boosts your immune system
- Prevents you from breaking down your own muscle
Great protein sources include foods like Greek yogurt, Chicken, eggs and egg whites, turkey, beef jerky, cottage cheese, chickpeas, lentils, scallops, shrimp, black beans, tofu, and protein powder (whey or plant based) -- add to smoothies, yogurt, and oatmeal.
Your healthy snack should contain 1 palm-sized
2. Your snack also and the right amount of other nutrients
Think of your healthy snacks as a smaller version of your balanced meals.
Once we have our protein source, we want to make sure it contains at least 1 other macronutrient (carbs and/or healthy fats).
option of a small cupped hand sized carbohydrate source (fruit, vegetables, quinoa, rice, potato, etc.), or/and a thumb sized amount of fat (peanut butter, butter, oil, avocado, etc.)
Aim to eat 1-2 healthy snacks per day in between your meals to ensure you're getting the right nutrients but not overeating.
3. They are the size
One of the best ways to ensure your healthy snacks stay healthy to is prepare them in advance.
This will also keep you on track and away from stress or boredom snacking.
To get you started, we created an awesome list of healthy, high-protein snacks.
Quick note on portion sizes: As you will notice in the menu's below, we make portion sizes easy by measuring them against the size of your palm (protein sources), the size of your fist (vegetable sources), the size of your small cupped hand (carbohydrate sources), and the size of your thumb (fat sources).
Let's get into it!
1| Apple Pie Energy Bites
Ingredients:
- 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbls ground flaxseed
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbl chopped hazelnuts
- 1 tbl chopped walnuts
- ½ tsp allspice
- ½ cup almond butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbls honey
- ¼ cup unsweetened, dried cranberries
- 1 cup grated granny smith apple tossed with 1 teaspoon lemon juice
Directions: Stir together oats, cinnamon, flaxseed, salt, hazelnuts, walnuts, and allspice. Stir almond butter, honey , and vanilla extract together. Mix with oat mixture until fully combined. Stir apples and dried cranberries with oat and nut butter mixture until fully combined. Using your hands or a tablespoon, form balls with the oat and apple mixture. Store the energy bites in your fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
2| Healthy Deviled Eggs
Ingredients:
- 2-3 hard boiled eggs (peeled and cut in half)
- 1-2 thumb size amounts of hummus
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions: Take out egg yolks and mix with hummus. Add yolk and hummus mixture back into eggs
3| On-The-Go Protein Snack (great for travel)
Pick 1-2:
- Protein Bars: (Aim for less than 30 grams of carbohydrate and greater than 10 grams of protein)
Examples: Quest Bars One Bar, Think Thin Bars, RX Bar, Nugo Protein Bars, etc. - Beef jerky
- String cheese
- Greek Yogurt
- Mix nuts and cheese
- Raw vegetables and hummus
- Apple and nut butter
- String cheese
4| Protein Yogurt Parfait
Directions:
- Pick 1 Greek Yogurt (1 small cupped-hand amount): Plain or vanilla
- Pick 1 Protein Powder (.5 scoop): Whey, plant based, or collagen
- Pick 1 Fruit (1 small cupped-hand amount): blueberries, strawberries, pineapple, banana, raspberries
Directions: Mix yogurt, protein powder, and fruit and enjoy!
5| Roasted Chickpeas
Ingredients:
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas
- 1 tbls olive oil
- Pinch of salt
- Cayenne pepper (or season of choice)
Directions: Preheat oven to 450°F. Toss chickpeas with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Then sprinkle with cayenne pepper to taste. Roast on a lightly greased sheet pan for 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool, then transfer to a zipper-lock bag or small container.
6| Mexican Cottage Cheese
Ingredients:
- .5-1 cup (.5-1 fist size amount) cottage cheese
- 1 tbsp (1 thumb sized amount) guacamole
- 2 tbsp (2 thumb sized amount) pico de gallo salsa
- Salt and pepper
Directions: Mix and enjoy
7| Cucumber Nachos
Ingredients:
- .5 cucumber (peeled and cut into slices)
- 1-2 tbsp hummus
- Salt and pepper
Directions: cover plate with cucumber slices. Spread hummus on each slice evenly. Salt and pepper to taste.
8| Ants On A Log
Ingredients:
- 1 Celery Stalk
- 1-2 tbsp (1-2 thumb size amount) Peanut Butter
- .25 cup Craisins or Raisins
Directions: Cut celery into even pieces. Spread peanut butter in the troths. Top with equally spaced raisins or raisins.
9| Turkey Avocado Rice Cake
Ingredients:
- 1 rice cake
- 1-2 tbsp (1-2 thumb sized amount) avocado
- 1-2 palm size slices of turkey
- 2 tomato slices
- Salt a pepper
Directions: spread avocado on rice cake, top with tomato, and sprinkle on seasoning.
10| Tropical Trail Mix
Ingredients:
- Almonds
- Macadamia nuts
- Shredded coconut
- Dried mango
- 70%+ dark chocolate pieces
Directions: Mix and enjoy a 1/4 cup.
11| Healthy Buffalo Chicken Dip
Ingredients:
- 1-2 palm sized amount of chicken breast
- 1 palm sized amount of plain greek yogurt
- Buffalo sauce
Directions: Bake or grill chicken until cooked and shred into bite size chunks. Mix chicken, yogurt and as much buffalo sauce as you need. Eat with raw veggies like celery or rice crackers.
12| Rice Cake Heaven
Ingredients:
- 1-2 rice cakes
- 1-2 thumb size amount of nut butter
- 1 small cupped hand amount of sliced banana
- Cinnamon
Directions: Spread nut butter on rice cake and add banana. Sprinkle on cinnamon.
13| Turkey Rollups
Ingredients:
- 1-2 palm sized amount of deli turkey
- 1-2 thumb sized amount of provolone cheese
- 1 thumb sized amount of mustard or mayo
- 2 leaves of lettuce
- 2 tomatoes
Directions: Roll all ingredients together into 2 rollups
14| Protein Oats
Ingredients:
- 1-2 small cupped-hand sized quick oats
- 1/3 cup almond milk
- 1 thumb size amount of peanut butter
- 1 small cupped-hand sized amount of blueberries
- .5 scoop vanilla protein powder (whey or plant based protein powder)
Directions: Mix ingredients and store in the refrigerator.
15| Rice Cake Protein Sandwich
Ingredients:
- 1-2 Rice Cakes
- 1-2 Palm Sized Amount of Turkey
- 1 Thumb Sized Amount of Hummus
- Lettuce and Tomato
Directions: Spread hummus on rice cake and add ingredients.
Protein Smoothies
Note: If you haven't made protein smoothies a part of your diet yet, you're in for a real treat! They are delicious and work great for a quick, easy, and healthy snack.
They are packed full of immune system boosting vitamins and minerals and provide great fuel for your day and workouts.
The most important aspect of your smoothie is that it's a super easy way to consume more protein.
16| Chocolate Peanut Butter Blast Smoothie
Ingredients:
- 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
- 1 banana
- 1 thumb sized amount of peanut butter
- 1 thumb sized amount cocoa powder
- .75-1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- Handful of baby spinach (you won't taste it)
- Ice if needed to thicken shake
Directions: Blend and enjoy
17| Blueberry Muffin Smoothie
Ingredients:
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
- 1-2 small cupped hand sized amount of frozen blueberries
- Handful of baby spinach
- 1-2 thumb sized amount of peanut butter
- 1-2 dashes of cinnamon
- .75-1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- Ice if needed to thicken shake
Directions: Blend and enjoy
18| Tropical Vacation Smoothie
Ingredients:
- 1 scoop vanilla or coconut protein powder
- 1 small cupped hand sized amount of mango (preferably frozen)
- 1 small cupped hand sized amount of pineapple (preferably frozen)
- Handful baby spinach
- 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt
- .75-1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
- Ice if needed to thicken shake
Directions: Blend and enjoy
19| Chocolate Covered Cherry
Ingredients:
- 1 scoop vanilla or chocolate protein powder
- 1-2 small cupped hand sized amount of frozen dark cherries
- 1 handful of baby spinach
- 1 thumb sized amount of cocoa powder
- 1/3 c full-fat coconut milk
- 2/3 c almond milk
Directions: Blend and enjoy
20| Build Your Own Protein Smoothie
Ingredients
Pick 1 Protein: 1 scoop chocolate or vanilla protein powder
Pick 1 Fruit: 1 small cupped hand sized amount of frozen strawberries, cherries, blueberries, raspberries, bananas, pineapple, mango, etc.
Pick 1 Veggie: 1 handful spinach or kale
Pick 1 Fat: 1 thumb sized amount of peanut butter, almond butter, unsweetened shredded coconut
Pick 1 Liquid: .75-1 cup unsweetened almond, cashew, or oat milk
Directions: Blend and enjoy