The Quest For Snacks And Busy-Day-Food Premieres

Chef Jamie Oliver changed the way I think about food, teaching me that preparing meals with real, unprocessed food need not take lots of time. As a result, I cook dinner nearly every night of the week. And Jamie is right: With planning, a main course with some sides only takes about 30 minutes to make ready to eat.

On the other hand, breakfast and lunch are often eaten on the run, but here Jamie Oliver has influenced me also to select better snacks and quick meals. Snacks that are low in sugar and empty calories, yet high in protein and a few nutrients. A high protein snack stops that galling hunger and sustains you until your next meal. 

Here are high protein/low sugar meal replacement snacks I grab:

1) Premier Protein Shakes (see above) -  Contain 30 grams of protein (about what you should get in a meal). Unlike many protein drinks, they don't taste chalky or artificial, likely due to milk as one of their ingredients. One shake fills me up and stabilizes my blood sugar for 4 - 5 hours. That's the clincher: It must kill the hunger when I cannot stop for lunch. At 160 calories, it is low in sugar and calories. For these, Walmart and Amazon offer the best prices.

2) Quest Bars - Some protein bars are inedible. Don't buy those! At 20 grams of protein, these taste good. They are gluten-free (should it matter) and have 14 grams of fiber to fill you up. The fiber is easy to digest. At about 180 calories per bar, some of the flavors are better then others. My favorites have little chunks of things in them: Double Chocolate Chunk; Cookies & Cream (Think Oreos); White Chocolate Raspberry; and Coconut Cashew. I eat one of these with a cup of coffee in the morning when I desire a sweet breakfast, but don't have time to make pancakes ... and shouldn't eat cookies or pastry! Also, when I'm not hungry, I can still manage to eat one so as not to skip breakfast. GNC runs a great promotion: Buy 5 Quest bars, get one free.

3) Premier Protein Bars - Not as tasty of the Quest Bars, but still good and satisfying. Having a rice crispy crunch, the Premier bars bump the protein back up to 30 grams at 280 calories per bar, which is still low. Again, turn to Walmart and Amazon for the lowest prices.

The 3 meal replacement items are high in protein but low in sugar and calories. The Premier Protein shakes and Quest bars are about $2 each, while the Premier Protein bars run about $1.25 each.

They are not the cheapest, but a good value for a high amount of protein and pleasant taste. Stock up at lower prices, so you can throw one in your purse, or gym bag.


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Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution    
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