7 Healthy (And Amazingly Yum) Snacks You Should Treat Yourself To This Diwali

Diwali is right around the corner and I'm sniffing at the delicious aromas wafting out of my kitchen. This an entire week of gorging on mouthwatering savoury snacks and tons of mithaai. The names and scents pile up on each other to create a heady combination, and the glistening syrups and luxurious silver foil gawking through the traditional red and yellow boxes make me feel like royalty.

But, I agree, there are some moments where I crave something light, healthy, and equally delicious. So, I ended up curating a list of snacks that are nutritious, super flavourful, and can be made in a jiffy! These are great replacements for mithaai and can be served during parties or when you have the fam over.


1) Sugar-Free Dry Fruits Laddoo  

Are you a person who finds regular laddoos too sweet for your taste buds and can't have more than one? Well, I have the perfect fix for you! 
Coarsely blend about a cup of seedless dates. Next, chop up your favourite dry fruits and nuts (raisins, apricots, figs, almonds, cashews, walnuts, pistachios) and sauté them in some ghee till they turn golden-brown. Add in the blended dates and mash them in the dry fruits and nuts to make a uniform mixture. You can also add elaichi powder or nutmeg. Once is mixture is cooled down, shape it into balls.

2) Chia Pudding 

[Photo by Marc Mintel on Unsplash]

This is literally the easiest and the most refreshing dessert you can make. And the best part? You can eat it for breakfast, as an evening snack, or a late night dessert!
You'll need 1/4 cup milk of your choice, 1 tbsp chia seeds, honey. Take a bowl and put in the milk, chia seeds, and honey. Stir until everything is mixed well and let it rest until the chia seeds become plump, this should ideally take up to 5 minutes. Chill in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours and voila! Top with your favourite fruits, dry fruits, chocolate chips, nuts, coconut flakes...the sky is the limit!


3) Oven-Roasted Herby Potato Wedges


[Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash]

Slice up a few potatoes and keep them in cold water for about about 20 minutes, this ensures they have a crispy exterior and fluffy interior when roasted! Pat the slices dry and toss them with a glug of cooking oil, salt, pepper, and some gorgeous herbs like oregano, thyme, and basil (oregano sachets from the pizza place work super well too 😋). Lay them out on a baking tray and roast in the oven for 25-30 mins at 200℃ or until they're browned up and can easily be cut with a knife. These will hands down be the best potatoes you've ever eaten, trust me.


4) Apple Kheer 

Ingredients - 1 Apple, 3 cups milk, 1/4 cup condensed milk, 1 tsp ghee, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp kesar, and 2 tbsp chopped dry fruits

Method -

• Peel the apple, grate it, and sauté it with ghee until all the water has evaporated and it's cooked well.
• In another kadhaai, heat up the milk and kesar to a boil. Add in the condensed milk, mix well, and boil ~10 minutes until the mixture thickens.
• Add the nutmeg and give it a good mix.
• Let both the apple and the milk mixture cool down to room temperature. This is crucial to avoid curdling.
• Add the cooked apple to the milk mixture and let it cool in the fridge for half an hour. 
• Garnish with chopped dry fruits and nuts. Serve!


5) No-Effort Granola Bar

[Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash]

Roast 1.5 cups of oats in pan until they're slightly brown and let them cool down to room temperature. Pulse a cup of seedless dates until they have a mushy consistency. Add the oats, pulsed dates, and your favourite nuts (chopped!) in a large mixing bowl. Warm up 1/4 cup honey and 1/4 cup peanut butter in a pan and add this liquid gold-like mixture to the oats, dates, and nuts. Give everything a good mix and flatten out the mixture on a baking tray or plate, essentially a transferable flat surface. Chuck this in the fridge for 20 mins or so and chop into even-sized bars! And you're done! Eat this for breakfast, with milk, or when you have 5 PM hunger pangs. 


6) Dark Chocolate-Cranberry Overnight Oats


[Photo by Ella Olsson on Unsplash]

It's Diwali week and we definitely need to up our breakfast game! These overnight oats feel like an indulgent dessert, are filling, and will be the perfect way to start your day. 
Heat up a cup of milk on the stove and add half a cup of oats to it. Let this mixture thicken up a little. Now, add 2 tbsps unsweetened cocoa powder and some honey or maple syrup to it. Mix well and let it cook for a bit. Chop up dried cranberries (you can replace these with dates or raisins) and add to the oats mixture. Transfer to bowl or mason jar and top with dark chocolate shavings and chopped nuts. Chill in the fridge overnight. Top with your favourite fruits right before serving. Well, at least you'll wake up on time for this! 😉


7) Ragi Halwa

If you need some Indian mithaai in your system, we got you! This Ragi Halwa is nutritious and very scrumptious. Add 1 tbsp ghee to a kadhaai and add 1/2 cup ragi flour. Sauté this for about 5-6 minutes until the mixture becomes aromatic. Add 1.5 cups of water and continuously whisk the mixture for 3-4 minutes on a medium flame. Add sugar/honey/chopped dates or date syrup/sugar substitute, and a pinch of nutmeg and elaichi powder. Serve hot!

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