The modern rhythm of life does not always leave much time for cooking. And sometimes … and does not leave at all! If you “urgently need to go”, only a pre-prepared snack will save you – a “snack”. What to take with you on the road, to work, on a trip? After all, it is not at all necessary that you will then have access to fresh, vegetarian or vegan food. Yes, even prepared with love, in a blessed state of mind! The solution is simple – take something with you. And what?! To this question, we have prepared a number of non-standard (not like “protein bar…”) answers! Fast, vegetarian, and healthy: “Apple sandwiches with nut butter.” Remove the core from the apples, cut the apples into rings, arrange in pairs, spread both halves with thick nut butter, fold. Everything! You can pack it in a plastic container-box and take it with you. Unlike ordinary sandwiches, apple sandwiches will not crumble and will not crumble, and how much more useful! If the snack is prepared for a child, you can still individually wrap each “sandwich” in plastic wrap (so as not to be smeared with nut butter). Granola with yogurt. “Charge” one plastic container with ready-made granola (or take ready-made muesli that does not need to be boiled) and dried fruits – leaving half empty! – and put a teaspoon there (so it will remain clean). Pour the second smaller container with yogurt: preferably natural and without sugar. We take with us. When your stomach rumbles, simply combine the ingredients by pouring yoghurt over the granola in a larger container. Oh, just don’t forget to get a spoon out of the granola first!) Cucumber “crackers” with cheese. There are many vegetarians in the US, the idea of healthy and ethical eating is very popular here, and Americans are constantly coming up with new vegan recipes, including “quick” and healthy versions of usually unhealthy dishes. Sometimes it turns into endless fantasies about “vegan burgers” (not always tasty and most often it takes a long time to cook), but recently I spied on the following idea on the US website: replace crackers with … cucumber mugs, and put slices of delicious cheese on top (for example, vegan suluguni)! A worthy replacement for regular crackers spread with processed cheese – that sad combination of white flour and trans fats. And do not break away from such, as well as from ordinary ones.
Apple chips. Probably, many of you have known this “grandmother’s” recipe since childhood: oven-dried apples! They store very well and (if the temperature was minimal and the drying process a little longer) retain their beneficial properties. Then you can eat these “chips” just like that, make compote out of them, crumble them into smoothies, yogurts and ice cream, decorate pastries with them … But you never know what else! 3 tips that will make “grandma’s” recipe for a vegan snack just perfect: 1) remove the cores of apples in advance – picking them out later from dried records will not be fun; 2) before baking, sprinkle chopped apples with cinnamon powder (you can also add a pinch of ground nutmeg to it, and, to taste, very finely ground green cardamom!), and 3) do not overdry, the apples should be like “dried”. As a result, we get a non-perishable, very convenient snack. Even on the road, even to work, even on a plane. A healthy and low-calorie alternative to popcorn. “Homemade Sushi”. Making real sushi, as you probably know, takes time, special ingredients and special rice, a whole bunch of different plates, a rolling mat, a very sharp knife and god knows what else. This is far from “fast food”! But even the Japanese themselves sometimes simplify the recipe – twisting small sandwiches with dried seaweed right in their hands, and seasoning them with various vegetable fillings. And what if… even rice is abolished?! After all, as you know, rice is not very easy to take with you – cold and slightly dried up, it loses all its attractiveness … Perhaps we can do without it! Stock up on ready-made plates of seaweed (sushi-nori) of a small format, the size of a palm: there are salted and plain varieties, with sesame oil and (less often) without. Place the filling in a plastic container for now: it can be cucumbers cut into sticks (like french fries), avocado slices, narrow slices of cheese, hummus (in a separate jar; by the way, hummus is sold in health food stores and ready). Such a snack is much tastier and healthier than some hard-to-digest chocolate bar or “seasoned” crackers with preservatives! By the way, there are even sweet sushi nori for gourmets! In addition to dried or roasted nuts, which is difficult to argue with any other snacks, you can also take with you dehydrated slices of fruits (and vegetables!) – fruit and vegetable chips, which are now sold in many supermarkets and vegetarian health food stores. Such “chips” are usually not cheap, but they are very tasty, and they are extremely convenient to take with you. You can eat them so simply, and drinking smoothies or juice, tea, mineral water. Every year, the assortment of such healthy vegan chips in domestic stores is growing. A fun solution to the snack problem – “ants crawl on a log”: Spread celery pods cut into short sticks with peanut butter, sprinkle with raisins on top. Such funny food is especially good for kids. Guacamole with grain bread. If you need to “recharge” with useful calories in an adult way – for example, after a workout at the gym or yoga, then this is a fail-safe option: guacamole + grain bread (or crispbread). With bread, it seems, everything is clear – you just need to take it with you, or find out where you can buy fresh whole grain bread, bread, chips, and bran snacks. And yet, instead of bread, you can still use natural Mexican corn tortillas (which are without preservatives, just with salt). But with guacamole, in fact, everything is also simple: in advance at home, it is prepared in 5 minutes. Take 1 avocado (remove the pit), a handful of chopped onion, 1 clove of garlic (there will be a smell later … so it’s to your taste), a handful of parsley or cilantro, and squeeze the juice of 1 lime there – mix everything into a paste in a blender and pack in a sealed plastic container. Satisfying, useful, fast! What if you want something special for dessert? Try to take with you on the road … frozen seedless grapes in a small thermos. They can be eaten directly as a dessert, or poured into water, juice. Very tasty! Another plus is that, unlike, for example, frozen cherries, currants, strawberries or blueberries, frozen grapes do not crumple and do not spread, threatening to stain hands, face, clothes, work papers and everything around! Another dessert option: mix and grind dates (pitted) and dried figs in a blender, make “bars”, sprinkle with coconut flakes, place in a plastic container (you can still additionally cool it all in the freezer for 20 minutes). Fast, nutritious, and incredibly tasty! Attention: this recipe contains a record number of calories, so if you are losing weight, it is not very suitable for you. Or stock up on a bar of raw vegan chocolate, and a bag of soy milk (with a straw) – a supply of energy and a delicious dessert. Finally, freshly squeezed juice is always and everywhere useful. And although fresh juice gradually loses its beneficial properties, even after standing for half a day it is still much tastier and healthier than juice “from a bag” and “juice” from a jar, not to mention all kinds of “nectars” and carbonated drinks! There are many recipes for different juices and smoothies … I suggest this one, found on one of the smart Western vegan sites: 1 beetroot, 3 carrots, 1 juicy apple, 1 lime, pinky-sized piece of ginger (or to taste), 2.5 cups of water, ice ( to taste) – mix in a blender, pour into a sports glass-mixer or a travel thermos, take it with you … A charge of vitamins, taste and good mood is guaranteed!