Disclaimer: I received a free product for my post! These views are my own and were not at all influenced by the party who gave me this opportunity..
Sugary and processed snacks are a huge temptation to me. I have to snack all the time, so I often find myself grabbing fruit snacks, candy bars, or chips. When I received the Power Snacks cookbook and read on the back, “Tired of reaching for a chocolate bar or a packet of potato chips to fend off the cravings?”, I knew this was something I’d need.
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This book retails at $12.99 and is hardcover with a protector on it. Take a peek inside below!
What I Love
Since I snack constantly, it’s important that I eat more healthy snacks. I love all the options in this cookbook–there are some for beginners and some for those who are more familiar with healthy cooking. I tried the Chewy Apricot & Almond Energy Bars, Kale Chips, and Black Bean Brownies.
Many of the recipes in this book are gluten free, which is perfect because I am trying to cut back on gluten. Each recipe gives nutritional data (calories, fat, saturated fat, carbs, sugars, salt, fiber, protein), so if you are watching your diet you know which are the best to try.
I love that this cookbook, just like the others I’ve tried out, has a lot of great tips and information. There are little blurbs on many of the recipes, such as the Kale Chips recipe, that give you tips or health info about the recipe. I found the introductions pages helpful because it talks more about healthy snacking and what to expect from the book. There are even pages in between that talk about the different benefits of various snack foods.
I really fell in love with the Kale Chips recipe in this book–it is pretty simple and the flavors go so well together. I was expecting it to taste boring or “too healthy”, but it was just perfect and I plan to make it a regular snack food. I was not able to get the kale leaves as crispy as I’d hoped and expected per the directions, but each oven is different so I will cook it just a tad longer next time.
The Black Bean Brownies were a little bit intense to make since it required a big food processor (I only have a small one and did not realize right away that it wouldn’t fit), but it was worth it. They are rich, moist, and delicious. I can tell there is a little aftertaste of black beans, but my boys can’t even tell the difference from regular brownies, besides them tasting better.
What I’m Not Huge On
One of the things that I struggle with in this book is that a lot of the ingredients are costly and difficult to find. To get the ingredients we needed for the apricot bars and brownies, we needed to drive about an hour out to our Whole Foods store. I don’t mind doing this occasionally, but I’ll have to plan more before I make the recipes.
I also was not fond of the apricot bars recipe. It tasted alright, but I had a difficult time getting it to cook as instructed. The sugar that was supposed to melt would not the way the instructions said, then the bars were more of a granola crumble snack.
Overall, if you are looking to cut back on unhealthy snacks, this is a great recipe book. Start with the simpler recipes then work your way to the more advanced ones. I plan to try the Smoky Paprika Roasted Chickpeas sometime soon.
You can purchase this book on Amazon.com (affiliate link.)
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