Super Bowl Snacks

Your waistband will thank you for choosing these healthier snack ideas this Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl XLV has finally arrived, the Steelers will face the Packers, and it doesn’t get much bigger than that, we all know that the parties are fun even if you're not a football fan. The menu is richly satisfying yet casual, the emphasis is on ease of preparation and lively tastes, and it is truly one day when everyone, no matter what their age, can hang together- and enjoy game and the highly anticipated commercials and halftime shows. 

It’s estimated that on Super Bowl Sunday, Americans will consume more than double their average daily snack amount; and the average “armchair quarterback” will consume nearly 1,200 calories and 50 grams of fat from snacks alone- not counting meals. To burn that off, you’d have to run for about an hour and 45 minutes!

Super Bowl has become as much a food event as it is a sporting event; in fact Super Bowl Sunday is the second biggest food consumption day of the year- after Thanksgiving of course! If you’re hosting a party or getting together with friends and family we have some great tips on how to have a great time while saving money and of course snacking healthy.

Try and focus on making your snacks at home from scratch, this may take a little more time and effort, but is sure to not only save money, but you benefit from knowing what ingredients have gone into making your snacks and will save you hundreds of calories.

According to Bing.com the top five game day snacks are Buffalo wings, pizza, nachos, chili, and pigs in a blanket. Not exactly the healthiest picks but SupermarketGuru has some suggestions for healthy alternatives to our game day favorites.

Instead of pigs in a blanket, try chicken or turkey sausage cut into two inch pieces, in a whole wheat bun cut into 1 inch pieces- a healthy and yet still delicious version of the indulgent favorite.

Love nachos? Try either using baked chips with guacamole, tomatoes and jalapenos or even use whole wheat pita cut into triangles and warmed in the oven served with hummus. Offer some raw veggies like cucumber, celery, carrots, broccoli and baby tomatoes for dipping as well. To bake your own corn chips, take corn tortillas, cut them into quarters, sprinkle a little salt light drizzle of olive oil and bake until crisp!

Chili usually contains beef, but try using turkey (which is leaner) with black beans, corn and salsa. Or even go for all bean chili, no meat necessary! Love sour cream on top? Opt for a lower fat variety or even try a dollop of plain yogurt.

Buffalo wings do have a delicious zing, but try baking chicken wings instead of frying, with hot sauce dip or even half ranch, half yogurt dip.