Homemade Low-Fat Trail Mix

on hiking image by Dumitrescu Ciprian from Fotolia.com

Trail mix is a delicious snack, and it's perfect for tossing in your backpack to re-energize during a long hike. The sweet and salty mixture combined with the different textures makes it an exceptional treat, but unfortunately the nuts and chocolate bits also make it loaded with fat. That can be good if you're trying to load up on energy for a difficult hike or camping trip but not if you are trying to watch your weight.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

3 plastic containers with lids or bags that seal tightly
3 cups whole-grain toasted oat cereal, round-shaped
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1 1/4 cup raisins
1 cup low-fat granola
1/4 cup dried banana chips, crumbled
5 tbsp. roasted almonds
8 cups popcorn
1 cup pretzel sticks
1/2 cup dried apricots, diced
1/4 cup reduced-fat chocolate chips

Step 1

Combine 2 cups whole-grain toasted oat cereal, 1/4 cup dried cranberries, 1/4 cup raisins, 1/4 cup crumbled banana chips and 1 tbsp. roasted almonds in a plastic container with a lid or in a bag to make low-fat monkey trail mix.

Step 2

Combine 8 cups of popcorn, 1 cup whole-grain toasted oat cereal, 1 cup pretzel sticks and 1/2 cup raisins in a plastic container with a lid or in a bag that seals tightly to make low-fat movie trail mix.

Step 3

Combine 1 cup low-fat granola, 1/2 cup raisins, 1/2 cup diced dried apricots, 4 tbsp. roasted almonds and 1/4 cup reduced-fat chocolate chips in a plastic container or bag to make low-fat chocolate lover's trail mix.

Step 4

Place the lid on each container or seal the bags.

Step 5

Shake each container or bag well to mix.

Tips & Warnings

Although the ingredients in these recipes are low-fat, portion control is important. Place 1-cup servings in individual baggies in your backpack instead of storing the entire batch in one container for your trip so that you aren't tempted to eat the entire batch at once.

Resources

Trails: Organic Bananas

Article Written By Elizabeth Grace

Based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Elizabeth Grace is a freelance writer. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in public relations from Pepperdine University, and has 15 years of experience developing marketing campaigns for universities and multinational corporations.

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