20 Highly-Rated Fall Snacks
Our readers love these snacks so much that they’ve earned four and five-star reviews – and we think you will too! These snacks provide plenty of fall-inspired flavor, thanks to seasonal ingredients like apples, pumpkin, sweet potatoes and butternut squash. You’ll want to try highly-rated options like our Apple & Peanut Butter Energy Balls or Butternut Squash Queso Fundido for a delicious snack perfect for the changing season.
Apple & Peanut Butter Energy Balls
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Christine Keely
These energy balls marry two of fall’s best flavors: apples and pumpkin pie spice. You can substitute the applesauce with apple butter for a stronger apple flavor. Don’t confuse dried apples with apple chips! Apple chips have a crisp texture that will make the energy balls too crunchy. If your apple mixture is too sticky and hard to roll, lightly grease your hands with cooking spray or simply refrigerate the mixture for 15 minutes before rolling.
Pumpkin-Oatmeal Muffins
These healthy pumpkin-oatmeal muffins will get you in the mood for fall. Sprinkling the muffins with pecans adds a nutty crunch to every bite. Serve them for breakfast or as a grab-and-go snack.
Butternut Squash Queso Fundido
This cheesy dip recipe is lightened up by subbing mashed butternut squash for some of the melted cheese. We also loaded it with chili-spiced caramelized onions. Serve this healthy makeover with tortilla chips or sliced jicama for dipping.
Roasted Spaghetti Squash Seeds
Alexandra Shytsman
When you prepare spaghetti squash, don't throw away the seeds! You can turn them into a crunchy, healthy snack to enjoy on their own or sprinkled over a salad.
Banana-Oat Muffins
Whip up a batch of these diabetic-friendly Banana-Oat Muffins for a quick and easy snack or add them to complete a balanced breakfast. These muffins can be eaten over several days or frozen and enjoyed for up to a month.
Greek Salad Nachos
This vegetarian nacho recipe is a fun combination of two favorites--nachos and Greek salad. It uses whole-grain pita chips instead of the tortilla chips used in traditional nacho recipes, and it's loaded with the classic fresh vegetables in Greek salad as well as creamy hummus and salty feta cheese. And it doesn't even need the oven! Easily doubled, this makes a great appetizer or light dinner.
Cinnamon-Ginger Spiced Pear Muffins
These perfectly spiced muffins pair the delicate flavors of pears, ginger and cinnamon for a diabetic-friendly bite.
Cauliflower Nachos
Indulge your nacho cravings with this healthy vegetarian nacho recipe that's loaded with vegetables (thanks in part to roasted cauliflower standing in for chips) and protein-packed beans, and has a lot more fiber than traditional nachos. These baked cauliflower nachos, piled with guacamole, melty cheese, fresh pico de gallo and avocado, are great as an appetizer or could be eaten as a light dinner.
No-Bake Peanut Butter Cookies
We gave no-bake cookies a healthy makeover, bumping up the peanut butter and cutting back on added sugar and butter. The result is a chewy, peanut buttery, oat-packed delicious cookie. It's easy to whip up a batch of these—only a few simple ingredients are needed to make these chewy peanut butter cookies and there's no baking required.
Sweet Potato Skins with Guacamole
Top crispy sweet potato skins with guacamole for a healthy take on classic potato skins in this easy crowd-pleasing recipe.
Oatmeal-Coconut Cookies with Cranberries & White Chocolate
Our classic oatmeal cookie recipe gets a flavor twist with coconut, white chocolate chips (which have a more delicate flavor than milk or dark chocolate) and tart dried cranberries. The result is a chewy, sweet treat that's sure to leave you coming back for more.
Spiced Pumpkin Cookies
The deep flavors of molasses, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and nutmeg make these wholesome pumpkin cookies delicious without the addition of butter--and they lend themselves beautifully to the inclusion of whole-wheat flour. They are also the perfect texture for a sandwich cookie--fill them with a slightly sweetened cream cheese frosting.
Beet Chips
Make perfectly crunchy veggie chips at home with this healthy recipe. Use a mandoline to slice the beets extra-thin for the optimum crunch!
One-Bowl Monster Cookies
If you thought it wasn't possible to make healthier monster cookies, think again. These peanut butter, oatmeal, chocolate chip and M&M cookies have less butter and sugar than traditional recipes, but they have just as much flavor and tenderness, thanks to more peanut butter. Even better, they're made in one bowl for easy cleanup.
Lemon-Cranberry Muffins
These lemony cranberry-studded muffins crunch lightly with cornmeal and are topped with a kiss of sugared lemon zest. They're great warm from the oven, but also keep well for a few days and freeze beautifully.
Herb & Cheddar Gougères
Don't let the fancy French name for these cheese puffs mislead you—this is an easy appetizer recipe. They're traditionally made with Gruyère or Comté; we couldn't resist turning to our Vermont roots and using good old Cheddar instead.
Cherry-Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
Skip the granola bar options at the grocery store--they're easy to make at home! You can vary the add-ins to your taste, swapping 2 cups of any combination of small (or chopped) dried fruit, nuts and/or seeds for the chocolate, cherries and coconut in this version. We tested several sticky sweeteners, including maple syrup and honey, but found brown rice syrup held the bars together the best.
Turmeric-Ginger Tahini Dip
Flavored with turmeric, ginger and garlic, this tahini dip recipe is perfect for dipping vegetables or topping your next falafel.
Date-Pistachio Granola Bars
The mix-ins in these homemade granola bars are inspired by ingredients commonly used in Middle Eastern cooking--dates, hazelnuts, pistachios, tahini and cardamom. But feel free to vary the dried fruit, nuts, seeds and/or spices to your preference. We tested several sticky sweeteners, including maple syrup and honey, but found brown rice syrup held the bars together the best.
Roasted Beet Hummus
This vibrant hummus recipe couldn't be easier—just toss a few ingredients in the food processor and whir away! Roasted beets make this healthy dip extra flavorful. Serve with veggie chips, pita chips or crudités.
Read the original article on Eating Well.