Comments on: Small & silent snacking suggestions?

Question: Small & silent snacking suggestions?

dogmom — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:10:44 -0800

What small (snack-sized), quiet (non-crunchy), neat (non-crumb making) and relatively healthy foods can I keep at my desk?

My work has adopted a "if the customer can see you at your desk, you may not eat there" rule. I am not really following this rule, I am just trying not to get caught. I am a grazer, and I find my stomach growling every 2-3 hours. I bought some crunchy granola bars- those 2-to-a-pack kind- and was eating one now and one later. But they are crumbly (messy) and loud (crunchy) and it's pretty obvious I'm sneaking a snack at my desk. When my co-workers sneak a snack, it's usually a quiet plain doughnut or croissant- something they can tear a small bite off of and eat while the rest is in a drawer. I prefer something a little healthier than doughnuts, but all I can come up with that meets the small, quiet, neat & healthy criteria is cheese sticks.

Does anyone else have any ideas?

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:15:48 -0800

Small banana. "Nutrition" shake.

By: bcwinters

bcwinters — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:17:55 -0800

How about something like a Clif Bar, since they're chewy rather than crunchy? Most of those bars don't get crumbly, either—it's easy to break off a piece at a time.

By: Gorgik

Gorgik — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:19:40 -0800

Dates or figs

By: Greg Nog

Greg Nog — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:20:28 -0800

I like edamame -- small, salty enough to let you know you're eating something, high-protein for energy without crashing, and they're both bite-sized and quiet.

By: nitsuj

nitsuj — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:21:42 -0800

You could create your own granola-like bar.

By: needs more cowbell

needs more cowbell — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:22:50 -0800

Cashews (less crunchy than other nuts.)

By: mkultra

mkultra — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:23:44 -0800

Raisins. Roasted seeds.

By: muddgirl

muddgirl — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:24:23 -0800

Turkey jerky. Edamame is a great suggestion - for maximum health benefits, cook it up yourself with no added salt.

By: captaincrouton

captaincrouton — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:25:27 -0800

Banana bread. A pbj sandwich. You can pre-cut them into bitesized bits.

By: pointystick

pointystick — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:25:45 -0800

string cheese
dried fruit

By: Greg Nog

Greg Nog — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:27:39 -0800

cook it up yourself with no added salt.

My modification to this suggestion is cooking it yourself (frozen bags of edamame is just an unbelievable amount cheaper than those little plastic clamshells of cooked edamame they sometimes sell), but using different flavors of salt -- garlic-salt edamame is a savory little treat, it is!

By: Elysum

Elysum — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:28:25 -0800

Nuts?
Unsalted/sugared/spiced, therefore clean for fingers.
Not actually that crunchy sounding.
Full of protein & fullness-feeling.

Alternatively - berries, or non-apple fruits, diced up.

Less crunchy bars.
Like, where I am, I can get these soft, ground oatmeal type bars, which hold together relatively well, and aren't crunchy (they used to have a carrot-cake like & white chocolate variety... absurdly delicious!). Can you get something similar?
Then, you should be able to break small bite sized pieces off.

By: ginagina

ginagina — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:30:01 -0800

I'm eating grape tomatoes right now at my desk. Hope no one notices!

By: machine

machine — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:38:01 -0800

Dried apricots or other dried fruit & almonds. Bring a container of blueberries or other berries.

By: contraption

contraption — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:41:02 -0800

Edamame is great as a snack unto itself, but should also not be overlooked as a refrigerant. A small plastic container of frozen, precooked edamame in an insulated bag will slowly thaw and help to keep other things (cheese sticks, crudite, dinner leftovers, etc) nicely chilled through the morning.

By: ericb

ericb — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:45:02 -0800

"LÄRABAR is a delicious blend of unsweetened fruits, nuts and spices - energy in its purest form. Made from 100% whole food, each flavor contains no more than six ingredients....Uncooked and Unprocessed."

I get mine at Whole Foods.

By: elendil71

elendil71 — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:45:12 -0800

When I'm at work, I munch on cherry tomatoes, nuts (cashews, peanuts etc), presliced fruit (bananas, oranges, peaches, pears etc with a sprinkle of coconut flakes) from a sandwich sized container. Works great to get by the afternoon malaise. You could also make some hummus (or buy it) and put that in the aforementioned sandwich container with some sliced pita bread for a silent snack.

By: Aquaman

Aquaman — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:49:56 -0800

Grapes, cherry tomatoes and cubes of cheese, maybe some nuts. You can go all day on just this.

By: prunes

prunes — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 12:59:11 -0800

I eat two bananas and two apples at my desk each day. Maybe you could run to the break room to wolf something down quickly if eating at your desk is forbidden.

By: Mach5

Mach5 — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:00:13 -0800

as someone who just polished off a 1lb. bag of almonds and my desk (not at once), im gonna say: almonds. yum

By: Baethan

Baethan — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:12:39 -0800

A bag of almonds and your desk? Must've been hungry...

I absolutely love frozen grapes. They last for a while in your mouth and they're clean, so no worrying about crumbs. Also nthing edamame.

By: CruiseSavvy

CruiseSavvy — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:25:14 -0800

Walnuts. Not crunchy, and very, very good for you. I also like the fact that they're OK tasting, but not (IMHO) particularly delicious. As a result I'll eat them when I'm hungry, but not recreationally.

Milk, or tea/coffee with lots of milk, is also good. Filling, and usually OK in no-food environments.

By: Rosie M. Banks

Rosie M. Banks — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:28:13 -0800

Dried fruit (especially apricots, yum) is my go-to snack. It's non-crunchy, nutritious, and doesn't need refrigerating. It also satisfies my sweet tooth in a healthy way. My local Trader Joe's carries a huge selection of dried fruits (apricots, mangoes, apples, mmm good).

By: curagea

curagea — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:29:37 -0800

Grapes, raisins, edamame, fruit 'n' nut bar (the soft bread-like kind, not crunchy), granola cereal, shelled peanuts, dried cranberries, and on and on...

By: fantine

fantine — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:30:11 -0800

Almonds are great. When I was at work this summer, I just dolled out a serving size (24 almonds, to be exact) into a little dish and kept it nearby in case I got hungry before lunch. Because almonds are magical and delicious, two or three can really tide you over. Really.

I also second the edamame suggestions.

By: Bakuun

Bakuun — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 13:30:18 -0800

Definitely go with fruit. I make a yummy fruit salad in a plastic container, and always get hungry for it 3 hours after breakfast. Bring a plastic fork, and sneak the cut/sliced/chopped portions in whenever your stomach growls. It's clean, good for you, and easy to eat if you can hide or disguise the container.

By: leahwrenn

leahwrenn — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:10:11 -0800

Frozen peas are good, too, if you have a way to keep them frozen.

By: Night_owl

Night_owl — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:14:51 -0800

Make a trail mix. Cashews, peanuts, dried fruits (I like dried cranberries and apricots), and you can add whatever sounds good to you. The mix of protein and natural sugars will keep you going, it's good for grazing since you only grab what you need, and it doesn't need any special storage (just an airtight container). Almonds or pumpkin seeds (yum!) work in this as well, trail mixes are pretty flexible.
Cheese sticks are a fabulous idea, as is jerky as long as you make/buy it in small enough bits.
Grapes will work as long as they are the seedless kind. I would stay away from most berries though due to their ability to squirt juice and cause stains.
You might consider making your own granola. It can be crunchy or chewy, and you can control the size of the pieces so they're small and bite-sized and won't make a mess.

Keep in mind with whatever you choose that you also don't want it to have a distinctive aroma, or you'll get caught!

By: gladly

gladly — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:24:10 -0800

Nature Valley makes chewy granola bars (they call it Chewy Trail Mix). I love the Fruit and Nut ones (dried raisins, craisins, almonds and peanuts, plus miscellaneous granola stuff). They're not at all crunchy: they're sticky so there's no crumbs. Two drawbacks to them: the foil wrapper makes a crumpling sound that could give away your covert snacking though and I hate sticky residue on my hands so I always bite from the bar, keeping it inside the wrapper, rather than tear bits of it off.

Loose trail mix could work better, keeping a bag of it in your drawer and grabbing a discreet handful every so often.

By: dogmom

dogmom — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:27:13 -0800

Duh. I didn't think of the obvious fruit and/or nuts. Obviously my inability to snack is affecting my brain.

Thanks so much for your suggestions!

By: govtdrone

govtdrone — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:29:19 -0800

I love SoyJoy Bars--they are quiet and good for you.

By: BrotherCaine

BrotherCaine — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 14:49:15 -0800

Bite sized mini-quiches.

By: arianell

arianell — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 15:44:26 -0800

I'm another huge fan of Larabar. Try the Peanut Butter Cookie flavor... it's made entirely of dates and crushed peanuts, but it tastes like honest-to-god peanut butter cookie dough.

By: fings

fings — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:15:20 -0800

One word of warning about dried apricots: among most people I know, if you eat a bunch, they make you fart, which might make them less office-friendly.

By: grapefruitmoon

grapefruitmoon — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 18:21:38 -0800

One word of warning about dried apricots: among most people I know, if you eat a bunch, they make you fart, which might make them less office-friendly.

Oh yeah, they'll clean out your digestive system right quick. You might be surprised what a drastic and quick effect they'll have. Don't start with a whole box, limit yourself to a small portion or you'll have a "stink bomb in the bathroom" problem.

I'm a big fan of bananas for snacks - they're incredibly filling.

By: cheerwine

cheerwine — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 18:48:20 -0800

I like The Laughing Cow mini Babybel cheeses. They're silent and the only mess that they make is the wax casing that you'll have to throw away.

By: Manhasset

Manhasset — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 19:25:11 -0800

Make some of these.

Instead of using pineapple, I use dried fruit (strawberries and/or cherries and/or raspberries). 2 cups worth of dried fruit (any mixture) and 1 3/4 cups almonds. Forget the coconut. 2 cups of dates.

By: 5_13_23_42_69_666

5_13_23_42_69_666 — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 23:29:02 -0800

nuts, dried fruit, trail mix or granola deviously kept in a paper coffee cup with a lid. you just tip the food into your mouth and no-one will know that you're snacking!

By: valadil

valadil — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 07:57:30 -0800

Have you considered gum? It usually satisfies my grazing needs.

If not, how about dried fruit? I'm partial to mango.

By: Tubes

Tubes — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:18:46 -0800

Have you considered gum?

Gum is not a snack. Gum is a revolting pacifier for large infants.

One word of warning about dried apricots: among most people I know, if you eat a bunch, they make you fart, which might make them less office-friendly.

Bless you for looking for quiet snacks. Meanwhile, I'm off to stock up on tons of dried apricots, for revenge against my pathologically chip-crunching, pretzel-gnashing, cracker-mashing, gum-smacking colleagues.

Silent but deadly, awwww yeah.

By: jaden

jaden — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:30:17 -0800

Interesting. I love dried apricots, but have not noticed an abundance of stinky stealth bombs after eating them. Tubes, please report back on how it goes :)

As for snack ideas, Red vines and pretzels were popular at one company I worked at. The pretzels weren't all that loud or crunchy from what I remember. The honey mustard flavored ones had an especially nice flavor too.

By: klarck

klarck — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 06:33:26 -0800

I cut salted cashews with raw almonds for just the right amount of salty goodness. Seconding 5_13_23_42_69_666's stealth paper - or in my case, styrofoam - cup idea. For some reason, you can carry anything that looks like a coffee cup almost anywhere.