When it comes to snacking, we’re definitely guilty of heading down to the nearest convenience store and grabbing the biggest, most unhealthy thing possible. We’re only human, right? So with 100DTS constantly on the back of our minds, we asked the Food finalists of our 2014 Blogster Awards, powered by Microsoft Surface Pro 3 and Intel, to share with us their go-to recipe for the best thing to eat while on-the-go for optimum mobility.
SUBMITTED BY ALANABREAD
When you work amongst food, somehow friends, family and anybody who vaguely understands you have a “blog” optimistically assumes you roll in cruelty free avocados, bathe in almond milk and use cronuts for currency all while floating on a whimsical and relevant cloud of Your City’s Best Fried Chicken™ each and every morning. Little do they know I am but a few cheeky cashews away from #normalsuccess – give me a handful of boring almonds (zip-lock bag not pictured) and an exceptionally quick filter coffee (don’t let the nice Chemex fool you, I have pre-ground beans from a flaccid packet that sits wide open on my kitchen bench for lazy access) in whatever nearby receptacle is available and I run like the wind out the door while hurling nuts at my face. Give me a few years and I’ll be one of those guys gnawing on banana bread on-the-go because it’s “healthy”. VOTE
SUBMITTED BY DAISY AND THE FOX
By nature, I’m a bit of a snacker. Even if I’m not hungry, the pantry is always callin’ ma name. But when I’m on the go, and because I’m chronically late. always. (sorry friends) I don’t have time to build the ultimate snacking dream. My solution? Salted Caramel Popcorn Trail Mix Bars. You’re welcome, future me racing out the door, and all other people out there looking for something moorish 😛 Shove these bad boys in your bag and you’re good to go! Hellllllo energy rush that is so needed when I’m falling asleep on the train. Plus, it’s technically healthy, check that seed goodness! I mean, it’s pretty much a salad.
Salted Caramel Trail Mix Bars (recipe adapted from Shutterbean)
12 cups plain popped popcorn
1 cup salted peanuts, chopped
1 1/3 cup rolled oats
1 cup chocolate chips
2/3 cup seed mix
1/2 cup water
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling
2/3 cup thick cream
2 cups miniature white marshmallows
- Coat a 9 x 13″ baking dish with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, toss together popcorn, peanuts, rolled oats, 2/3 cup chocolate chips, seeds.
- In a medium saucepan, bring sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 cup water to a boil over medium high. Boil, undisturbed, until mixture is amber in color–8-12 minutes. Remove pan from heat and slowly pour in cream (mixture will sputter). Immediately add marshmallows; stir until melted.
- Pour caramel mixture over popcorn mixture and quickly stir with a rubber spatula to coat.
- Transfer mixture to the baking dish, pressing down to form a flat surface. Sprinkle over a heavy dose of kosher salt, then the rest of the chocolate chips
- Let cool completely before cutting into bars.
SUBMITTED BY FOODIES AGENDA
If you’re like me, lunch and dinner aren’t complete without a sweet ending. Most days I find myself mentally wrestling with the vending machine at work, trying to fend off the sugar heavyweight contenders crying out to me. These clusters, however, provide a healthier alternative and are simple to make ahead of those sweet snack cravings.
Toffee Apple & Dark Chocolate Popcorn Clusters (4-5 Servings)
Plain Popcorn 4-5 cups
Apple Juice 2.5 cups
Brown Sugar ½ cup
Coconut Oil ¾ TB
Sea Salt 1 tsp
Flaked Almonds ¼ cup
Dark Chocolate 40g, melted
- Spread the popcorn and almonds onto a paper lined baking tray. Set aside.
- In a heavy based saucepan, bring the apple juice and brown sugar to the boil. Reduce to simmer over a medium heat for approx. 30 mins. The juice should have reduced by at least half and have started to turn into a syrup consistency.
- Add the coconut oil and cook for a further 5-10 mins. The toffee apple syrup will be near ready when it’s foaming and deepening in colour. Keep a careful eye on the mixture as you don’t want it to burn. To test the consistency & taste, place a spoonful on a side plate & allow to slightly cool.
- Add the salt and remove from heat.
- Lightly drizzle the sticky toffee apple syrup over the popcorn and almonds and toss to create small clusters. Finish with a final drizzle of the melted chocolate.
Store in an air-tight container for a couple of days. If you have leftovers, crush the clusters and mix through your favourite vanilla ice-cream, then re-freeze. VOTE
SUBMITTED BY INK & CLEAVER
Let’s not kid ourselves that on-the-go snacks are anything but on-the-go. If you’ve ever had a waterfall of doner chilli sauce streaming off your elbow, found ‘portable’ taco guacamole in unmentionable places or had the lava-esque innards of a meat pie burn a hole in your jeans then we are absolutely singing from the same hymn sheet. My dad used to send me off to school with vegemite and cheese sandwiches. Innocuous? Perhaps. But when the bread was raisin toast and the cheese was generic parmesan nestled between inch-thick yeast spread, my schoolyard popularity levels took a dramatic nosedive every lunchtime. Thankfully, this culinary atrocity never once destroyed my love of the most portable of all snacks – the ham and cheese toastie. Here’s my ham, cheddar and wholegrain mustard beauty. Fan-bloody-tastic hot or cool and guaranteed not to leave you looking like you have the eating habits of a toddler. VOTE
SUBMITTED BY THE BOOKERY COOK
Argentinian Beef Empanadas (makes about 12)
Pastry-encased goods are an international standard for snacks on the go – perogis, calzones, meat pies, salteñas, Cornish pasties, empanadas. Golden buttery pockets filled with an assortment of juicy meat, steaming vege, oozing cheese.
- Heat oven to 200*C.
- Heat 2 tblsp, 2 tsp butter in saucepan.
- Add 1 chopped onion, cook on low for 10 minutes.
- Add 300g beef mince, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 2 tsp sweet paprika, 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp chilli flakes, 150ml canned tomatoes.
- Cook on med-high for 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat, stir in 2 tblsp of rehydrated raisins, 2 tsp chopped fresh oregano. Season.
- Roll pastry into 10cm circles, 2mm thick. Top with 2 tsp beef mixture, a piece each sliced boiled egg, sliced green olive. Fold over pastry and twist edges.
- Place on tray, brush with egg yolk, rest in fridge for 30 minutes. Bake 25 minutes, until golden.
SUBMITTED BY THE HUNGRY BABUSHKA
“Clean eating” for me usually means that my kitchen table is tidy. If you find yourself scavenging for a sugary pick-me-up around 3.30pm, give these a go. They are as good, if not better, than the original and the guilt-free factor will have you adding this recipe to your clean-eating repertoire. Just don’t eat the whole batch in one go (they are yummy, don’t say I didn’t warn you!).
Clean Coconut Rough Balls
(makes about 20)
500g Merjool dates, seeds removed
4 tbsp raw, organic cacao powder
2 tbsp lucuma powder
1/4 cup desiccated coconut
3 heaped tbsp coconut oil
Seeds from 1 vanilla bean
Pinch of sea salt
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blitz until all ingredients are smooth and paste-like and form a large ball in your food processor. Roll a tablespoon-sized amount of the mixture into a ball. Repeat with the remaining mixture. Devour! VOTE
Check HERE for all the finalists in the 2014 Blogster Awards powered by Microsoft Surface Pro 3 and Intel, supported by our impossibly chic mates at David Jones.
