Get those chips off your shoulder and out of your pantry. Yes, I’m talking to me. I love a salty, crunchy snack. And I know that chips are a lot of calories that don’t add significant nutrition. In summer, I’ve sometimes struggled to get enough salt without processed foods. This summer, I’ve changed my tactics.
To be fair, I might have kept chips as a guilty pleasure but I had to reconsider because my system can’t tolerate sunflower or palm oil and olive oil chips cost $10 a bag. But I still want crunch and some salt after I garden in the mornings.
The garden brought me a solution – an abundance of cucumbers. I’ve given away a few and considered pickles. But fermented pickles could bring a histamine issue. After some thought, I peeled, sliced, and salted a couple. This resulted in a delightfully crispy, refreshing cucumber snacks.
These will last a couple of days in the refrigerator. And they stay crisp enough to use as a holder for soft cheese eliminating the need for packaged crackers. Top the cheese with herbs and you’ve got an easy appetizer. Or, add a crunchy layer to your caprese salad. They’re also delicious with tzatziki and hummus.
When I mentioned cucumber crisps to my sister, she pointed me to watermelon fries. What, you may ask, are watermelon fries? Well, first, they’re not fried. They’re just watermelon slices shaped like fries, placed in the freezer for 30 minutes then dusted with sea salt flakes and chili powder if desired.
These are a great poolside snack. Some people serve them with a dip made from coconut cream, lime, honey, vanilla and salt or drizzle them with dark chocolate to create a unique summer dessert.
If you can do this with watermelon, it stands to reason you can do it with honeydew or cantaloupe. A platter with all three would be a great addition to your summer BBQ as an appetizer, side, or dessert.
There are many pluses to using fruit to add crunch and salt to your diet instead of chips. You skip other chemicals that are added to chips and crackers. You don’t get that old oil taste some chips have. In fact, you skip the seed oils altogether which makes my tummy happy. The kids don’t cover your chair cushions in colored dust that stains everything in its path.
You also eliminate a lot of calories. And add water. Unless you’re allergic, intolerant, or really hate these fruits and vegetables, there’s not a downside to using them to deliver a needed electrolyte (as long as you don’t overdo, of course). And this summer when produce is suspect, it’s great to incorporate things you can peel.
So, lose the frying, the oil, the man-made chemical compounds, the coloring, the flavoring, and the plastics used to package when you get those chips off your shoulder and out of the pantry! You’ll still be able to enjoy a salty crunch!
