It’s not uncommon to go to a party and see an assortment of refined foods and sugary sweets.
From lollies, chocolates, cakes, cookies and muffins, to crisps, popcorn and processed crackers, there’s often not a lot of ‘real food’ options. Thankfully, as more people become health conscious, we’re slowly seeing this improve. For many of us on this journey, health is a lifestyle and that means that regardless of the event, we feel better when nourishing our body with real foods. Events and parties no longer have to involve an abundance of junk and thankfully there are many real food options and healthier alternatives that we can enjoy as party food.
So, whether you’re throwing a party or looking for something delicious to take along to one, save yourself the blood sugar spike and prevent the kids from going on a sugar high by opting for some of the best sugar-free party foods available. We’ve compiled a list of 10 healthier options for you to choose from:
Dark Chocolate
Let’s be honest, it’s not a party without some chocolate in the mix. When opting for healthier party foods, we don’t have to ditch chocolate completely. Instead, we can choose one that uses a less refined sugar and has a lower percentage of it. This is where dark chocolate comes in! Choosing a dark chocolate that is 75% cacao or higher is a great way to go. This means that the absolute maximum sugar content would be 25%, and if we can go for an option that uses a more whole food sweetener that’s even better. Some of the less processed sugars that we prefer seeing on the ingredients list include coconut sugar, raw sugar, rapadura sugar, etc. It can also be helpful to know that raw sugar and brown sugar are quite different. Brown sugar is actually white sugar that has been coated in molasses, while raw sugar is the less processed version. Remember that generally the less processed something is, the better.
Benetto Organic Dark Chocolate - Intense Dark
Popcorn
Popcorn is a great party food because it’s easy to share, satisfies cravings for something salty and is always a hit with the guests. When choosing popcorn, we recommend going for one thats been cooked in coconut oil, olive oil, ghee or butter. These are healthier forms of fat to cook with and are better options than the inflammatory vegetable oils often used in conventional popcorn. Another great thing about popcorn is that it tends to be sugar free. Yes, you can get sweet and salty popcorn that contradicts that, but there’s also plenty of opportunity to bring in a savoury snack via a simple salted popcorn.
Serious Food Serious Popcorn - Sea Salt
Crackers
Most parties will have some sort of a platter, generally with cheese, dips and crackers, but did you know that many of the supermarket crackers are highly refined, while some even have added sugar? Rather than skipping the crackers and only having veggie sticks, we can incorporate some healthier cracker options too. The criteria for a healthier cracker is that it’s less refined and contains whole grains. They may also have added seeds or other nutrient dense ingredients that make them more filling and nutritionally balanced. Serve the crackers alongside a good quality cheese or some delicious homemade dips.
Mary’s Gone Crackers - Herb Crackers
Dark Chocolate
Benetto Organic Dark Chocolate - Intense Dark
Let’s be honest, it’s not a party without some chocolate in the mix. When opting for healthier party foods, we don’t have to ditch chocolate completely. Instead, we can choose one that uses a less refined sugar and has a lower percentage of it. This is where dark chocolate comes in! Choosing a dark chocolate that is 75% cacao or higher is a great way to go.
Benetto Organic Dark Chocolate - Intense Dark
Let’s be honest, it’s not a party without some chocolate in the mix. When opting for healthier party foods, we don’t have to ditch chocolate completely. Instead, we can choose one that uses a less refined sugar and has a lower percentage of it. This is where dark chocolate comes in! Choosing a dark chocolate that is 75% cacao or higher is a great way to go.2
Benetto Organic Dark Chocolate - Intense Dark
Let’s be honest, it’s not a party without some chocolate in the mix. When opting for healthier party foods, we don’t have to ditch chocolate completely. Instead, we can choose one that uses a less refined sugar and has a lower percentage of it. This is where dark chocolate comes in! Choosing a dark chocolate that is 75% cacao or higher is a great way to go.3
As you can see, there’s no shortage of healthy and refined sugar-free party foods. What’s better than snacks that won’t leave you with a sugar hangover, while bringing some nutritional benefits to the table? Anytime you’re headed to a party or throwing your own, remember this list to help you fuel your body with real food options. We like to have some of these items stocked in the pantry for when visitors come over too. The great thing is that most of them double as healthy snacks any day of the week.