Our between meal snacks can add a significant, although often unnoticed, expense to our food budgets.

Yet its not just the added financial costs of potato chips, cookies, ice cream, and other snacks that hurt our budgets. The added calories also threaten our waistlines.

Recently, I’ve been searching for snacks that are not only healthy BUT ALSO cheap. It seems one of the best is also an old time favorite – POPCORN!

No, I’m not talking about microwave popcorn loaded with salt, butter, and other difficult to pronounce preservatives. I’m referring to the bags of popcorn kernels you pop yourself on the stove or in a hot air popper.

Popcorn kernels are dirt cheap. A typical bag of kernels costs around $2. Using a hot air popper, which can be purchased for around $10 to $15 at Walmart or Target, you can make popcorn for an insanely low 8 cents per serving!

As we illustrated in a previous posting, popcorn made with an air popper is quick and easy. It took us approximately three minutes and 18 seconds to air pop popcorn, compared to two minutes and 55 seconds to fix a bag of microwave popcorn.

Not only is popcorn made with an air popper cheap, its also healthy. With an air popper there’s no need for oil and you avoid all the salt and additives found in microwave popcorn. As a former “dripping with butter” popcorn lover who is now trying to watch my cholesterol levels, I have learned to love popcorn without the added heart clogging butter.

Popcorn is naturally low in calories and high in fiber. The perfect food. I make popcorn ahead of time and then portion it off into sandwich bags so that I have a cheap, quick, healthy snack whenever I want something to crunch on.

Aside: Why does popcorn pop?  I’ve always wondered how popcorn pops. It seems that popcorn contains a starchy interior surrounded by a hard shell. The key to the pop is the very small amount of water contained within this starchy interior. When heated this water turns into steam and like a pressure cooker the steam increases pressure inside the kernel until the outer kernel shell explodes (or pops) giving us popcorn.

If you want to add a little flavor to your popcorn, you can always spice up this treat without butter. Put some zing into your popcorn by sprinkling a little cayenne pepper on the top.

Feeling more adventurous? Try a little bit of grated Parmesan cheese for additional flavor or add raisins, coconut, or sliced almonds.

For a true culinary adventure you can try Rachel Ray’s chili powder, paprika, and cayenne popcorn mix recipe or check out the East-Asian popcorn mix at Savoirfair.com

Using a hot air popper and bags of popcorn kernels you can create a snack that is both inexpensive AND healthy, and if you’re feeling truly adventurous you can spice up your inexpensive popcorn treat.

Do you have a cool popcorn topping or creation that you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment below.

According to the 2008 Food and Health Survey, 94% of Americans snack at least once a day. However, many of us snack on relatively expensive, high calorie, nutrition poor foods like chocolate chip cookies, Twinkies, potato chips, and fruit roll-ups. There are healthier and cheaper alternatives for those in between meal snacks.

Hard boiled eggs. Boiled eggs make a great snack. Just take a few minutes to boil 5 or 6, then stick them in the refrigerator for a future snack. However, eat in moderation as the yolk centers are extremely high in cholesterol.

Raisin bread toast. Raisin bread toast provides a great snack food crunch, but with a little added sweetness from the raisins. Forget the national brands of raisin breads and select the store brand. The store brand tastes just as good for less money. For even better savings, stop by a bakery outlet and pick up a couple of loaves of raisin bread. Contrary to popular belief, these outlets sell fresh bakery products.

Carrots. Carrots also provide a great snack food crunch. A one pound bag of carrots can be purchased for around a buck and a carrot takes less than 30 seconds to peel. If you like your carrots pre-peeled, then considered peeled baby carrots. Although a little more expensive, they taste great and actually can become quite addictive. Want a little change, dip your carrots in some salad dressing. Be careful with carrots and small children though, as they can pose a real choking hazard.

Raisins. Raisins make a great healthy snack. But forget those little snack size boxes and save money by purchasing larger containers of raisins. Don’t be afraid of store brand raisins. In Chicago, for example, you can purchase a large 1.5 pound container of store brand raisins for a little over three dollars, about the same price as a box of Fruit Roll-ups. These store brand raisins are just as plump and juicy as Sun-Maid raisins.

Air Popped Popcorn. Popcorn is healthy snack. We’re not talking about those expensive packages of microwave popcorn full of salt and artificial flavors. Its seems that with the popularity of microwave popcorn, we’ve lost the art of making popcorn the old fashion way.  Bags of popcorn kernels can be purchased quite cheaply and popped in  air popcorn poppers found at Target or Walgreens for around $15 – $20. Alternatively, cook popcorn on the stove top. Coat the bottom of the pan with oil, add your popcorn and cover. When you hear the corn start to pop, remove it from the burner and allow the popcorn to continue to pop.

Cucumber Slices. Large cucumbers can be purchased for 65 to 80 cents a piece, about the same price as a candy bar! For a little added punch soak the cucumber slices in a small diluted bowl of apple vinegar.

Apple Slices. Apples can be purchased relatively cheaply. Apple slices, like carrots and cucumbers, give you a great snack food crunch. Soak your apple slices in some orange juice or spread a small amount of peanut butter on your slices for some variety.

Pudding. Pudding makes for a delicious snack. But avoid those cute little plastic snack packs. Instead chose the cheaper option. Pick up a box of instant pudding mix. It takes only minutes to create pudding with these instant mixes. You do have to wait while your pudding gets cold in the refrigerator, but your reward is a great nutritious snack.

Bananas. These snacks come in their own environmentally friendly packaging. They are a little more expensive, commonly found at 70 cents to 90 cents per pound, but you can find them much cheaper at stores like Trader Joes, Aldi’s, or at ethnic food markets where the price can be as low as 50 cents per pound. If you find your bananas getting brown at home, remember that they can be turned into delicious smoothies.

You don’t have to ruin your budget to provide great nutritious snacks. Not only are these snacks healthier, but they’re also less expensive than many processed junk foods. Do you have a great cheap and healthy food tip? Let us know. Leave a comment below.

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