Reagle: The virtues of snack foods

You know that moment in your night class when your teacher reveals that she brought a snack? Or… You know that moment in your night class when your teacher reveals that she brought a snack? Or when a friend brings a bag of candy to your study session? There’s literally nothing better than a snack. As Americans, we’re genetically engineered to love snacking. It’s in our blood or our DNA or something.

When I attended a recent party that served snacks, it was a revelation. I suddenly realized that every party I’d been to in the past four years would’ve been exponentially better if snacks were involved. Which got me thinking: Why don’t more people serve them?

They’re easy to make. You can think small. Anyone can serve microwave popcorn or a bag of chips at a get-together. Run to Giant Eagle or Rite Aid and grab a box of cookies or some tortilla chips with salsa.

But if you want to think a little bigger, I have other suggestions. I’m not getting crazy here —  I know we’re all both busy and lazy. I solemnly swear everything I suggest is quick and easy.

Make a fruit salad or a vegetable tray. You can buy these things, but they’re much more expensive when they’re ready-made. If you can handle a knife, you can make either one with relative ease.

To make a fruit salad, all you need is a collection of your favorite fruits. My preferred combination is strawberries, blueberries, pineapple and kiwi.

Buy what you need, wash it and cut it up into bite-size pieces. As a hint, I’d buy the pineapple already cored. Then just throw the fruit all together in a bowl.

To finish it off, either sprinkle it with sugar or serve it with a fruit dip. You can find fruit dips in the produce section near the already sliced fruits.

For a vegetable tray, it’s mostly the same process. Buy some veggies, wash them and slice them up. Typical vegetables include: carrots, celery, broccoli, red pepper and mushrooms. Pick your favorites, and serve them with ranch dressing. Don’t buy the tray pre-made unless you have infinite amounts of money.

For a more delicious alternative, try baking cookies. There are tons of choices that require very few ingredients and even some that don’t actually require baking.

Below I’ve provided a five-ingredient — and extremely tasty — dessert recipe passed down to me from my childhood neighbors who happened to be fantastic bakers. I don’t think the treats have a name, but I’ll just call them Hedgehog Cookies, because they kind of look like hedgehogs.

You will need:

1 14 oz. package of caramels

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 stick (1/4 c.) butter

1 package of marshmallows

A box of Rice Krispies

Cut the marshmallows in half and set them aside. Pour some Rice Krispies into a flat pan.

Melt the caramels, sweetened condensed milk and butter in a double boiler until all the ingredients are mixed together. If you don’t own a double boiler, make one by placing a pot of boiling water underneath another pot.

Dip each marshmallow half in the caramel mixture (I recommend using a toothpick so you don’t burn your fingers), then roll the caramel-covered marshmallows in Rice Krispies. Reshape as needed to make them round.

That’s it. Keep in mind that this recipe makes eight or nine dozen, so you might want to cut it in half. Or make them all and bring them to class. You’ll have so many new friends.

Be sure to present your snacks well. Even if they’re just Oreos, arrange them on that plate you made at Color Me Mine, or put chips in a colorful bowl. It’ll look better, and it’ll seem like you put more effort into it than you actually did.

Adding snacks to any gathering enhances its fun. So the next time you plan a study party, a movie night or to have have drinks with friends, make some snacks. If you do, your friends will probably like you a lot more.

To exchange recipes, email Sarah at sarahreagle@gmail.com