High protein snacks will save the day when you're hangry (or even just hungry)!

Everyone loves a good snack. Even better, people love having a snack that tastes delicious and one that is healthy. High-protein snacks tend to be the healthier option, as opposed to snacking on chips, pretzels, candy, cookies, doughnuts, or other high-carb foods. Protein snacks keep us full longer while offering our bodies what it needs to maintain optimal health. Diets high in protein improve our muscles, bones, hair, nails, blood sugar levels, and our waistlines. We have put together 8 super easy, yet delicious, high-protein snacks perfect for your meal prepping and snacking needs!

Everything Bagel Cashews

If you love the flavor of an everything bagel but don’t want the heavy carb load, then these cashews are for you! Dried onion, sesame seeds, and poppy seeds create the nutty, herb flavor of the popular bagel, but on heart-healthy cashews. This is a travel-friendly snack that curbs hunger in a pinch. And who doesn't love a nut that tastes like a bagel?!

(Carbs: 9g - Protein: 10g - Fat: 22g)

Air Fryer Cinnamon Sugar Chickpeas

These crispy air-fried cinnamon-sugar chickpeas are made with minimal oil and are ready to eat in under 30 minutes. Once cooked they are paired with cheese, jerky and raw almonds to create a salty-sweet snack box that satisfies!

(Carbs: 27g - Protein: 20g - Fat: 11g)

Air Fryer Egg Rolls

Ditch takeout and make these gluten-free air fryer eggrolls that cook up crisp using Paleo-friendly coconut wrappers. They fry in just 3 minutes with a veggie and chicken filling that keeps you feeling full; yet another good high protein snack!

(Carbs: 36g - Protein: 10g - Fat: 24g)

Turkey Bacon Ranch Pinwheel

A high protein and low-calorie snack to keep you on track! This healthy combination tastes indulgent and will keep cravings at bay. Serve with fruit or vegetable sticks for an energizing snack or light meal.

Pro Tip: Save time making this dish by using precooked bacon pieces.

(Carbs: 4g – Protein: 16g – Fat: 18g)

Protein Freezer Waffles

These protein-freezer waffles are so easy and delicious! This recipe is made with only six ingredients and is high in protein. Double or triple the batch and keep them in the freezer for upcoming weeks. Waffles are a great snack, especially if you smear your favorite nut butter across the top!

(Carbs: 49g – Protein: 26g – Fat: 16g)

Vegan Snickers Protein Bars

Get your sweet fix without all the sugar! These gluten-free, vegan protein bars contain less sugar and more protein than a typical candy bar for a hunger-curbing snack with zero guilt. They look SO good and are not hard to make. (They'll also save you money, so this makes them both high protein and money saving!)

(Carbs: 37g – Protein: 17g – Fat: 13g)

Protein Almond Butter Cups

What's better than a peanut butter cup? An almond butter cup that is amped up with protein and finished off with a dark chocolate layer! This easy recipe comes together with just four ingredients. We never want you to NOT eat chocolate around here!

(Carbs: 8g – Protein: 6g – Fat: 12g)

Keto Bacon Sausage Meatballs

Italian sausage gets the meatball treatment. Then, it's wrapped in bacon for an easy meal prep packed with protein and flavor. Great for breakfast, lunch, snack, or even dinner, with some veggie sides (cauliflower rice, anyone?) 

(Carbs: 2g – Protein: 12g – Fat: 7g)

Protein is extremely important for a person's health and daily dietary needs. Protein builds muscles, bones, cartilage, skin, hair, and nails. Protein repairs tissue and oxygenates red blood cells. Protein aids in digestion and hormone regulation.

The average person needs a minimum of 60 grams of protein per day and, the older we get or the more we workout, that amount increases to nearly 1 gram per pound we weigh or want to weigh.

For example a 150-pound person who regularly lifts weights should have closer to 150 grams of protein per day. Protein also keeps us feeling full longer, and this certainly helps for those mid-to-late afternoon hunger pains that bring the "hangry."

To help you get the nutrition you need while also taking the edge off to get through the rest of your day, we have put together our favorite 7 protein-filled mid-afternoon snack meal prep recipes!

Turkey Bacon Ranch Pinwheel Snack Boxes

With around 16g of protein per serving, this snack aims to satisfy hunger in a protein-dense way, while providing healthy energy via the inclusion of fresh side veggies! This healthy meal prep idea is actually much healthier than other more traditional turkey bacon ranch options because it doesn’t use any ranch dressing! Instead, it utilizes velvety cream cheese intermingled with ranch seasonings! Not only does this make for a healthy substitution, but we think it actually tastes richer and yummier than using a regular ranch dressing.

(Carbs: 4g - Protein: 16g - Fat: 18g)

High Protein Breakfast Egg Muffins

Egg cups like this High Protein Breakfast Egg Muffin Meal Prep recipe are one of our favorite ways to have a protein-packed meal and take your breakfast on the go or, in this case, save it for a mid-afternoon high protein snack. They are filling, flavorful, and versatile! Add sriracha, hot sauce, or ranch dressing for additional flavor.

(Carbs: 1g - Protein: 23g - Fat: 11g)

Protein Peanut Butter Energy Bites

These Protein Peanut Butter Energy Bites are high in protein, healthy fats, and fiber. In 10 minutes, you can make this snack with healthy ingredients you probably have in your pantry!

(Carbs: 10g - Protein: 8g - Fat: 5g) each

Peanut Butter Chocolate Muffins

These intense chocolate muffins are a chocolate lovers’ dream, paired with a swirl of creamy peanut butter and low-glycemic sweetener, and are high in protein, making them great for breakfast, mid-afternoon snacks, or even dessert!

(Carbs: 47g - Protein: 25g - Fat: 34g)

Tuna Quinoa Salad in Endive Wraps

Taking only around 5 minutes to make, this tuna quinoa salad is perfect for a meal or as a mid-afternoon snack. It's packed with around 29 grams of protein from tuna, quinoa, and Greek yogurt, making it extremely tasty and healthy.

(Carbs: 34g - Protein: 29g - Fat: 3g)

Protein Freezer Waffles

These protein-rich freezer waffles are so easy and delicious! This recipe is made with only six ingredients and is high in protein, around 26 grams. Double or triple the batch and keep them in the freezer for upcoming weeks. Waffles are great for breakfast, but they're also an excellent choice for a mid-afternoon snack!

(Carbs: 49g - Protein: 26g - Fat: 16g)

Vegan Snickers Protein Bars

Get your sweet fix without all the sugar! These gluten-free, vegan protein bars contain less sugar and more protein than a typical candy bar for a hunger-curbing snack with zero guilt.

(Carbs: 37g - Protein: 17g - Fat: 13g)

Homemade Smoked Beef Jerky

(Carbs: 9g - Protein: 17g - Fat: 4g)

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Cheerios Trail Mix is totally a thing, and you and your kids are going to love this protein-heavy snack that also happens to be gluten-free!

You can make a trail mix out of almost anything, but the requisite ingredients and flavors seem to hover around nuts and dried fruits and a balance of salty and sweet tastes. This Cheerios trail mix is great because if you've got kids, peanut butter, and some nuts, you're on your way to making this fun and healthy snack prep. Because we all need some healthy snacks!

Protein Cheerios Trail Mix Ingredients

• 5 cups Cheerios
• 1 cup almonds
• 1 cup cashews
• 1 cup raisins
• ⅓ cup peanut butter
• ⅓ cup honey
• ⅓ cup butter

How to Make Protein Cheerios Trail Mix

This couldn't be easier! In a large bowl, combine the cereal with the almonds, cashews, and raisins. Set aside. Then, in a small saucepan over low heat, combine the honey, peanut butter, and butter. Once those ingredients have melted together (stir them a bit with a wooden spoon to help things out), drizzle everything right over the bowl of nuts, raisins, and Cheerios and combine. Let it cool and then distribute into separate glass or plastic containers with lids, or transfer the snack mix right to plastic baggies.

Substitutions and Alterations

If you know Cheerios, you know that you can take this into any number of directions, given the different types of Cheerios that are available. Try this with multigrain Cheerios for some extra fiber, or the Honey-Nut variety if you want a little sweetness. Or course, there are vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate varieties of this beloved cereal, too, and they seem to always be adding more seasonal and limited edition varieties. If you like this trail mix, you can see how the possibilities are limitless here.

Try other add-ins:

• dried cranberries, blueberries, or cherries
• mini chocolate chips
• peanuts
• pistachios
• walnuts
• pecans
• sunflower seeds
• pumpkins seeds/pepitas
• unsweetened shredded coconut
• chopped up dried apricots, figs, plums, mango, or pineapple
• any other kind of nut butter (almond would be awesome) or seed butter

Tips

It's really easy to double this trail mix, or even triple it. Just increase the size of your bowl!

This trail mix is also great for parties, to give as gifts, or to just have on hand in a big sealed container for when anyone needs a snack. You can even keep a bag or two stashed in your car for snacking emergencies on the way to activities or on the way home from school. Or whenever! If you have kids, you know having food on hand is key to keeping everyone happy—and staving off the hangries!

It's ok to use salted or roasted versions of nuts if you like, or the raw versions. It's up to you. If you aren't adding a salted nut, you can safely add a pinch of kosher salt to this mix when you combine all the ingredients together. Salt doesn't necessarily make things saltier; it perks up all the other flavors so they play well together.

MORE SNACK MIXES AND TRAIL MIXES!

• Nutty Peanut Butter Trail Mix Bars
• Protein Peanut Butter Energy Bites
• Zesty Gluten-Free Chex Mix