Recently I was sent a bundle of goodies from Plant Pops. If you follow @thebeautifulbluebird on Instagram, you might already know I’m on a mission to lose weight so when I saw that a whole bag of Plant Pops is under 99 calories I was intrigued – could this finally be the healthy alternative to crisps I’ve been looking for? Plant Pops are a plant-based, sustainably harvested snack that are 100% vegan, gluten-free and contain no artificial ingredients. They are made from popped lotus seeds and have a puffed, light texture that reminds me of a cross between rice cakes and popcorn.
Plant Pops challenged me to come up with a creative way of eating these little puffy balls and I immediately thought they’d be delicious as croutons in a huge bowl of homemade soup – my ultimate cosy winter treat. Recently, I’ve been enjoying a super simple soup recipe that contains 900ml vegetable stock, 2 garlic cloves, 2 potatoes, 1 onion and 1 large butternut squash. I fry the ingredients in a low-cal cooking spray such as Frylight and blitz it in the blender. It couldn’t be easier. I also add a few teaspoons of turmeric, nutmeg and curry powder to give it a little heat. Sometimes though, you just can’t beat a bowl of hearty tomato soup and I’ve recently been searching for a healthy twist on this creamy classic.
Plant Pops are incredibly versatile and you could them as a topping or garnish for almost everything – I’d probably just swap my usual bag of crisps or movie-night popcorn for them as they’re roasted not fried, so make for a light but satisfying alternative. They come in three flavours: Himalayan Salt, Smoked Chilli and Peanut Butter. I adore the Smoked Chilli (as expected, smokey with a spicy kick) and Himalayan Salt but couldn’t bring myself to try the Peanut Butter ones. Peanut Butter really is my idea of food hell, although my husband tried them and munched through the whole packet in minutes so that’s a good sign.
Finding snacks under 100 calories has proved a bit of a challenge through my weight-loss journey; if I see another cereal bar, yoghurt or carrot batton I think I might cry. Plant Pops are a very unique option and they’re crazy innovative if you’re looking to shake up your boring snacking routine. They are already enjoyed by over a billion people worldwide however if, like me, you’ve never heard of them before here is a list of their current stockists nationwide.
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