5 Healthy Alternatives For Your 4 P.M. Snack Attack

As nut milks continue to wow us (have you seen the frozen dessert aisle in supermarkets lately?), we're smitten with a new iteration: an almond-milk spread that tastes amazingly similar to cream cheese. This one from Kite Hill is made with almonds and cheese cultures, has an impressively rich texture, is fantastic with crackers or apple slices and has no saturated fat (whereas an ounce of regular cream cheese has 5 grams -- aka 25 percent of your daily value).

Kite Hill Cream Cheese Style Spread, available at Whole Foods.

An oats-and-fruit pouch is a novel way to get that combination of sweet and toothsome, at a way lower calorie count. These fruit squeezes from Munk Pack run between 80 and 100 calories each, and combine fruits such as apples, blueberries, bananas, acai, raspberries and coconut with an assortment of grains ranging from oats to quinoa to flax.

Munk Pack, available at health-food stores.

We've seen veggies sneak into all sorts of foods, but baked goods are a new one (unless you count carrot cake). Then we came across Garden Lites' frozen, microwaveable muffins, where zucchini or carrots are listed as the first ingredient, followed by oats, blueberries, egg whites and other feel-good foods. Calories range from 80 to 120, and there's even a chocolate variety.

Garden Lites, available at supermarkets.

Light, crispy freeze-dried fruit has a much different texture than the chewy, dense "regular" dried fruit you typically find in trail mix or granola. Most freeze-dried varieties, such as Crispy Green, are much lower in calories (e.g., 25 versus 100 calories in a quarter-cup); just check the package to be sure there are no added ingredients, beyond cinnamon or other spices.

Crispy Green, available at supermarkets.

Frozen fruit-and-veggie bars -- which we like to call grown-up Popsicles -- deliver a refreshing dose of vitamins, thanks to ingredients including carrots, kale, spinach, kiwi and broccoli. Plus, many, such as Outshine Fruit & Veggie Bars, as well as Ruby Rocket's, are lower in sugar and calories than your average smoothie or green juice.

Outshine Fruit & Veggie Bars and Ruby Rocket's, available in supermarkets.