30+ Easy Healthy College Dorm Room Snack Recipes (2024)

November 18, 2014 by Jeanette 10 Comments

These EasyHealthy College Dorm Room Snack Recipes require little or no cooking and are great for satisfying midnight munchies.

Pictured (left to right, top to bottom): Layered Mexican Dip (see simplified version below), Oatmeal Raisin Energy Bites (Amy’s Healthy Baking),Protein Puppy Chow(Food Faith Fitness),Corn, Black Bean Salsa (see simplified version below),Healthy Sweet and Salty Trail Mix(Neighbor Food),Cold Marinated Vegetables(Tasting Page)

Recently I received an email from a college student looking for healthy snack recipes and ideas that she could easily prepare in her dorm. Since I have three boys in college, I know how limited college students are when it comes to being able to cook in their dorms. At best, they have a small refrigerator, microwave, and if they’re lucky, a coffee pot.

When I was in college, I actually had a rice cooker and small slow cooker. But these days, most colleges don’t allow any small appliances other than a microwave oven. I was also fortunate to live in a dorm during my senior year that had a kitchen we could use.

On top of the cooking appliance limitations, college students are almost always on a tight budget. So, I reached out to some of my fellow food bloggers and scoured the internet to see what I could come up with for my reader.

Here are some basic spices/ingredients that I think would help spice up dorm food:

• granulated garlic
• onion powder
• salt
• pepper
• chili spice mix
• taco spice mix

Here are some healthy dorm-friendly pantry items:

• nut butter
• canned beans (chickpeas, black beans, red beans)
• whole grain crackers
• non-fat Greek yogurt
• salsa

Easy Healthy Bites

• Store-bought hummus with carrot sticks, other vegetables (e.g., frozen broccoli), whole grain crackers. CVS stores near college campuses often carry some fresh produce.
• Non-fat Greek yogurt mixed with herb or spice mix (e.g., Trader Joe’s onion dip mix; Penzey’s Chip and Dip mix or Buttermilk Ranch Dip mix) served with carrots/celery/bell peppers/cucumbers or other vegetables (e.g., frozen broccoli)
• Fruit and nut butter – banana slices, apple slices, celery, whole grain crackers with nut butter and granola sprinkled on top
• Trail mix (nuts, dried fruit, whole grain cereal, whole grain crackers)
• Salsa and guacamole (Wholly Guacamole sells individual size servings) with carrots/celery/bell peppers baked tortilla chips
• Ants on a Log 2.0, Two Healthy Kitchens
• Fruit Yogurt Granola Parfait, Yummy Healthy Easy

SavoryBites

• SimplifiedCorn, Black Bean Salsa (mix together frozen or canned corn, canned black beans, jar salsa, taco seasoning) with baked tortilla chips – serve cold or warm in microwave (melt some cheese on top, optional)
• SimplifiedMini Layered Mexican Dip (layer in microwave bowl: refried beans, salsa, shredded low-fat cheese; heat in microwave; top with non-fat Greek yogurt, guacamole); serve with celery sticks or baked tortilla chips
• SimplifiedChili Bean Dip – black beans or kidney beans, chili spice mix, water; mash with a fork; top with shredded cheese and microwave 2-3 minutes until heated through and cheese is melted; serve with celery sticks or baked tortilla chips
• Turkey and Cheese Bites – top whole grain crackers with deli-sliced turkey and cheese;warm in microwave; top with salsa
• Seasoned Edamame – put frozen edamame in microwaveable bowl, cover with damp paper towel and microwave a few minutes until heated through; season with salt and pepper (garlic and chili powder aregood too)
• Vegetarian Burrito– whole grain tortilla with vegetarian refried beans spread on top and sprinkled with shredded cheese; microwave until warm; top with non-fat Greek yogurt and salsa; rollup
• Vegetarian Pita Pizza – whole grain pita topped with pasta sauce, defrosted chopped spinach or broccoli (use a paper towel to remove as much moisture as possible when using frozen vegetables), low-fat mozzarella cheese, Italian seasoning
• Italian BrownPaperBag Popcorn, Snappy Gourmet(chili seasoning, Penzey’s Chip and Dip or Buttermilk Ranch Dressing)
• Cold Marinated Vegetables, Tasting Page
• Soy Sesame Marinated Cucumbers, Farm FreshFeasts
• Microwave Potato Chips, Wonky Wonderful
• 1-Minute Microwave Quiche in a Mug(use a spoonful of salsa if you don’t have fresh tomatoes)
• Microwave Roasted Chickpeas, Priya’s Versatile Recipes
• Microwave Kale Chips, Rachael Ray Show (Nathan Myhrvold)
• Scrambled Eggs and Cheese, Martha Stewart (use salsaif you don’t have fresh tomatoes)

Sweet Bites

• Dark Chocolate Almond Cranberry Whole GrainTrail Mix(use roasted almonds)
• Peanut Butter Silk Pie Dip with Greek Yogurt, Two Healthy Kitchens
• Energy Bites, Cooking On The Front Burners
• No-Bake Peanut Butter & Chocolate Chip Granola Bites, The Kitchen Is My Playground
• Oatmeal Raisin Energy Bites, Amy’s Healthy Baking
• Peanut Butter Cup No-Bake Snack Bites, Two Healthy Kitchens
• Protein Puppy Chow, Food Faith Fitness
• Healthy Sweet and Salty Trail Mix, Neighbor Food
• Grain Free Peanut Butter and Jelly Mug Cake, Everyday Maven
• Overnight Pumpkin Oats, Tasting Page
• Healthy Candy Apple Wedges, An Edible Mosaic
• Microwaveable Breakfast Cookie, Whole Foods New Body
• Aggression Cookies, What Smells So Good

Do you have any easy healthy college dorm room snack recipes you’d like to share? Leave them in the comments please! Thank you!