Celery Sticks with Avocado & Cottage Cheese
Half an avocado mashed in a bowl. Cottage cheese mixed with pepper and salt. Two stalks of celery cut into sticks. That is the whole recipe: three ingredients, five minutes, done.
What you end up with is a snack carrying 12 grams of protein and 18 grams of fat in 228 calories. The cottage cheese delivers casein, a slow-digesting protein, while the avocado brings monounsaturated fat and 6 grams of fiber. More happening in three ingredients than most snacks manage with ten.
Ingredients
- celery 2 stalks
- avocado 0.5
- cottage cheese, 4% milkfat 2.5 ounce
Method
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Cut the celery stalks into 3 pieces. Mash the avocado in a bowl.
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In a bowl, mix the cottage cheese with pepper and salt.
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Serve the celery with the cottage cheese and avocado.
Turn the avocado half into a quick guacamole: mix the mashed avocado with diced tomato, finely chopped onion, a clove of garlic, a squeeze of lime juice, salt, pepper, and a chopped red chili if you like heat.
Behind this recipe
Is 18 grams of fat too much for a snack?
Most of the fat here comes from avocado, a source of monounsaturated fat. At 228 calories total, this snack sits comfortably within most daily intakes. Research across 57,000 participants in 37 randomized trials found that dietary fat does not uniquely cause weight gain. Total calorie intake does. The fat in this snack is not the problem people assume it is.
Read the full evidence reviewWhy cottage cheese instead of Greek yogurt?
Cottage cheese is casein-dominant, a protein that digests more slowly than the whey found in most yogurts. For a snack between meals, that slower digestion means you stay full longer. Greek yogurt works as a swap if you prefer the texture, but you trade casein for whey in the process.
Read the full evidence reviewCan I prep this ahead of time?
The cottage cheese and celery hold well in the fridge for a day. The avocado is the tricky part: it browns within hours once mashed. If you prep ahead, keep the avocado as a sealed half with the pit in and mash it fresh when you eat. A squeeze of lime juice slows the browning.
