I am a certified snacker. It’s arguably my only real vice.
For many years I tried to turn myself into the sort of person who doesn’t snack, or who only snacked on healthy options, but over time I came to realise that my efforts were fruitless – a bit like my snack drawer.
No. I like to snack. And I like to snack on things that taste good. Not nuts, or dried apricots, or two squares of dark chocolate – I like sweets, crisps and biscuits. Instead of trying to stop snacking, my approach these days is more damage limitation. In other words, I find the lowest calorie options of the things I like, and I eat them in small quantities. Mostly.
I have written about low calorie sweets and low calorie crisps on this site already, so now it is time to tell you about my favourite low calorie biscuits. These crunchy bite sized wonders have kept me going through many an arduous afternoon of blog writing, and I’m still not breaking the scales, so they can’t be all that bad, right? 🤭
The issue with most biscuits, is they are absolutely coated in chocolate, or contain chocolate chunks, or a gooey chocolate centre. In other words, they are calorific, not to mention the fat content! They might be awesome with a cuppa but they quickly wreak havoc on your waistline. There are ‘diet’ biscuits out there which claim to be “low fat” and “low sugar”, but the problem with them is they are also low taste. Seriously, some of them taste like cardboard.
But not these. My list of low calorie biscuits has been carefully curated over the years to only include crumbly snacks which taste great and still feel like a treat, but won’t leave you needing to buy all of your clothes again in a bigger size.
Hope you enjoy them as much as I do! In moderation of course 😇
Fox’s Party Rings – 28 Calories Per Biscuit
Are these aimed at small children? Yes. Do I care? Nope! In fact, I would say that Fox’s Party Rings are my top choice.
Next time you are at a kids party and the Fox’s Party Rings come out, watch the other parents. Eyes will light up, and the adults will all not so discreetly make their way over to the packet. These things are amazing, and I’m not just talking about the flavour.
Party Rings have an almost insignificant 28 calories per biscuit, so a portion of three biscuits is well under 100 calories, and only 2.1 grams of fat per portion too. You won’t find many biscuits hitting these sorts of numbers unless you opt for the horrible cardboard types I mentioned in the intro.
They come in several different colours, although I’m not convinced they taste any different. Maybe they are supposed to be different flavours as well, but if they are, it’s so subtle you barely notice.
There is something so satisfying about a party ring. The biscuit has a good snap to it but also tastes great, and the sugar top has that sweet hit we are all looking for. Just don’t wear them on the ends of your fingers – you’re not five years old anymore. I most certainly never do this 🤫
Cadbury’s Chocolate Fingers – 27 Calories Each
The trouble with these is they are gone too soon, but they are undeniably treaty and delicious.
I would say Cadbury’s Chocolate Fingers are the best option for anyone who wants something that feels more indulgent, because you really feel like you have had some chocolate after a portion of these.
A portion is recommended as four fingers, equalling around 108 calories. If you wanted to keep it under 100 calories though you simply have three instead. Personally, I go for four – those extra 8 calories are basically worked off walking to the kitchen to get the biscuits, right? Right?
A little trick I sometimes enjoy is biting the ends off, dipping one end in my tea, then sucking the tea up through the biscuit. I realise this makes me sound immature and about as unserious as an adult can be, but I’m telling you, it’s fun, and it makes the biscuit taste even nicer.
Malted Milk Chocolate Biscuits – 55 – 58 Calories Per Biscuit
These are my favourite for dunking in tea.
The ratio of chocolate to biscuit is perfect in Malted Milks, and they have a unique taste too. They don’t just taste ‘sweet’ like so many other things do, they have actual flavour. Plus, unlike most of my other low calorie biscuit suggestions, they feel like a biscuit for grown ups.
The downside here is you can only have two of them if you want to stick close to 100 calories per portion. Three takes you closer to 200 calories. To be honest though, Malted Milk Chocolate biscuits are a pretty robust choice, they feel substantial, so two is enough.
Tesco make the lowest calorie version at 55 calories per biscuit, but other supermarkets only come in a few calories higher. Look, if you want three have three, but don’t say you weren’t told.
Lotus Biscoff – 38 Calories Per Biscuit
I remember when Biscoff suddenly became everyone’s new favourite. I discovered the Biscoff spread first, which was my downfall – it took me a year to lose the weight I gained eating that stuff.
Happily, the Lotus Biscoff biscuits are nowhere near as calorific as the spread, but you still get that unmistakable Biscoff taste.
Now, these things don’t feel like much, they are thin and light, but at just 38 calories each you can have two or three of them in a portion and keep the calorie count sensible.
They are quite a versatile biscuit, I find. They are nice on their own or with a brew, and you can chomp through them or let them melt in your mouth. You can even dunk them in your tea – but be quick! They’re not as flimsy as a rich tea but they won’t last long.
You get a lot in a pack and can usually find them for just over a quid, so they are cost effective too. You just have to control how many times you go back to the cupboard for more.
McVitie’s Jaffa Cakes – 41 Calories Each
Yes, I know they are not technically biscuits, but when you fancy a bit of cake, do you ever reach for the Jaffa Cakes? No. In the supermarket, are Jaffa Cakes in amongst the Victoria sponges or the chocolate fudge brownies? No. We don’t need to have the biscuit vs cake debate, they are perfectly valid additions to my list, so there 😝
The reason Jaffa Cakes work so well, is they have a bit of everything: chocolate, the jelly, the texture of the sponge, they’re not messy, and you can eat them in different ways!
Who remembers this:
Properly showing my age here, but to this day I still say the half moon full moon thing when I eat a Jaffa Cake. My fella loves it 😂😤
You can have fun with a Jaffa Cake. You can make it last, you can nibble the edges and save the middle bit to eat all in one, you can let it dissolve in your mouth, or totally demolish it in one go. It’s a really fun snack of the biscuit variety.
Most importantly, with only 41 calories each, you can have two (or three) in one go without feeling guilty about it. They are comparatively low in fat too. Their only real downside is they aren’t good for dunking in tea, but there are plenty of other biscuits for that.