10 Healthy Cottage Cheese Snacks (2024)

If you’ve been hunting for low calorie snack ideas that will fill you up while providing a ton of nutrients, cottage cheese is about to be your new best friend. Cottage cheese is a dairy product that’s loaded with nutrients like vitamin B6 (which promotes brain health), cobalamin/B-12 (for red blood cell formation and nerve function), and calcium (for strong bones).

It’s also an excellent source of protein which is what makes it so filling. In fact, cottage cheese is so high in protein that a 4 ounce serving of 1% low fat cottage cheese contains 14 grams of protein! Also see: High Protein Breakfast Ideas

Not only is cottage cheese a great ingredient for helping with satiety and body composition, it’s also versatile. It has a mild taste and creamy texture that makes it the perfect addition to both sweet and savory snacks. I’m excited to share some of the best cottage cheese snack ideas for when you need a filling afternoon pick-me-up or a mid-morning snack to get you through to lunch.

Sweet Cottage Cheese Snacks

The creamy texture of cottage cheese makes it the perfect addition to sweet, healthy snack ideas. It’s mild flavor allows you to mix it with a variety of sweet ingredients to come up with decadent desserts that are healthy enough to be enjoyed as a snack.

Whipped Chocolate Cottage Cheese

If you like chocolate pudding then you’ll love this Whipped Chocolate Cottage Cheese recipe from My Life Cookbook. The thick, creamy texture of the cottage cheese mimics the texture of pudding while allowing you to seamlessly mix in additional ingredients for a chocolatey and versatile healthy pudding!

Time to Prepare: Only 5 minutes!
Serves: 1 person (but can easily be doubled).
Ingredients Needed: Cottage cheese, cocoa powder, sweetener, vanilla stevia drops, a sprinkle of salt, and flavor extracts (i.e. Coconut, raspberry, orange, or butterscotch).
Optional Add-Ins: Peanut butter, slivered almonds, granola, seeds, berries, and so much more!
Nutrition Information: 243 calories, 9 grams of fat, 12 grams of fiber, 16 grams of carbs, 25 grams of protein, and only 4 grams of net carbs.

3-Ingredient Strawberry Ice Cream

Traditional ice cream can’t be eaten as a snack but Everyday Health’s cottage cheese version certainly can! This protein packed delicious snack uses cottage cheese for a healthy twist on the traditionally high-fat dairy products found in ice cream. Best of all, there’s only 3-ingredients in this simple cottage cheese recipe making it easy to whip up anytime you’re craving sweets without sabotaging your weight loss goals.

Time to Prepare: Only 5 minutes (plus 20 minutes to chill if you want a classic ice cream texture).
Serves: 4 people.
Ingredients Needed: Besides the 1% cottage cheese, all you need are strawberries and a little honey.
Nutrition Information: 165 calories, 1 grams of fat, 3.2 grams of fiber, 25 grams of carbs, and 15 grams of protein.

Cottage Cheese with Maple Syrup

This cottage cheese recipe is as simple and sweet as the name suggests. Hurry The Food Up’s Cottage Cheese with Maple Syrup recipe is one of the easiest high in protein snack ideas you’ll come across. All you need to do to make this one is to take a half cup of cottage cheese, and add a teaspoon of maple syrup and you’re left with a delicious cottage cheese snack idea that will satisfy all your sweet cravings — no meal prep needed!

Time to Prepare: Less than a minute.
Serves: 1 person.
Ingredients Needed: A half cup of low fat cottage cheese and a teaspoon of maple syrup.
Nutrition Information: 121 calories, 4 grams of fat, 8 grams of carbs, and 11 grams of protein.

Cottage Cheese Dip with Nutmeg Chips

The creamy texture of cottage cheese lends itself well to being turned into a protein packed dip. One of the best cottage cheese recipes for sweet dips comes from Plant Based With Amy. Using nutmeg as a sweetener for low-carb flatbreads, Amy creates a protein packed delicious snack idea that satisfies your chips and dip cravings in a healthy way that will add in your weight loss goals. Also, chips and dip are a hit with most kids so star this recipe and add it to your list of snack ideas for kids!

Cantaloupe with Cottage Cheese and Mint

If you’re looking for a way to add some fresh fruit into your diet, this is one of the best cottage cheese recipes you’ll find. The sweetness of the fresh cantaloupe pairs perfectly with the slight saltiness of the cottage cheese. Since this recipe uses both fresh fruit and cottage cheese it’s a great source of protein as well as an excellent source of vitamin C, vitamin B6, and magnesium. As a bonus, if you’re a picky eater — or you’re trying to feed one — you won’t even notice you’re eating cottage cheese since the other flavors and textures really shine. The Art of Natural Living hit a home run with this fresh fruit snack!

Time to Prepare: 10 minutes.
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients Needed: A whole cantaloupe, cottage cheese, fresh mint leaves, olive oil, and a bit of honey or maple syrup for added sweetness.

Savory Cottage Cheese Snacks

Sometimes, the cravings that come when you’re trying to lose weight are more of the savory variety. Thankfully, there are plenty of savory cottage cheese snacks that will help fill you up in between meals!

Avocado Toast with Cottage Cheese

Two weight loss superstars are avocados and cottage cheese. They’re both excellent sources of nutrients with avocados being high in fiber and healthy fats while cottage cheese is loaded with protein. In addition to their health benefits, avocado and cottage cheese pair well texturally as well with both of them having a smooth creamy texture.

This yummy Avocado Toast with Cottage Cheese recipe by Houke combines these two superfoods to create an extremely filling snack that could easily replace a meal if you’re short on time. Hint: If you want to reduce the calories to a snack size portion, cut the recipe in half and only use one slice of whole grain bread!

Time to Prepare: It only takes 5 minutes to meal prep this recipe!
Serves: 1 person.
Ingredients Needed: Whole grain bread, avocado, lemon juice, low fat cottage cheese, spring onions.
Nutrition Information: 352calories, 17 grams of fat, 36 grams of carbs, 11 grams of fiber and 17 grams of protein.

Low Calorie Ranch Dip and Veggies

Ranch dip and veggies is an easy, healthy snack to prepare for your kids that encourages them to get plenty of nutrients by dipping vegetables in a creamy ranch dip. But what if you could make ranch dip even healthier? That’s exactly what Katie from Healthy Seasonal Recipes did when she created a ranch dressing using protein rich cottage cheese! The suggested 3 tablespoon serving is only 43 calories which means you could double it and still have a high protein snack that’s well under 100 calories.

Time to Prepare: It takes 15 minutes to meal prep this recipe.
Serves: A crowd (the recipe makes 2 ½ cups and the serving size is 3 tablespoons so this will feed a ton of people ).
Ingredients Needed: Low fat cottage cheese, mayo, powdered buttermilk, white wine vinegar, shallots, basil, chives, dill, and your favorite veggies.
Nutrition Information: 43 calories, 1 gram of fat, 4 grams of carbs, and 4 grams of protein.

Instant Pot Egg Bites

When it comes to savory cottage cheese recipes that you can meal prep ahead of time, these egg bites by Recipe From a Pantry top the list. They’re so simple to make since they use an instant pot, and they’re the perfect pop-able size for a quick bite on the go when you don’t have time for a sit-down snack. Because this recipe is loaded with dairy products it’s an excellent source of calcium and vitamin D.

Time to Prepare: It takes 12 minutes to prep and 13 minutes to cook making this a 25 minute recipe.
Serves: 9 people.
Ingredients Needed: Low fat cottage cheese, eggs, fat free Greek yogurt, cheddar cheese, spinach, bell peppers, and some hot sauce if you want to spice it up a bit. Note: You’ll also need an egg bite mold.
Nutrition Information: 72 calories, 5 grams of fat, 1 gram of carbs, and 6 grams of protein.

Everything Bagel Cottage Cheese Snack

If you’re looking for an easy to meal prep cottage cheese recipe this Everything Bagel Cottage Cheese snack by XO&SO is perfect. By using everything bagel spice alongside cottage cheese you get a creamy, rich cottage cheese snack that’s perfect for topping crackers, slathering on toast, or dipping with veggies or pita chips.

Time to Prepare: It only takes 1 minute to make!
Serves: 1 person.
Ingredients Needed: Low fat cottage cheese, green onions, everything bagel seasoning, and some salt and pepper.
Nutrition Information: 81 calories, 1 gram of fat, 3 grams of carbs, and 14 grams of protein.

Cottage Cheese Queso

You know those calorie loaded queso cheese dips that you see in the chip aisle? Well Kate over at Babaganosh found a way to use cottage cheese to make a healthy, protein packed snack that won’t sabotage your weight loss goals. By combining low fat cottage cheese with cheddar cheese and some spices she replicates the cheesy goodness of queso in a healthy and fun way.

Time to Prepare: 5 minutes.
Serves: 8 people.
Ingredients Needed: Low fat cottage cheese, cheddar cheese, water, taco seasoning, chili powder, and a blender.
Nutrition Information: 84 calories, 6 grams of fat, 1 gram of carbs, and 6 grams of protein.

Cottage cheese is an excellent source of protein that’s easy to combine in both sweet and savory snack recipes. Be sure to let me know which of the cottage cheese recipes was your favorite in the comments below!