One More Spoon Open the app

Pregnancy · Snack

Iron-Rich Trail Mix with Dried Apricots & Pumpkin Seeds

Dried apricots, pumpkin seeds, cashews and dark chocolate in deliberate proportions - a handful of this is iron strategy disguised as trail mix.

A toast-and-shake jar snack that lives happily in a purse, a desk drawer or the car door. Iron demand climbs as pregnancy goes on, and keeping something ready within arm's reach is how the snacking half of that plan actually happens on busy days.

Iron-Rich Trail Mix with Dried Apricots & Pumpkin Seeds - Dried apricots, pumpkin seeds, cashews and dark chocolate in deliberate proportions
Easy
Vegan IronFiberZincAntioxidants

Ingredients

for 2 people
  • 80 gdried apricots, halved
  • 60 gpumpkin seeds
  • 50 gcashews
  • 30 gdark chocolate chunks
  • 30 graisins
  • a pinch ofsea salt

Open this recipe in the interactive app to scale servings, switch to oz and cups, and tick ingredients off as you cook.

Per serving (approx.): 350 calories · 9 g protein · 34 g carbs · 20 g fat · 6 g fiber

Method

  1. Toast. Toast the pumpkin seeds and cashews together in a dry skillet over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes, shaking the pan often, until the seeds start to pop and the cashews turn light gold.
  2. Cool. Tip them onto a plate and spread them out in a single layer. Leave until completely cool to the touch, about 10 minutes. Warm nuts melt the chocolate into smears.
  3. Mix. Tip the cooled seeds and cashews into a large bowl with the apricots, raisins, chocolate chunks and sea salt. Toss with your hands until everything is evenly spread through.
  4. Portion. Spoon the mix into small jars or containers, a handful in each, and seal them. Store somewhere cool and dark; it keeps for two weeks, and warmth is what softens the chocolate.
Worth knowingApricots, pumpkin seeds, cashews and dark chocolate are four of the best plant-iron snack foods - assembled here on purpose.

Is this safe during pregnancy?

Yes - nothing in the jar appears on the pregnancy avoid list, and nuts, seeds and dried fruit are all standard pregnancy fare. The one ingredient with a footnote is the dark chocolate: it carries a little caffeine, which counts toward the pregnancy ceiling of 200 mg a day - a handful of mix contributes only a sliver of that, but it stacks with tea and coffee. On the iron front, enjoy this away from tea and coffee: their tannins get in the way of plant iron.

Substitutions & allergens
  • Sunflower seeds or extra pumpkin seeds in place of the cashews - removes nuts without losing the crunch.
  • Extra raisins or dried cranberries can stand in for the dark chocolate and take the caffeine question with them.
  • Prunes or chopped dates swap for the raisins when you want a deeper, stickier mix.
  • Keep the apricots and pumpkin seeds if you can - they are the plant-iron backbone, and swapping both out changes what this snack is for.

Storage & reheating

This is a pantry jar, not a leftovers problem - the FSA chilling rules exist for cooked food that needs refrigerating, and nothing here does. The only discipline is at the start: cool the toasted seeds and cashews completely before they meet the chocolate, then keep the jars airtight at room temperature, away from sunlight. No fridge, no freezer, no reheating.

Checked against the public guidance we follow - see our sources & editorial standards.

You might also like

Berry & Yogurt Smoothie Ice Pops - Creamy berry-yogurt pops from four ingredients Snack Berry & Yogurt Smoothie Ice Pops Creamy berry-yogurt pops from four ingredients - breakfast logic frozen onto a stick for hot days and rough mornings. 5 hr 10 min Easy Vegetarian Crispy Spiced Roasted Chickpeas - Crunchy, salty, poppable Snack Crispy Spiced Roasted Chickpeas Crunchy, salty, poppable - the chip replacement that adds folate, fiber and zinc instead of just salt. 45 min Easy Vegan Everything-Seasoned Edamame - Hot edamame pods tossed in sesame, garlic and flaky salt Snack Everything-Seasoned Edamame Hot edamame pods tossed in sesame, garlic and flaky salt - the ten-minute snack you eat with your hands and finish too fast. 14 min Easy Vegan Ginger & Lemon Crackers with Cream Cheese - Plain crackers with lemony cream cheese and crystallized ginger Snack Ginger & Lemon Crackers with Cream Cheese Plain crackers with lemony cream cheese and crystallized ginger - the bedside-table snack plate for queasy hours. 10 min Easy Vegetarian Banana, Oat & Peanut Butter Blender Pancakes - Blender pancakes from oats, banana and eggs with a peanut butter drizzle Breakfast Banana, Oat & Peanut Butter Blender Pancakes Blender pancakes from oats, banana and eggs with a peanut butter drizzle - no flour, no fuss, and they reheat for tomorrow. 25 min Easy Vegetarian Black Bean & Corn Burrito Bowls - Spiced black beans, charred corn and rice with all the burrito fixings in a bowl Dinner Black Bean & Corn Burrito Bowls Spiced black beans, charred corn and rice with all the burrito fixings in a bowl - assembly-line dinner that feeds the week. 30 min Easy Vegetarian Chickpea 'Tuna-Style' Salad Sandwiches - Mashed chickpeas with yogurt, dill and celery in soft whole-grain bread Lunch Chickpea 'Tuna-Style' Salad Sandwiches Mashed chickpeas with yogurt, dill and celery in soft whole-grain bread - the deli sandwich, minus the mercury math. 10 min Easy Vegetarian Ginger & Lemon Overnight Oats - Cold, gentle and gingery Breakfast Ginger & Lemon Overnight Oats Cold, gentle and gingery - built for queasy first-trimester mornings when hot food smells are the enemy. overnight Easy Vegan

This is general information, not medical advice - always check with your doctor or midwife. See our sources and standards.