Top Items To Stock Your Pantry With For Perfect Snack Plates Every Time

We've all been there. It's 9 o'clock on a Saturday, and the regular hunger pangs shuffle in. But you just don't have the energy to whip up an honest meal, or maybe you have a hankering for some healthy, fresh finger foods you can chow down on guilt-free while watching late-night television. Either way, you need a good snack plate or "girl dinner " in modern parlance. Slightly different from a crowd-serving charcuterie board, a good snack plate is smaller and full of filling, healthy(ish) bites.

The key to a great snack plate is already having all your favorite fruits, veggies, and other snackums stocked. Daily Meal spoke to Jessie-Sierra Ross, a former ballerina turned cooking & home entertaining author, TV food segment creator, and food & lifestyle blogger at Straight to the Hips, Baby, who gave us a dizzying list of excellent snacks to keep on hand, which can all be boiled down to some basic categories. Medium and hard cheeses are ideal for a simplified cheese board because, she says, they "...have a longer shelf life than most soft cheeses and can add that amazing umami element to your snacking plates."

Of the medium and hard cheeses, also called semi-firm and firm, Ross likes to keep Spanish manchego, parmesan, and sharp cheddars on hand. She suggests, "Pair [them] with your favorite ground wheat crackers, green grapes, and roasted red peppers for a quick and easy meal for one or two people."

Jessie-Sierra Ross is also a big fan of smoked or cured proteins since they pack a flavor punch and require little effort. Nuts, sweet and spicy condiments, and pickled vegetables round out her categories, with pickled vegetables an especially delicious choice. "Pickled vegetables are an excellent shelf-stable ingredient ... [they] can add a tart, assertive flavor that pairs really well with savory cheeses," she suggests.

Familiar cheeses like manchego, parmesan, and sharp cheddars are a great snack to pair with more adventurous smoked and cured meats you may not have tried before. You're probably familiar with some nice prosciutto and smoky Italian beef sausage, but what about speck or bresaola? You can also enjoy this category as a pescatarian with smoked salmon or lox.

Fresh fruits and pickled vegetables balance your meat and cheese selections and provide a healthy boost to your snack board. You can get pretty fancy with pickled vegetables with options such as giardiniera and cornichons. Keep it casual with olives, pickled sweet peppers, or pickled beets. Finally, for nuts and condiments, you can keep stocked on your favorites, but Ross does suggest some roasted salted almonds and cashews, along with a fig jam and grainy mustard varieties.

As you may have noticed, these are all accouterments you may already have on hand for other meals. Now, they're just creating fresher, less-processed fare when satisfaction is the game.