the tin-snacking issue

A case for curated snacking, culinary rabbit holes, and pickle-shaped eye patches.

May 04, 2026

Hi there and welcome back! Have you ever heard of tin-snacking? If not, here’s the idea:

Instead of mindlessly grabbing whatever’s within arm’s reach (office chocolate, protein bars, mystery cookies), you prepare your snacks in advance. In a tin. A cute one, ideally.

Up until now, despite always loving a good in-between bite and proudly calling myself a snackologist, my snacking mostly happened in full autopilot mode. Especially at the office, where temptation sits approximately 30 centimeters away at all times.

I genuinely couldn’t tell you what I ate on any given day.

While the sacred rule of three meals a day has long lost its glory, snacking has taken over, as countless studies have shown. We live in a world of snackification, after all.

But instead of shoving whatever’s lying around into your mouth whenever the urge hits, tin-snacking turns the whole thing into a small, intentional ritual. You take a moment — ideally in the morning — to curate a tiny, joyful selection for later.

Think: dried fruit, a chunk of chocolate, half a cookie, some nuts. Bite-sized, varied, and just enough. Not a binge, not a restriction — just a little moment of pleasure.

And here’s the bonus: by limiting yourself to small portions, you actually get more out of it. Flavor peaks in the first one or two bites anyway (as Charles Spence, my gastrophysicist of trust, would confirm).

The first one to popularize this concept was Anastasia, the Snack Tin Queen. Her videos of how she meticulously prepares her daily tin went viral. You don’t need to buy her snack-tin-guide (you’ll be creative enough).

So yes — this is less about the tin, and more about breaking the autopilot.

Although, admittedly, the tin helps.

It gives you an excuse to pause. To step away. To snack on purpose — whether your blood sugar is low, your focus is gone, or you’re dealing with a case of acute kuchisabishii (the excellent Japanese term for a “lonely mouth”).

So go get yourself a cute little tin and start curating.

Here are three options: The classic, Grethers Pastillen tin. Something playful from Tchibo. Or — if you’re feeling super excessive — a very unnecessary but very beautiful glass-tin, courtesy of Louis Vuitton.

And if you need inspiration: I’ve started making my own snack tins, and let’s just say — my chances of being hangry in public have dropped significantly. A win-win 😅.

Tomatoes, Crackers, Cheese / Dates, Coconut Chips, Apricot, Caramel, Chocolate Popcorn, Berries, Nuts, Swiss Chocolate, Mikado / Strawberries, Dried Mango, Protein Balls, Pocket Coffee, Nuts

Happy snacking (from a tin, or below, that‘s up to you).

take a look

I love how social media lets me discover a wide array of genuinely talented (real, not A.I.) artists experimenting in the culinary sphere. So here’s my current art window, featuring exploding eggs (by Arkadiusz Szwed), a playful take on braids (by John Baker) and out-of-this-world-cakes (if anyone feels like gifting me one by Presto.London, I will forever be grateful 😉).

food knowledge

Have you eaten your way around the world?

Despite calling myself a bit of a know-it-all when it comes to food, I was recently proven otherwise by a post from T Magazine. I’m not sure these exact 13 foods will make you a culinary god — but if they do, I still have work to do.

Which, honestly, isn’t the worst thing.

If traveling (and actually trying them) isn’t an option right now, I recommend a small detour via Cake Zine — a beautifully curated magazine of short, insightful stories from around the world. Some fiction, some real, all excellent. I just finished the “Forbidden Fruit” issue and loved it.

deep dive

The New York Times writer Matt Goulding, together with social media photography-superstar Sam Youkilis, has launched a new series called Before It Disappears.

They explore culinary traditions on the verge of extinction — paired, of course, with stunning visuals by Youkilis. The first piece features Terada Masaru, a traditional sake brewer in Japan. Very much worth a look.

stick it to your…

For all my fellow pickle girlies (and boys), goodgirlsnacks, fresh off winning a “best pickle” award, has taken things one step further. You can now picklify your face with their pickle-shaped eye patches. As far as my research goes, they don’t taste like pickles (sad), they just look like ‘em.

Sadly, they don’t taste like pickles. Missed opportunity.

If you’re less into pickles but still enjoy sticking things onto other things: I’ve created the ultimate “unguilty pleasure” sticker set. Message me if you want one—CHF 10, shipping included.