Snack Ideas for Kids

It's no secret kids love to snack. Left to their own devices a lot of kids would rather snack all day than sit down to full meals. Here are a few healthy and fun ideas to keep snack time fun and exciting:

Fruit on a Stick – Cut up different fruits such as apples, bananas, kiwis, mango and add a few grapes.  Thread them onto a skewer for a delicious summer time treat.  To make it a little more special add a few pieces of marshmallows between the fruit.

Pitta Pizza – Spread a little tomato sauce on a pitta bread and cut into small triangular pieces.  Top with a little grated cheese and place in a moderately heated oven for about 5 to 10 minutes until the cheese melts and starts to bubble.

Sweet Tortilla Shapes – Using small fun shaped cookie cutters cut  shapes out of a tortilla (wrap). Place on non stick cookie sheet and lightly brush with a little butter.  Lightly sprinkle (you only need a little) with a mixture of 1 part cinnamon and 3 parts brown sugar and bake in a moderately hot oven for 10 minutes for a sweet and crispy treat.

Banana Pieces – Place a cup or so of cheerios in a plastic bag and using the back of your hand or a rolling pin flatten until mixture resembles fine crumbs.  Slice a banana into round pieces and place a few at a time in the plastic bag.  Shake lightly to cover the banana pieces  with the cheerios mixture.

Mini Wraps – Lightly spread a tortilla with a little cream cheese and place one or two slices of thin ham or turkey over the cream cheese.  Roll tightly and cut into small rounds.

Jiggly Fruit – Make a portion of strawberry flavored jello per package instructions and place in the fridge for about 30 minutes.  Open and drain a can of fruit cocktail and add to the jello and mix.  Place back in the fridge until jello is fully set.

Apples with rasins– Cut a few apple wedges and spread thinly with peanut butter.  Add a few raisins over the peanut butter and enjoy.  You can also use cream cheese instead of peanut butter.

Pick and Mix – Kids seem to really enjoy finger foods rather than eating too much of one thing.  A great snack is to place a selection of finger foods on a serving plate and let the kids choose.  You can serve a combination of foods like carrot sticks, cucumber slices, cherry tomatoes, pretzels, small savory crackers, bread sticks, little cubes or slices of cheese, small slices of ham or turkey, grapes and other pieces of cut up fruit, mini muffins, and dried fruit such as raisins or apricots.