Need fresh ideas for kid snacks?

Getting little ones to go for a snack that isn’t chock full of sugar can be a real challenge.

Here are several healthy kid snack ideas, as recommended by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, an organization headed by Dr. Neal Barnard and dedicated to advocating good nutrition. Try packing these in your kids’ lunchbox and see if they pass the taste test!

• Chopped raw vegetables and dip
• Chunks of avocado, cucumber, or cooked sweet potato
• Breadsticks or pita chips with hummus
• Tortilla chips with bean dip
• Graham crackers or gingersnaps dipped in applesauce
• Mini rice cakes with peanut butter
• Apple slices with hazelnut butter
• Fresh or dried fruits, especially raisins
• Frozen bananas blended with a little non-dairy milk
• Nuts, especially mixed with dried fruit
• Fresh soybeans (edamame)
• Bite-sized tofu cubes

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Maple Walnut Granola

Makes about 6 cups

Ingredients:

• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup wheat germ
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup raisins
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300ºF.
2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix thoroughly.
3. Transfer to a 9- x 13-inch baking dish. Bake, turning often with a spatula, until mixture is golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Nutritional facts per ½-cup serving: 231 calories; 7 grams protein; 39 grams carbohydrate; 6.5 grams fat; 2.5 grams fiber; 5 milligrams sodium; calories from protein: 11%; calories from carbohydrates: 66%; calories from fats: 23%

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Applesauce

Makes about 6 cups

Ingredients:

• 6 large, tart apples (gravenstein, pippins, Granny Smith, etc.)
• 1 cup undiluted apple juice concentrate
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1. For chunky applesauce, peel apples, then core and dice. Place in a large pan. Add apple juice concentrate, then cover and cook over low heat, stirring often, until apples are soft. Mash slightly with a fork if desired, then stir in cinnamon. Serve hot or cold.
2. For smoother applesauce, cut apples into quarters and remove cores. Chop finely in a food processor. Transfer to a pan and add apple juice concentrate and cinnamon. Cover and cook, stirring often, over low heat until tender, about 15 minutes.

Nutritional facts per ½-cup serving: 101 calories; 0.3 grams protein; 26 grams carbohydrate; 0.5 grams fat; 2 grams fiber; 6 milligrams sodium; calories from protein: 1%; calories from carbohydrates: 95%; calories from fats: 4%

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Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Makes 10 to 12 muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 15-ounce can solid-pack pumpkin
• ½ cup raisins

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF.
2. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Add pumpkin, ½ cup of water, and raisins. Stir until just mixed.
3. Spoon batter into oil-sprayed muffin cups, filling to just below the tops.
4. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until tops of muffins bounce back when pressed lightly. Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes.
5. Remove muffins from pan and cool on a rack. Store cooled muffins in an airtight container.

Nutritional facts per muffin: 131 calories; 3 grams protein; 31 grams carbohydrate; 0.5 grams fat; 4 grams fiber; 236 milligrams sodium; calories from protein: 10%; calories from carbohydrates: 87%; calories from fats: 3%

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Veggies in a Blanket

Makes 2 large roll-ups

Ingredients:

• 2 flour tortillas
• 2 tablespoons vegan cream cheese
• 1 grated carrot
• 2 lettuce leaves (or a handful of baby spinach leaves)

Directions:

1. Warm tortillas in a dry pan. Spread vegan cream cheese on them.
2. Add carrots and lettuce or spinach. Roll up and serve or wrap in plastic wrap for snacking later.

Variations: Add thin sticks of cucumber or sweet red pepper before rolling.

Nutritional facts per roll-up: 159 calories; 4 grams protein; 22 grams carbohydrate; 6 grams fat; 2 grams fiber; 230 milligrams sodium; calories from protein: 10%; calories from

carbohydrates: 55%; calories from fats: 35%

I hope you find at least one kid snacks your little one will like!  The pumpkin muffins are a fav at my house.    They don't even last 1 day!

Board Certified Health Coach and Food Toxin Specialist

“card – Grayson eating a peach” © 2006 Bruce Tuten, used under a Creative Commons Attribution license

Resources

Super Healthy Kids

Doof: Making Good Food Fun — http://www.foodbackwards.com/

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