Healthy Kids Snacks!
By rainbow
@rainbow (6761)
March 22, 2007 7:18am CST
Most days us parents are so totally confused about, well everything really , but just which snacks are healthy?
Fill ice cube trays with green grapes, berries and 100 percent fruit juice and freeze, EASY and brilliant fun, hand out, fit with small lolly sticks, or put them in drinks.
Ants on a log. Peanut butter on a celery stick with raisins.
Cool fruit! Take an extra minute, peel and use tiny cookie cutters in various shapes, if this is too much trouble let them peel off the skin on each piece. My kids will find fruit choose where I put it, lol.
"A dipping we shall go." Carrot and cucumber sticks are favourites at my house, celery can be a bit dodgey unless there a lot of peanut butter around, Salsa, etc all make a pleasant change, just check the contents if you don't make your own dipps. I allow honey or even hazelnut chocolate spread (occasionally, it's not good but it's fun) that way they get an extra treat they like, I think at least they had the carrot stick too, lol.
Try to include them in making snacks and desserts, they'll want to eat them more.
Put equal parts of triple-grain Cheerios, reduced fat cheddar crackers, dried fruits (papaya, bananas, apricots, pineapple, apple, cranberries), and unsalted nuts into an airtight food container and shake, just be aware of any nut allergies etc. Store in the airtight container and just dish out into small bowls or containers. It's ready to eat and can go anywhere.
Ask your kids for their ideas. They may seem wacky, but if they will eat healthier, who cares?
5 people like this
19 responses
@villageanne (8553)
• United States
22 Mar 07
These are wonderful ideas. We no longer have kids at home but when we did. We made sure their snacks were healthy. Kids will eat healthy snacks if you involve them in the making process. They love to do things and they enjoy them more when they have hands on.
@rainbow (6761)
•
22 Mar 07
Thank-you! I know you are good at cooking and home-made things, so that means a lot.
I don't mind chocolate if I can melt it over wholegrain cereals and dried fruit to make crunchies. I do my best to make sure that when my boys eat baddies there are some goodies hidden in there. Banana and apple with chocolate drizzle etc are all better than sweets, I know it's not perfect but it's a starting point.
My kids love to join in so I do tend to do cheat cooking as they do not have the patience, still better than nothing, well I think so anyway.
1 person likes this
@AnythngArt (3302)
• United States
23 Mar 07
I think you've hit on an important point here, which is that people should make their own and get the kids involved. Even biscuits/cookies that you make at home are a lot better than what you buy at the store. There is so much artificial material added, so at least when you make it from scratch, you know what's going in. It's also a matter of how things are presented. For example, if it's fun to make frozen fruit pops, think how much more fun that is to eat than something purchased (key = fun).
@Willowlady (10658)
• United States
22 Mar 07
Again you are sharing excellent news about how we can care for our kids and by the way ourselves. :))
My children were taught that fruit was nature candy. We normally don't keep junk in the house and they have grown to be healthy and knowledgable kids. Also knowing that if we choose to eat the junk and our regular diet, we must move that much more. It is all about balance.
Thank you for sharing these ideas I can hope others do this and more kids will be healthier for it.
2 people like this
@rainbow (6761)
•
22 Mar 07
My son calls apples "sports candy". I try to limit the amount of crisps, chocolate etc and sweets are a definate rareity. I do easy things to try and help them.
I'm sure my mum did a better job than me, I was allowed a treat once a week, but this seemed to make it harder once I had my own money and could make my own decisions so I allow my boys bad things and good things as a choice, they usually choose the good things. If they ask for bad things they don't moan too much if I say no but you can have some fruit. They're still little yet so it's not going too badly. I don't want them to get big and gorge on baddies because I never allowed them any. It's hard to get a good balance.
1 person likes this
@Willowlady (10658)
• United States
26 Mar 07
It can be hard however it is so worth the effort. Glad that you are seeking balance and now with your new eating pattern you are setting a so great example. Take care!!
1 person likes this
@shelagh77 (3643)
•
23 Mar 07
Hey Rainbow, may I come to tea! Yummy is all I can say. I don't eat as much fruit as I used to as the local supermarket has done a deal with the farmers and there is no pick your own or cheap produce anywhere now.
Do you have local markets which sell reasonably priced fruit and veg?
@rainbow (6761)
•
23 Mar 07
You can come to tea anytime, lol, it's a long trip just for tea, far easier to get your own, bless you.
I struggle to buy cheap, quality fruit locally, our village shops are so expensive and the market in town about 5 miles away on Mondays isn't cheap and the fruit is ok, not fantastic, won't last a week anyway. I have to admit I tend to get my fruit delivered with my shopping.
@UcoksBaBa (800)
• Indonesia
22 Mar 07
Before you serve any type of food to anybody, it is very important to find out about any possible food allergies. There are many different kinds of allergies associated with all sorts of different foods, and any type of allergy can range from mild to very severe. Do NOT serve any foods, if there is risk of an allergic reaction by anyone.
2 people like this
@spindrift (197)
•
22 Mar 07
my sons love fruit so I will try some of these ideas and the veggie ones one son is not so keen on veg may be with these ideas he will try them atleast.
2 people like this
@rainbow (6761)
•
22 Mar 07
You have to be sly, I started y boys early with soup wich gradually got more lumpy, now the y will eat most things in small amounts. My 3 year old managed a loaded dessert spoon amount of sweetcorn without prompting last night, which is pretty good I think anyway.
I used to hid veg in sauces, pies etc but now I hardly ave any problems.
Good luck!
1 person likes this
@rainbow (6761)
•
22 Mar 07
It's a bit snealy really but if we can up the good stuff nad lower the baddies that they seem to love so much over time then it has to be good.
Tonight my kids are having jelly, escaped strawberries and a little blob of squirty tip-top (like squirty cream but not as bad). Fresh orange juice in the orange jelly to, after the hot water part, just about 1/2 the amount of make-up water, to make sure it still jellies. They love it and the fresh strawberries are a good treat, so is squirting the cream with mummy, lol.
1 person likes this
@minnie_98214 (10557)
• United States
22 Mar 07
I wish this stuff would work. Im gonna try the icecube one. My son has Sensory Integration Disorder and doesnt like to eat new foods. It is a war with his health. He doesnt drink milk only juice he will drink is orange juice. Only fruit he will touch is a banana and meats he is very selective and veggies ha he will throw them up and im not making that up, he works himself up so much that he throws up. Thank god for gummie vitamins or he would get no good stuff in him. Thanks for the ideas my other son will love them. One my older boy loves is putting sprinkles on apple sauce he eats so much more with just a little sprinkles it seems to make all the difference.
@rainbow (6761)
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22 Mar 07
Well done Minnie - that's the kind of thing that works - sprinkles on apple sauce instead of on a chocolate muffin! More fruit, less ice-cream or custard etc.
Fruit in cakes, pastries, easy stuff thats simple and cunning - jam turnovers are good too, lol.
My oldest had autism and ADHD and used to be awful, I used to be scared he'd be malnourished. I used to pureee veg and or fruit and hide it in pastry or under mash or in pasta a lot. Soup seemed to help and eventually the lumpy veg in soup got bigger and now he will eat a little of anything on his plate. He is 7 now and getting used to the idea of what is good for him, school has helped too, as they talk about food quite a lot.
My youngest will eat anyhting and lots of it, I worry sometimes that he will burst, I've never seen a child eat so much.
1 person likes this
@brimia (6581)
• United States
22 Mar 07
Those are good snack/food tips for everyone, including kids. We used to freeze fruit juice when we were kids, making our own healthy popsicles. It is important to get kids involved in the process, like you said, to encourage a life long love of healthy food preparation and eating.
@rainbow (6761)
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22 Mar 07
Thanks brimia, I remember making fruit crush with my mum too, I suppose it was like sorbet really, we boiled the fruit and laid it thinly on trays in the freezer, we had to keep going and stiring it around until it was all crushed fruity ice. Then it went in the a bowl with a spoon, in the sunshine, lol.
1 person likes this
@manmaxman (850)
• India
23 Mar 07
hmmmmmmmmmmm this is a good Q. about a health of our childrens but i also don't have any knowlage about it .....tell me to
1 person likes this
@rainbow (6761)
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23 Mar 07
Hi sweetie, it is difficult to know what to do for best, we are told what they should eat but what are we to do if they only like crisps, sweets and chocolate - mix the good stuff in and gradually get more goodies and less baddies, our friends here ave provided a lot of good healthier snack ideas, that may be a help to us all, even if it's just a new way of serving something in an interesting way.
@draconess (650)
• Canada
25 Mar 07
I love 'ants on a log', it's so yummy and fun! We used to make it in girl guides all the time. If your kids don't get enough fruit peanut butter does wonders, just dab a bit onto sliced apples and bananas for a snack. You can also make tasty desserts without added sugar, like core and bake an apple with cinnamon sprinkled over top, or try grilling fruits like pineapple on the bbq for a special healthy treat. Homemade trail mixes are great too, with healthy cereals, nuts, and dried fruits.
1 person likes this
@rainbow (6761)
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25 Mar 07
Hi, I never thought of stuffed apples as a healthy treat, lol, we often have those and I like to put fruit on the BBQ.
Thank you so much for your imput, I forgot we used to do things like that in brownies too, how fun it was.
I could grill fruit indoors too, what a good idea
@rainbow (6761)
•
22 Mar 07
Really we shouldn't need to snack, but small people often cannot eat enough at a meal to last til the next one. Fruit and nuts are fantastic snacks but sometimes our little angles need a little encoulragemnt to eat them. There's not much worse than a hungry screaming toddler who will not eat what has been given, lol.
1 person likes this
@mquidem (42)
• Philippines
23 Mar 07
this is really a cool suggestion on how to prepare healthy food for the kids. i have a daughter and it's really a pain having to force her to eat healthy snacks. she's almost 4 yrs old but she's still dependent on milk few dishes. she loves pasta (spaghetti), rice with soup cereals somtimes...i think the ice cube thingy with juice and stuff is the coolest! thanks
1 person likes this
@rainbow (6761)
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23 Mar 07
hi-ya, at least she's eating something sensible like pasta and rice, now you just need a few sly ways to introduce new things.
I think all I would do is try and build on what she will eat, and if snack work better than meals, try to give her a variety of new things amongst things she likes.
Puree some veg and make it into ice cubes too and add one to her pasta sauce, mix in, next time add two and so on.
Milshake is a good way to get fruit eaten, use fresh fruit and make it into a smoothie, you can always milk it down, a straw helps too.
How about making things with rice, but with fruit or make it like a snail with a slice of ham of you can get the rice to stay in.Yuou couldd use animal cutters and se different ver for eyes, mouth etc, if she will help so much the better, have fun thats the most important thing.
@AnythngArt (3302)
• United States
23 Mar 07
One treat suggestion I have is fruit kabobs. You get the long skewers (of course you have to be careful with kids, it's really for the older set) and load them with chunks of watermelon, cateloupe, grapes, apples, whatever you happen to have on hand. You can sprinkle them with granola or chopped nuts, if you want, but the novelty of having fruit kabobs makes it not seem so overtly like fruit.
1 person likes this
@sharmila76_lot (3)
• India
23 Mar 07
hai your suggesions are very nice. give me some
suggesions on how to make them to eat any type
of tiffens say for example my kid is very choose
he hesitates to take all types of snaks are tiffen
he just eats very few selected tiffens or snacks
@rainbow (6761)
•
23 Mar 07
I'm not sure what tiffens are sorry. With all snacks try for as healthy as possible mith maybe a little baddie to keep them interested. A lot of foods need to be on a plate at leasst 8 times before they are even considered by most kids and about 20 times before they are eaten properly. Just keep offering different foods until gradually thay are accepted although if your child has a violent dislike to something it isn't really worth pushing it, try after a good brek, there may be a difference.
@soulkeeper16 (1814)
• India
12 Dec 07
My favorites fruit is strawberries also, i like them chopped on top of a meringue nest or just as they are, i could just munch on nothing else but strawberries.I do really like all fruit, but strawberries are my favorite! I'll eat them with just about anything.
