Tag Archives: childrens snacks

Baking, Family Meals, Nutrition Education, Recipes

Snacking, children and biscuit love.

2 Comments

There are days when I feel like I am running a cafe. My children take it in turns to come to me saying “I’m hungry” or “Can I have a snack” or “Marmite/Biscuit/Cereal Bar”. Occasionally I even get a please 😉

I do wonder how on earth they can eat so much and still want more, but then they will go through days when they hardly eat, so it all seems to balance out. I prefer them to self-regulate their appetite rather than having me guess when they should be full.

Having a 5 year old makes life a little easier as I can reason with her more and talk through choices. She asks for cake and we can decide if that is the best option just before lunch or could she have a breadstick and save her cake for later on. We can talk about having a range of foods in the diet and what foods are better choice to keep our bodies working properly. She also reacts to having too much sugar and recognises this!

The 2 year old is a different kettle of fish altogether. He has just been through a stage where he has discovered biscuits (mainly from playgroup time with Daddy – ahem) and he is in love. Now I can’t blame him. Who doesn’t love a biscuit. However, they aren’t things I plan for my small ones to eat everyday. THis boy definitely has a sweet tooth. So I’ve had to go on a biscuit cull in our house. When he asks for a biscuit I’ve been explaining we don’t have any, showing him the empty tin and redirecting him to a banana or a piece of toast. There have been some tears and some stroppy moments but after 2 weeks we have made it through the biscuit terror. He is now not asking for them at every available eating moment, at least not at home. 

Dietitian UK: Healthy Snack Ideas collage

So here (in no particular order) are our current list of snacks:

  • Fruit and yoghurt. Job done. 
  • Popcorn – I airpop a pile and keep it in an airtight box for a few days. Plus it is wholegrain!
  • Maltloaf – my 5 year old calls this chocolate cake! She knows it isn’t but…. hey makes it more fun.
  • Wholemeal toast with marmite or cream cheese – a common 2nd breakfast. Yes they are hobbits.
  • Large rice cake with peanut butter and slices of banana (seriously good combo).
  • Homemade healthy flapjacks, we almost always have these in stock, I make a batch weekly.
  • Nut and seed balls. I make these for me but they always get shared around.
  • Nuts (pecans for the 2 year old, almond for the 5 year old) and dried apricots. Always fills them up.
  • Cheesy biscuits with grapes. An easy snack for on the go.
  • Hummus with….almost anything. My kids love a dip – but go through phases of what they like to dip in, so we vary from breadsticks, veggies (carrots, peppers, cucumber, broccoli, green beans), small rice cakes, crackers, toast strips.
  • Wholegrain cereal with raisins in a pot, no milk. Dry cereal can make a great snack on long car journeys as it takes a while to eat!
  • Courgette cheesy biscuits. For when we have had a baking session.
  • Homemade cereal bars. I like to pack fruit or veg in these.

I hope that gives your some ideas. Please share any ideas you have as I’m always on the look out for new things!

Family Meals, Recipes

Summer Holiday Snacks

Leave a comment

That time of year has come, the children are on summer holidays and there’s quite a few weeks of hearing those words “I’m hungry, can I have a snack?”

In my house it’s not just small mouths to feed but the adults like to snack too, so here’s a few healthy, yet tasty snacks to keep the chocolate gremlin away and the energy tank topped up. The added bonus – these snacks are fun to make, so why not turn it into an activity to make a few snacks with the kids involved. Get someone else to clean up 😉

Ice-Cold

Instead of choc-ices and additive filled lollies try these fresh, fruity alternatives:

  • Frozen Grapes
  • Frozen slices of banana (tastes just like banana ice-cream)
  • Yoghurt Lollies: Mix your favourite yoghurt/fromage frais with a little milk, pour into an ice-lolly mould and push a few berries in
  • Juice Lollies: Dilute fruit juice with water and pour into a mould

Fruity Fix

  • Fruit Towers: cut up a selection of different shaped pieces of fruit – long fat blocks of melon, chunks of apple, halved grapes, pineapple pieces and let the kids make their own towers, top with a drizzle of chocolate sauce.
  • Hedgehogs: Slice the sides/cheeks off a mango, and cut each piece in half lengthways. Without cutting through to the skin, score 2 criss cross slits into the flesh, push up from the skin so the fruit pops up into a hedgehog.

Baking Time

  • Homemade flapjacks with plenty of dried fruit, oats and seeds.
  • Cheese scones.
  • Oatmeal cookies.
  • Chocolate chip and berry muffins

Dip Dip Dab

Dips are a great way to get kids into trying different foods. Make some of the following dips and serve with some of the following: breadsticks, pretzels, fingers of toast, rice cakes, cucumber, carrot, celery or pepper strips. Also great for lunches.

  • Guacamole: 1 ripe avocardo, juice 1/2 lime, 1 tbsp, half clove garlic, crushed. Mash it all together. Will go brown quickly, so eat on the day.
  • Tzatziki: Half a cucumber, peel, seed and grate, miz with 200g greek yoghurt and 1 tbsp mint.
  • Hummous: 1 tin chickpeas pureed with 1 clove garlic, 2 tbsp olve oil, juice of half a lemon and 2 tbsp natural yoghurt.
This post was writted for Slimsticks (www.slimsticks.com).