Snacks, Snacks, Snacks...

[Free Thinker]

ANyone have any good healthy ideas for snacks for my 4 kiddos for summer? I'd love some popcycle recipies, cookies, any snackage!

Thanks!

[LemonPie]

I make smoothies regularly since I have a kid who refusees to eat fruits or veggies (but will eat them pureed). Leftover smoothie makes beautiful popsicles that are 'bite-able' and not rock-hard.

My recipe varies depending on what I have in the fridge, but it almost always contains plain or vanilla yogurt, frozen strawberries (I like them frozen because they thicken the smoothie), banana, and a bit of OJ concentrate. From there, I add various things--watermelon, rasberries, blueberries. Last night it was blackberries. If it comes out too tart, I add a bit of honey to sweeten.

For cookies I love THESE. I replace the shortening and margarine with real butter, use natural peanut butter and old-fashioned oatmeal, and I add 1 C semi-sweet chocolate chips (for the anti-oxidants of course ).

[organicmidwestmama]

subbing. i need inspiration too, nutrient-dense filling snack ideas anyone? my dc loves beef jerky but it is so expensive.

[cristeen]

Originally Posted by organicmidwestmama

subbing. i need inspiration too, nutrient-dense filling snack ideas anyone? my dc loves beef jerky but it is so expensive.

Make your own.

Frozen cubed watermelon makes a good hot weather snack, as do frozen blueberries.

[lil_earthmomma]

Originally Posted by cristeen

Make your own.

Frozen cubed watermelon makes a good hot weather snack, as do frozen blueberries.

:
Frozen grapes and frozen pitted cherries are awesome too!!!

Veggies and dip are always good.

Yogurt parfaits with frozen fruit and granola

fruit with peanut butter dip, yogurt dip, no dip! Fruit is our main summer snack, really!

[organicmidwestmama]

Originally Posted by cristeen

Make your own.

Frozen cubed watermelon makes a good hot weather snack, as do frozen blueberries.

how could i make my own jerky? would i need a dehydrator? my oven only goes as low as 170 degress unfortunately.

[Chakra]

Tiffany from nature moms has some of my favorite recipes. Sooooo healthy and most are raw!

http://www.naturemoms.com/blog/category/recipes/

[columbusmomma]

Originally Posted by Chakra

Tiffany from nature moms has some of my favorite recipes. Sooooo healthy and most are raw!

http://www.naturemoms.com/blog/category/recipes/

Those look great!

[cristeen]

Originally Posted by organicmidwestmama

how could i make my own jerky? would i need a dehydrator? my oven only goes as low as 170 degress unfortunately.

Slice it thin, marinate it, lay it on racks over a sheet pan (racks for air circulation, pan to catch drips), set your oven to it's lowest and prop the door open with a towel (just an inch or two) and let it dry overnight. Never try to dry stuff while it's humid (raining or muggy) though. It may need to be turned or flipped part way to dry evenly, and it may need more or less time depending on the thickness.

[californiajenn]

Originally Posted by organicmidwestmama

how could i make my own jerky? would i need a dehydrator? my oven only goes as low as 170 degress unfortunately.

I make mine with a box fan and cotton air filters, a la Alton Brown. Works really well AND is a conversation piece.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/a...ipe/index.html

I want to build metal trays to fit over the fan instead of using disposable filters next.

[Storm Bride]

Originally Posted by Tiger Lily

I make smoothies regularly since I have a kid who refusees to eat fruits or veggies (but will eat them pureed). Leftover smoothie makes beautiful popsicles that are 'bite-able' and not rock-hard.

I was going to say this, too. One my kids really love is cantaloupe, plain yogurt, a little honey and a splash of orange juice. I use about 1.5 cups each of cantaloupe and yogurt. The kids like it as a smoothie well enough, but they love it as a popsicle.

[Storm Bride]

I also have some decent granola bar recipes. They tend to fall apart a bit when I cut them, but they're really tasty...and not loaded with sugar. (I have 2 or 3 recipes and they've all got a little bit of brown sugar, but the main sweetener is honey...and there's not that much of that, either.)

[katmann]

I made some decent trail mix recently: Dried banana chips (unsweetened), raw almonds, yogurt-covered raisins (you could sub regualar raisins, craisins, currants, etc.), carob chips, and pumpkin seeds. You could add mini-pretzels or something like that, too. It's easy to make a big batch.

[veganf]

I try to keep snacks simple, usually just whole foods, raw fruits/veggies. If I do cook/prepare anything for a snack it's usually hummus or a smoothie.

[Elizabeth2008]

My son is 3 and he loves snacking on frozen peas (sounds weird to me, but he LOVES them), frozen cherries and frozen blueberries. Slices of banana with peanut butter or almond butter on top, smoothies or keifer, and sliced cheese are all staples in our house. He of course loves crackers too, but I try to limit those. He also likes that Evolution Organic-V vegetable juice. It's wickedly expensive, but it's pure carrot, beet, spinach and parsley juice so i figure if he likes it, it's worth spending a little extra to get those things down him. I give him about a third of the bottle at a time.

[tinybutterfly]

I try to keep cheese, crackers ( good ones) fruit, cut up veggies, hummus, pita, tuna, sometimes boiled eggs, tortilla chips and salsa...my boys did go through a beef jerky phase a few years back.