After-school snacks worldwide

[limabean]

A cooking show I was just watching (Barefoot Contessa) mentioned that a typical after-school snack in France is radish and butter sandwiches. I have no idea how true that is, but I never would have thought of making a radish and butter sandwich and might see if DS likes it, so it got me wondering about typical after-school snacks in other countries, and since we have so many international mamas here, I thought this would be a good place to share ideas. What may seem normal and boring to one might be exciting and new to another!

So maybe we could all share two things:

1) Our idea of typical after-school snacks in our country or region
2) Snacks we serve our own kids after school

[limabean]

Here are my answers:

1) I actually had trouble coming up with "typical" snacks for the U.S. -- maybe PBJ sandwiches? Or cookies and milk?

2) Stuff I serve my kids after school is:
Apples with cheese or peanut butter
Grilled cheese sandwiches
Yogurt and fruit or granola
Celery with peanut butter and raisins ("ants on a log")
Cookies and milk, sometimes

[Joyster]

I'm in Ontario Canada.

Typically the snacks are seasonal fruit. Which in the winter usually means fruit flown in from warmer countries or leftover apples from the cold cellar, or dried fruit. In the summer and fall, it's anything ranging from the best strawberries in the world, to wild blueberries.

We will also have cheese and crackers, homemade cookies and milk (often that comes after the fruit). Special days have the Canadian delicacy of hot chocolate and Tim bits.

[sewchris2642]

Have no idea what would be typical here in San Diego. I served fruit, yogert and granola, smoothies, popcorn, ice cream cones, cheese and crackers, peanut butter and crackers/carrrots/celery. When the girls were in high school, salads and pb&j or cheese sandwiches were favorites. Cold left over stir fry, pancakes, mac and cheese were not unheard of as afternoon snacks. Especially after swim practice.

[greenmansions]

Ahhh my grandma used to make me radish sandwiches - nice fresh butter, a little sprinkle of salt on top and warm bread. Yum. Takes me back...

For afternoon snacks, we have scrambled eggs, yogurt, fruit, crackers, veggie booty, cheese toast, cheese sticks, carrots, hmmm can't think of what else. I often wish for better ideas and some things that I know they would always eat. So often the kids don't want anything offered to them and are just plain cranky til dinner time.

[Roxswood]

I live in France and I haven't seen any children eating radish sandwiches lol.

Its normal here for children to have a "gouter" after school which would usually be at about 5pm and they don't eat dinner until later in the evening. My kids aren't in school though, my 5.5year old is in a steiner ecole maternelle and she finishes at lunchtime and we've pretty much stuck to our uk schedule of having a snack at 3pm and dinner between 5 and 6pm.

Chocolate spread and bread seems to be the number one most common snack with the children I see here, at least thats what dd seems to always end up with if she goes to anyone else's house at that time. To be fair though, if she's at home she often ends up with a cookie and milk for her snack because we don't do desserts or anything sweet the rest of the time and it just works better for her to have a set time when she is allowed something sweet and the rest of the time she doesn't ask so much. Home made banana and date muffins are a fave in our house tho with all of us for snacks.

[velochic]

Dh is from Turkey. The kids there take a 5 o'clock tea... that doesn't mean necessarily that they drink tea, though. They'll have a small pastry, cookies, nuts, olives & cheese, or small sandwich (not like sandwiches here in the US). The idea is to tide them over until supper, which is usually served around 8pm.

[thehighernest]

Originally Posted by Roxswood

Chocolate spread and bread seems to be the number one most common snack with the children I see here...

I grew up in Spain and this was, by far, the number one afternoon snack we children got: a good chunk of a baguette with chocolate/hazelnut spread or the bread with a couple of chocolate bar squares insides.

Another option would have been bread with cheese and then perhaps a mug of hot cocoa on the side, if it was cold anyway.

[LynnS6]

Our snacks are:
String cheese & fruit
Chocolate hazelnut spread (with or without bread)

We're in the US. I know are snacks are weird according to the neighborhood.

[velochic]

Originally Posted by LynnS6

Our snacks are:
String cheese & fruit
Chocolate hazelnut spread (with or without bread)

We're in the US. I know are snacks are weird according to the neighborhood.

How so? I don't see anything weird about them.

[crowcaw]

I don't know about typical but here we usually have raw vegetables (the usual -- carrots, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, cherry tomatoes...) with some kind of dip like humus along with a little cheese. It's the time of day when they're most amenable to eating vegetables for some reason, so that's what's offered and they eat a lot of it.

[autumnfairy76]

I also live in France and after asking my husband who grew up here, he agrees that radish sandwiches are not typical after school snacks and Nutella with bread or something sweet is more likely. I see many moms at the park give their children a french snack that is basically applesauce in a drink-able pouch.

However, I did try radishes with bread and butter for the first time here in france and was introduced to it as a french appetizer. I also have heard of it being served in the school cafeterias as a part of lunch.

[Peppermint Poppies]

My LO's aren't school aged yet, but afternoon snacks for DS is usually a cup of milo and a vegemite sandwhich or a tub of yoghurt. Sometimes some homemade cookies or slice if we've baked that morning. We're in Australia.

[aussiemum]

My kids generally eat a big after-school snack. Some of the more common things they eat are two-minute noodles with veggies; vegemite or nutella sandwich; hummus with raw veggies & water crackers; sliced apples with plain yogurt, cinnamon & honey; toasted cheese & capsicum sandwiches; quesedillas; a bowl of cereal; cheesy-tomato toast with hot cocoa. It has to be quick & filling because they usually have afternoon sport or something else on, & we don't eat tea until 7 most nights. I don't know what would be the typical AUssie afternoon tea for kids though, this is just things that they like to eat. I also like for them to have at least two serves of fruit/veg with this meal, & we do seem to have a lot of dairy this time of day.

[SquishyKitty]

Nutella
Bread w/cheese
Bread w/meat (small sandwich)

We do smoothies, cheese, fruit, or a slice of bread with some peanut butter and bananas squished in.

I try to make the snacks full of protein but still tasty.

[wagamama]

Great thread! I'm in Japan, and it seems pretty common for kids to eat junk food (cookies, chips, white bread) at snack time. But some mothers give healthier, traditional snacks such as:
Rice crackers
Rice balls (filled with fish, seaweed, etc.)
Baked sweet potatoes
Baked taro root dipped in soy sauce
Dried fish/squid

I don't give a big snack because we eat dinner at 5pm, so the kids have a small amount of something like the following, usually with a small glass of milk:
Baked sweet potatoes
Roasted potatoes
Rice crackers and dried fish
Homemade muffins or cookies
Raisin bread or sourdough with butter
Shrimp crackers

[annettemarie]

Moving to Nutrition and Good Eating

[bnhmama]

Not sure what's normal here but for us it's usually something like this:

Cheese (string or sliced)
leftovers
apple
crackers
bowl of cereal (This is the most common.)
peanut butter on crackers

[organicmidwestmama]

im a bit shocked reading that a lot of kids are given sweets only after school as a snack. yikes. nutella is yummy but should not be everyday fare in my opinion.

my kids get lunch meats, cheese, plain yogurt with berries and a 1/2 tsp pf sweetener, nuts, liverwurst, eggs, leftover nut-meal muffins.

[moondiapers]

I always give a protien of some kind with snack, and then fruit or crackers.

Peanut butter with apples, celery, or crackers.
Sliced or string cheese with fruit or crackers.
Melted cheese on toast etc.