Healthy Snack Ideas (for kids!)
Snacks are my nemesis, there’s no way around it. It’s like as soon as I’m done cleaning up from breakfast or lunch, it’s time for a snack. And since snacks should be like mini-meals (at least for kids), it’s like I’m making five meals a day instead of three 💆♀️.
Similar to how I build their meal plates, I focus my kids’ snacks around protein, produce, and healthy fat. This helps ensure they’re satisfied and can be held over until the next meal. These are some of my go-to (some pictures are included at the end for anyone else who’s more visual, like me!):
whole wheat crackers + carrot sticks + cheddar cheese cubes
blender muffins + cheese stick + sliced apple
whole wheat English muffin with nut butter + hemp seeds + carrot sticks
blender muffin + crackers + fruit (this is higher in carb, but the muffins have plenty of fat & protein in them)
banana + nut butter + hemp seeds
whole wheat crackers + tzatziki dip + carrot sticks
ants on a log (celery + nut butter + raisins)
full-fat Greek yogurt + grapes (quartered for kids under 4)
full-fat Greek yogurt + granola + berries
whole wheat bread + cottage cheese + cucumber spears
yogurt dip + sugar snap peas + pita
Other Snack Ideas
Over the years I’ve used a lot of the recipes from Min Kwon’s e-cookbook Baby Led Weaning Beginner Bites, Introducing Top Allergen Foods. It's $10, and I rotate through at least half a dozen recipes regularly, such as Carrot Oat Muffins, Zucchini-Kale Ricotta Muffins, and Zucchini and Sweet Potato Muffins. I’d definitely recommend this e-book, or visit her website for other baby & kid-friendly recipes. She has a free e-cookbook if you want to give her a try!
I love these pumpkin muffins for more of a "treat" muffin (just because there's a little sugar in these). They're more like a traditional muffin than the blender muffins, so I'll snack on these, too. Other recipes I’ve tried and the kids seemed to like well enough are these Apple-Cinnamon Muffins and these Blender Double Chocolate Spinach Muffins.
Min's e-cookbook also has non-muffin recipes that I like to give the kids, such as Veggie Cheese Sticks, Pumpkin Oat Bread, Shrimp Sweet Potato Cakes, Butternut Squash Sesame Balls, Chili Veggie Bread, and Strawberry Chickpea Cookies. Important Note: Min's book is specifically about introducing common allergens, so please keep that in mind if/when offering these recipes, especially to babies just starting their solids journey.
Muffins I Want to Try
I'm always looking for new kid-friendly, nutrient-packed recipes to try. These are on my short list:
Easy Spinach Muffins with Sweet Potato
Pineapple Coconut Muffins (this would be a different flavor profile for us!)
Kid-Friendly Southwestern Oat Muffins (same as above, these would be a different flavor for us)
Final Thoughts
When offering something like a baked good, I try to pair it with a healthy fat, usually full-fat Greek yogurt (plain, to avoid added sugars), cottage cheese or cheddar, as well as some form of raw veggie, usually carrot sticks, cucumber, quartered cherry tomato, broccoli, etc. This just amps up the nutrient content, giving your kids the energy and support their growing bodies need!