What a great time to get the kids involved in food preparation and cooking by making fun snacks to eat!

This is a fun way to encourage children to help with food preparation. Let them take charge of preparing some of their own snacks. It will also be teaching them how to make healthy choices. There are many other benefits of putting kids to work in the kitchen. A child who has a hand in making their own snack may be more likely to eat it. It will also teach them how to handle food and serve food!

Let’s begin making our “Fun Snacks”

Trail Mix

You will need:

• Small containers or plastic bags to fill with healthy foods
• Assorted ingredients to make your own trail mix. Below are some examples but feel free to substitute with other snacks you have at home!
  • Raisins
  • Low sugar, whole-grain cereals
  • Sunflower or pumpkin seeds
  • Dried Fruits like apples, papaya, or cranberries
  • Chocolate chips
  • Nuts

Give your child a chance to have the choice of exactly what goes into the trail mix. 

Yogurt Layers

Kids love to create colorful food and yogurt is a great snack!

You will need:

• Vanilla Yogurt
• Fruits (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, or any other fruits your child likes)
• A container for your creation – we recommend a clear cup so you can see how nice it looks when you’re done!

1. Spoon some vanilla yogurt into a clear bowl or cup.
2. Create a layer of fruit.
3. Repeat until your cup is almost full
4. Optional: Sprinkle a little bit of granola or a crunchy whole-grain cereal on top to add a little crunch!

Ants on a Log

There are several variations of ants on the log so you can make this snack even more fun! All these suggestions are nut-free and delicious!

1. Wash a few stalks of celery and break them up into pieces that are about three inches long. If you do not like celery you can also use a piece of banana or carrot stick as the log. 
2. Fill your celery stalk and add a topping to represent the ants. Below are a few different ideas!
   1. Fill the celery stalk with hummus and add chopped up vegetables to represent the ants. Small chunks of colorful peppers or carrots work well.
   2. Use cottage cheese to fill up the logs then top each log with bits of fruits & veggies.
   3. Fill the logs with guacamole dip and use black beans to represent the ants.

‘Til next time,

Neddie Spaghetti

Activity by Neddra English, Hardy Site

Photos from the internet