GUEST POST BY MELISSA THOMAS

With the school holidays upon us, and almost six weeks worth of entertaining and feeding to deal with, we thought we’d help out a bit by giving you some hassle-free ideas for healthy snacks for the kids.

The last thing you want when they’re home is to be revved up on high-sugar treats and bouncing around the place when you need to get stuff done, or some quiet time.

So, how about you gather the troops and get them cooking too?

If your kids are anything like mine, they’ll love mixing, whisking, and tasting as you go along. Then we can teach them all about cleaning up after themselves too (which is a battle unto itself, I know!). You need minimal time and these are also mostly prep-in-advance type recipes so would work well for all these outings we inevitably land up doing just to keep our busy-bodies busy!

So let’s get prepping and make sure that the healthier snacks are always within reach to make these holidays just that little bit easier but still delicious and fun!

1. Cinnamon French Toast

This is made using the Sleekgeek Kitchen Coconut Flour Bread premix which is gluten free, grain free, and added sugar free. You could choose to use store bought bread too.  [Order your premixes via the Sleekgeek online store]

For 1 serving

Ingredients

• 2 slices of SG Kitchen Coconut Flour Bread
• 1 egg, whisked
• ½ tspn ground cinnamon
• Pinch of salt

Method

1. Place frying pan over medium heat, and add a dollop of butter/oil of your choice.
2. Mix the egg with the cinnamon and salt.
3. Coat bread in egg and fry on both sides until lightly browned.

This is great served with bacon and maple syrup.

2. Apple Cookies

These are pure goodness and delight in a cookie. I kid you not! The kids love it, the grown ups love it, and if you manage to have some left over, they keep for a week in the fridge.

Yield: 6 cookies

Click here for details and pics on how to make these deliciously moreish cookies.

3. Snack Attack Trail Mix

This should take you all of 5 minutes so is definitely parent-friendly. I love making this and sealing them in little snack packs which the kids think is some store bought treat. Get inventive with the packaging if you’re so inclined – stickers are a great way to add some fun. These little packs are also very handy when packing an impromptu picnic basket!

Yield: 10 servings

Ingredients

• 2 cups mixed nuts (pecans, almonds, cashews, peanuts, walnuts)
• ½ cup coconut flakes, roasted
• ½ cup sunflower seeds
• ½ cup dried blueberries
• ½ cup dried cranberries
• ½ cup dried banana

Options: Add dark chocolate chips or other dried fruit of your choice for some variety.

Method

1. So this is simple – just mix it all together!
2. Pack as desired, store in an airtight container, and that’s it!

4. ChocNutty Bars

Yes, there’s chocolate but it’s dark, and you can add as much or as little as you want. You can also leave out the chocolate and break the granola up into clusters for breakfast too so this is a versatile recipe that is easily stored for up to one week, or in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Makes 8 – 10 bars using a 20cm X 20cm square baking dish

For the recipe – click here

Wrap these individually in wax wrap, and you’ve got yourself a snack bar that’s ready to go when you are!

5. Frozen Yoghurt Lollies

These are super simple to do, and which kid doesn’t like an ice lolly!? The recipe below makes for a really great alternative to store bought options.

Ingredients

• 2 cups double thick plain yoghurt
• ¾ cup strawberries/blueberries/raspberries (or buy a pack of frozen berry mix and use a cup of those)
• 1 banana
• 3 tblspns raw honey/date paste

Method

1. Blend the berries, banana and sweetener together.
2. Mix into the yoghurt, decant into ice lolly moulds, and freeze until ready.

6. Chicken and Apple Meatballs

Keep these in the fridge for 2-3 days, and you’ll have yourself a quick snack or an easy lunch/dinner that can be thrown together in no time. Serve as is with dips (yoghurt, hummus, tzatziki) and cucumber/carrot sticks, or add to a tomato pasta sauce for a more substantial meal.

For the recipe, visit my blog Living Spot

7. Sweet Potato Crisps

A packet of crisps is something that most kids are accustomed to having. The crunch, the taste – it gets them! So why not let them have it, but just make it a healthier version. You can package these into individual serving bags so that you can hand over a ‘packet of chips’ (just when they thought we were losing our minds with all this healthy living stuff, let’s keep them guessing shall we!?).

Yield: this depends on how many potatoes you use!

Ingredients

• 3 small sweet potatoes
• Pink Himalayan salt
• Coconut oil for frying

Method

1. Slice the potatoes thinly, into rounds.
2. Heat coconut oil in a pot/pan over medium-high heat.
3. Fry potato until crisp.
4. Remove from oil, sprinkle salt and toss.
5. Allow to cool thoroughly, seal in individual bags if using, and store in an air-tight container. I would use these up within 2 days.

8. Pumpkin Pizza

Cauliflower has been a go-to pizza base for a while, but this is so much easier to do! It’s sweeter too and adds to the flavour of the pizza without overpowering it. Very kid-friendly, and all good for mum and dad too! Toppings are entirely up to you, as is the addition of cheese if you allow for it.

To find out how to make it, click here.

Or, to save yourself even more time – head over to SG Kitchen and get their pizza base premix!

9. Play Date Platter

This is just an idea of what you could add but of course, it’s only limited by what you have on hand! Make them fun, fresh and delicious and by having this platter ready and easily accessible to the kids, they can snack and play and not hassle you every two minutes! You can also add seeds/nuts of your choosing if there are no allergies to worry about.

A Pick n Mix Table for platters

10. Seed Crackers with Nut Butter

This can be one of the kiddie-made recipes. They keep well in an airtight container and you can either make your own nut butters or buy them to make life easier (just check that there is nothing unnecessary added to it). SG loves the Body By Design Nut Butters.

 You can check out how to make the crackers here on Living Spot

So there you have it – ten ideas to get you started and keep the kids happy too. Don’t let the holiday derail your attempts at keeping the family healthy – there’s always an alternative to be found and made.

Have a happy, healthy holiday!