# Healthy Snacks that Ds Will Still Want to Eat While His Classmates Eat Sweets?



## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

In ds' class this year, each child is expected to bring their own snack to school every day.

(It's a half-day program, so they will not be eating a full meal while at school.)

I learned from last years experience that most parents send things like Little Debbie snacks with koolaid-type "fruit drinks".

(Last year, the teacher asked that the families take turns providing snacks for the entire class, so, despite the teacher-provided list of suggested, healthy-ish snacks, ds ate junk food nearly *every* day. He was thrilled! Me? Not-so-much.)

He understands, in theory, that we don't eat a lot of junkfood because it's not good for our bodies, and he doesn't complain about not having it at home, but he would never *choose* a healthier snack over junk.

I need inspiration for reasonably healthy snacks (I'm not all that crunchy), that will still seem appealing to a 5-year old when most of the other kids have donuts, etc..

I don't want healthier food to seem like a punishment, KWIM?

I'd love some snack ideas, and input from anyone who's been here, done this.

Thanks in advance!
alsoSarah


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## Becken (May 28, 2006)

Vegan Lunchbox is one of my favorite blogs about kid friendly school food. Most of these are complete meals, but she has lots of ideas for little snacks, too. Dig through the archives and see what you can find!


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## simple living mama (May 4, 2005)

My kids favorite healthy snack is hummus with tortilla and squeezed lemon.

If you have a gas range, fry up the tortilla directly on the burner until it looks homemade. It makes it taste much nicer.

If you don't have time to make hummus, buy a good boxed powered brand like "Fantastic" and it only takes a few minutes to make. Put a fresh lemon in your child's lunch box and let them do the squeezing. Great tasty healthy snack.


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

Cool site, Becken, thanks! I like the food ideas on site, *plus* I've always really liked bento box type things, and I wonder if something like that might make ds' snacks feel a bit more special....

Simple Living Mama, my ds likes veggies dipped in hummus, but I had never thought to leave the lemon out of the hummus I was making so that he can squeeze it on for himself.... I know that he will dig that aspect of it! Thank you!

At home, Ds is happy with snacks like
apples with peanut butter for dipping
popcorn
veggies with hummus for dipping
yogurt
berries or other fresh fruit
veggies and colby cubes with yogurt-based ranch dip
unsweetened applesauce
fruit leather
pasta with Thai-sh peanut sauce or tomato sauce for dipping (hot or cold)
granola bars
steamed green beans marinated in vinaigrette
rolled-up sandwiches on 15 grain bread
sliced cheese on crackers

All the usual kid's stuff.... but I'm worried that, in the face of other kids eating ho-hos, he's going to feel like he's getting a bad deal....

He's familiar with junk food.... way too familiar, by MDC standards.
(We eat dessert of some kind pretty much every night, and "special treats" are not by any means rare, especially when pms craving are hitting *me!*







)
So, he can identify a brownie at forty paces, and he adores them....

I just don't want eating reasonable food to feel like a sentence, kwim?

Thank you for the great tips, and please keep 'em coming!







:

alsoSarah


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## JaneS (Jan 11, 2003)

What about making your own muffins or cookies with healthy ingredients? Then you could make a few big batches, freeze some snack portions and rotate.

I'm planning to do this b/c DS can only have nut butter/flour baked things, no grains.


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## JaneS (Jan 11, 2003)

Or banana, zucchini or squash snack cake.


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## VikingKvinna (Dec 31, 2003)

How about some "Dandy Candy"? I got the recipe here and both DS and I love them. Infinite variations, too. They're really quite satisfying if you're craving a sweet, and yet still pretty good for you. No artifical stuff, and you can pack 'em with extras if you so choose.

Here's the original recipe that I cut-n-pasted. Credit where credit's due: it's courtesy of MDC member JanisB.









Dandy Candy

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup dry milk powder
1/2 to 3/4 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla

Optional additions:
1/2 cup carob powder or 1 cup granola, rolled oats or puffed cereal
1/4 cup nuts, chopped or seeds. coconut, wheat germ, sesame seeds
1 to 2 Tbs. water if mixture is too crumbly

1. combine peanut butter, milk powder, honey and vanilla in bowl.

2. mix with fork or spoon until ingredients are well blended.

3. for fudgy candy, add carob powder.

4. for chewy candy, add granola or oats.

5. for crunchy candy add puffed cereal. These are a little harder to roll, so you may prefer to pat this mixture into a pan.

6. chop nuts if oyu like.

7. shape into balls or a log. Roll in coconut, wheat germ, sesame seeds or a combination of all three.

8. cover or wrap in plastic wrap and put into refrigerator to chill for about an hour.

If you made logs, slice into bite size bits after chilling.


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

Great ideas!

I'll admit, it rarely occurs to me to make healthier versions of dessert-y foods.... Usually, I'm more of a "let's see how many forms of chocolate (and how much butter) we can get this dessert to hold" kind of girl.









But, I think that adding some healthy snacks that have the same sort of "feel" as the other kids' snacks will really save the day, in this situation.

*And,* I can expand my own dessert/snack-making horizons a bit, too!

This is going to rock, Mamas, thank you!









Let's see, in my current arsenal, I have:
Dandy Candy (Thanks, Kvinna!)
Carrot Walnut Muffins
Banana bread/Muffins
Zucchini bread/Muffins
Cocoa/zucchini muffins
Pumpkin Pecan muffins
The tastyrific apple cake/muffin recipe that I made up when I couldn't find one that was "apple-y" enough








Fruit crisps/crumbles

I have no tried-n-true healthy cookie recipes so far, though.
I've always been afraid that they'd be either hard, or too "cakey" and bland, for some reason.







:

If you mamas have healthy cookie recipes that you adore, please send 'em my way!

Off to do MDC cookie searches,
alsoSarah


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## VikingKvinna (Dec 31, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *alsoSarah*
Usually, I'm more of a "let's see how many forms of chocolate (and how much butter) we can get this dessert to hold" kind of girl.










I knew I liked you for a reason. heh.


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## serenetabbie (Jan 13, 2002)

Hey AlsoSarah, we are in the same boat







Although, my 5yo is more the type to try to sway opinions and impress everyone with how cool and cultured she is with different snacks.







My 8 yo is the one who wanted junk like all the rest of the kids have, and begged for Lunchables/bologna sandwiches on white bread/fruit roll ups/gummy "fruit". Blech. I let him try a lunchable at MIL's and he ate three bites before turning to me and saying "You were right, these ARE gross!"









Somethings that worked with my 8 yo;

fruit salad with yogurt "dressing" on the side
oatmeal cookies made with 1/2 whole wheat flour and molassas
a variety of muffins (which I se you have listed! I make most of mine up as I go based on what I have







)
carrot cake cookies
sliced or whole berries with a little raw sugar on top
rice pudding
crackers and slices of cheese

And... not really OT but, you want a really really fantastic "more butter, more chocolate" recipe??
So not healthy and so bad for you? I got it.


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## melissel (Jun 30, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *serenetabbie*
And... not really OT but, you want a really really fantastic "more butter, more chocolate" recipe??
So not healthy and so bad for you? I got it.

Erm, I don't know about Sarah, but I sure do!!!!







:

Mama, as soon as I can switch computers I'll be back to post our favorite apple muffin recipe. I make it almost entirely with stone ground whole wheat flour and a ton of grated apples, and the girls LOVE IT. Also, my older DD loves a bowlful of thawed mixed berries (Doles has great ones, though not organic) with a drizzle of real maple syrup (sometimes over vanilla yogurt). Mmmmm...


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

At that age sometimes fun shapes are a hit:

peanut butter and a banana rolled in a tortilla
pb & j rolled in a tortilla
a simple sandwich cut with a cookie cutter to a fun shape
cheese and crackers with the cheese in fun shapes


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *serenetabbie*
And... not really OT but, you want a really really fantastic "more butter, more chocolate" recipe??
So not healthy and so bad for you? I got it.

Oh, I think you *know* that I do!









alsoSarah


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## melissel (Jun 30, 2004)

OK, here's my contribution. They're so sweet, they'relike apple cake









Apple Muffins

(I generally "double" it and freeze a bunch for fast breakfasts and snacks. I get 18 medium sized muffins from the doubled recipe, they are fairly dense.)

3/4 c. whole wheat flour (I use 1 1/2 C)
1 c. flour (I use 1/4 C)
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 c. milk (I use skim)
1 egg, well beaten
1/3 c. oil
1/2 c. brown sugar (used less today, still very sweet!)
1 whole peeled, cored, grated/chopped apple

Preheat oven to 400° F. Mix together flour, baking powder and salt. Combine milk, egg, oil and sugar. Add this mixture along with the grated apple to the dry ingredients. Stir just until moistened. It will be lumpy. Fill greased or paper lined muffin pans 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes. Makes 12 small muffins, or 9 medium sized (my size







) ones.

---

I made these this morning and added more apple than I used to (used to be 1 whole apple, today I used 1 1/2). It came out great, although you definitely still have lots of apple slivers (which doesn't bother me at all, might bother some).

HTH!


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## serenetabbie (Jan 13, 2002)

Ok, but be forewarned, it is NOT healthy, and really has no place here on MDC at all in any way, shape or form... but it is sooooo good. It is from Jill Conner Browne's book The Sweet Potato Queen's Book of Love.

~Chocolate Stuff~

2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
One stick real butter (NOT unsalted)
2 fairly heaping tablespoons of Hershey's Cocoa (in the dark brown box)
1 running over teaspoon of vanilla
Optional: a whole bunch of pecans, chopped up fine

Beat first 3 ingredients. Add salt. Add melted butter and cocoa. Then add vanilla and nuts if you choose. Pour The Stuff into a greased loaf pan, set the loaf pan in a pan of water, and stick the whole business in the oven set at about 300 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes. Take it out when the top gets crunchy. You can't undercook it since it's good raw, but you don't want to overcook it and lose the gooey bottom so crucial to the whole texture experience.


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## NannyL (Oct 11, 2005)

Ooh - my mom makes some great "trail mix" cookies. Lots of dried fruits and peanut butter and wheat germ etc. They are seriously good, and very nutrient-dense. (Around my house, we called them "hoof arted" cookies, as each one has a gram of fiber...)

She's sending me the recipe and I'll post it tomorrow.


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

The apple muffins sound good, and probably less apple overload than mine!








thanks, Melissel!

The Chocolate Stuff..... well, I probably won't get to the stroke of midnight without succumbing to *that* little siren song!









alsoSarah


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## melissa17s (Aug 3, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *JaneS*
What about making your own muffins or cookies with healthy ingredients? Then you could make a few big batches, freeze some snack portions and rotate.

I have been doing something very similar for my ds because he is starting kindergarten. I have been making one batch of snacks each day this month to get a good start. Only thing is, we have had a problem with family members wanting to eat the snacks now instead of leaving them for ds for later...









Another thought... send little pizza pockets, spring rolls, dim sum, or samosas


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## serenetabbie (Jan 13, 2002)

You have to come back and let me know how it was Sarah! I made it for a pot luck and everyone liked it a lot (except one woman who told me my brownies were horrible... but she is derranged anyhow so I discounted that







). There was not a scrap left over.


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## NannyL (Oct 11, 2005)

TRAIL MIX COOKIES

Chop together in the food processor:
1 cup raisins
½ cup dried apricots
¼ cup sunflower seeds

In a medium size bowl, stir together:
1/3 cup nonfat dry milk powder
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup rolled oats or oatmeal (old-fashioned, not quick cooking)
¾ cup whole wheat flour
½ cup wheat germ

Cream together:
½ cup peanut butter
½ cup butter or shortening
1 egg
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir the dry mixture and the chopped fruit into the creamed mixture. The batter will be stiff. Spoon the mixture onto cookie sheets, making 36 cookies about 25 grams each. Flatten the cookie slightly, it will be about 2 inches in diameter. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 8 - 12 minutes. Let cool on rack and store in a tin. These cookies stay very fresh for several days and freeze well.

Nutritional analysis per cookie: 124 calories, 3 grams protein, 17 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams fat, 40 mg. sodium, 2 grams fiber.


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## leomom (Aug 6, 2004)

Ooohhh..what a fun thread!

I don't know how healthy these are...but they're better than the usual...

For choc. chip cookies, I use the toll house recipe. I half the sugar, use whole wheat flour, add 1/2 cup oatmeal, and 1/3 cup wheat germ. For dd who doesn't eat choc. yet, I leave out the choc. chips. She loves them!

Can someone tell me how to make a yogurt based ranch dip for veggies?


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

Well, crap.

I set out to make the chocolate stuff, and it wasn't until I had already thrown in two extra forms of chocolate with the butter and started to melt it all, that I realized I was making my usual brownie recipe, apparently on autopilot!









Can you tell that we a lot of brownies around here?

Ah well, I'll have to make it soon! Any excuse to up my chocolate intake....

alsoSarah


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

Ooooh, the trail mix cookies sound good, too! Thank you!

Leomom, how does the texture come out in the healthified Toll House cookies?

Melissa17s, I think that the pizza pockets, etc. are a good idea, and will be well-received...

Thank you, Mamas, for all of your help!









I feel much better about this whole situation now!

alsoSarah


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## leomom (Aug 6, 2004)

Sarah, The texture is fine. I've tried putting more wheat germ in them and they get too dry. They don't need to cook as long, though. Maybe about 9 minutes (recipe says 9-11). They are fluffy b/c of the oatmeal.

Do you buy the yogurt ranch dip or make it? Thanks!


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

Well, leomom, you can either go the homemade route (I use plain low fat (never nonfat) yogurt, either drained overnight and then mixed w/buttermilk, or on its own), with garlic, onion powder, chives, parsley, thyme, pepper --and a pinch of lemon zest, if you like), or you can stir ranch dressing mix into plain yogurt.

It also works with small curd cottage cheese.

Hth,
alsoSarah


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## leomom (Aug 6, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *alsoSarah*
Well, leomom, you can either go the homemade route (I use plain low fat (never nonfat) yogurt, either drained overnight and then mixed w/buttermilk, or on its own), with garlic, onion powder, chives, parsley, thyme, pepper --and a pinch of lemon zest, if you like), or you can stir ranch dressing mix into plain yogurt.

It also works with small curd cottage cheese.

Hth,
alsoSarah

Thanks!


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## 2kidsmamma (Nov 22, 2005)

Bananas are cool! Have your ds try one while he scratch under his arm and say "eee, EEE, eee, ooooooOO".

Val with ds (10/02) & dd (7/05)














:







:







: etc, etc, etc


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## smeta (Dec 15, 2001)

:


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## melissa17s (Aug 3, 2004)

Speaking of bananas... on of ds' favorite banana snacks is to cut a banana length wise, then sandwich peanut butter (could use other nut butters or seed butters) between the two halves. We then cut the banana into smaller sections.

Along the fruit lines, another dip idea is to mix some brown sugar with cream cheese (you will have to decide what amounts are good for you) and it makes a carameling tasting dip for apples or pears- yummm.


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## MommyofPunkiePie (Mar 24, 2005)

:


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## Babytime (May 4, 2004)

I'm planning on sending lots of fruit kabobs with yogurt to dip and veggie sticks with some sort of dip; homemade cookies like monkey cookies and oatmeal raisin and yogurt with granola sprinkles. These are all my DD's favorite snacks and what kid does not like to dip?!


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## ikesmom (Oct 29, 2005)

I second that rice pudding! any ideas on what other kinds of pudding will work? We like vanilla yogurt with a graham cracker crumbled on top. I'm not sure if the cracker is necessarily healthy but u could use a healthier version.


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## Livi's Mama (Apr 25, 2003)

subbing


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## leomom (Aug 6, 2004)

What do you use to put your fruit on for the kabobs?

Ikesmom, Barbara's Bakery makes grahams without transfat.







The regular ones have it, though.

What are monkey cookies? DD is obsessed with monkeys!


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## davmon (Jun 21, 2003)

shameless bump!!

Mona


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## Babytime (May 4, 2004)

Monkey cookies are little banana bread cookies. Very yummy! There are a lot of recipes for them online ... here's one ...

http://www.allhomemadecookies.com/re...keycookies.htm

I use plastic coffee stirrers for fruit kabobs wiht a little cup of YoBaby yogurt for dip. It's a very popular snack around here.


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## J-Max (Sep 25, 2003)

OK, I will add 2 of our favorite recipes around here, 1 heathly and one not, but full of chocolate and butter









My girls love hummus and tortilla (or anything to dip), peanut butter and honey and a tortilla and rolled up (penut butter roll-ups), fruit trail mix (all different chunks of dried fruit - no nuts), veggies sticks and dill dip (1 block cream cheese, 1/2 cup mayo, 1/2 cup plain yogart, 2-3 tbs dill, little lemon juice, some chives, blend and let sit an hour )

*Lara Bars*
(I think i got this from some one here, but don't remember who)
my girls have lived off of these this summer.

1 cup nuts (pecans, cashews, etc.)
12-15 large dates, pitted and roughly chopped
1 tsp each of ground cinammon, cardamom and cloves

Put the nuts in a food processor. Chop until in small pieces. Add the spices. Add dates, a few at a time, and process until the dates and nuts make a paste. If you grind the nuts first, the fat from the nuts will keep the dates from sticking to the blender. Blend to combine, and turn out onto wax paper. I just use my hands to smooth it out, but you could easily put another piece of wax paper on top and use a rolling pin. You could add any dried fruit and/or nuts to this I usually double the recipie and use the above called for amount of dates and for the rest use dried approcots, mangoes, papyas, cherries, and/or blueberries. I have found it is roughly 2 cups of fruit to a cup of nuts to get the right consistency.

Cut into small squares for perfect toddler-size snacks; bigger for mommies. I wrap each bar in saran and keep in the fridge, because they do get soft.

*
Yummy Oatmeal-peanut butter-chocolate chip cookies
*
I make these a lot, and they are always a hit!

1/2 lb butter (2 sticks)
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup peanut butter
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups quick oatmeal
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups choc chips

*(I some times substitute coconut oil for half of the butter, not the right consitiancy if you only use it, and I use only whole wheat flour and natural PB)

Beat butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and PB untill light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and mix untll fully incorperated. Add oats, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Mix untill blended. Add choc chips. Cook at 350 for 10-13 min. DO NOT cook untill brown on top, they will just be puffed up and very soft feeling. Let cool and enjoy!

* I usually add about 1/2 the choc chips when I am mixing, then I press dough into cookie sheet and press the other half on top. You can make these as regular cookies, but I am lazy and make bar cookies. You can also add raisins and/or nuts.

I have played with this a ton and it cooks perfectly in my Pampered Chef stone cookie sheet, but not in a regular metal one, so you may have to adjust the time/temp some if you use a metal pan.


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## Pinky Tuscadero (Jul 5, 2003)

I got a Twinkie pan that makes little cakes that really look exactly like twinkies. I make corn bread or corn dogs(with hot dogs from the farm) in it. You could make any kind of cake type thing in it and it would look like the real thing.


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## daisylynn (Dec 24, 2005)

I don't have anything to add, just had 2 quick questions.

Some of you mentioned yogurt "dips". How do you make that? Or is it just yogurt, with nothing added, used for dipping? And speaking of yogurt, what percentage is whole? I have looked for whole milk yogurt but only see the m.f. %.

Does anyone have a good recipe for muffins? All the packaged muffin mix I find has too much sugar for what I would like. I want one with little/no sugar.

Thanks!


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## Rach (Nov 11, 2003)

:
What a great thread!!


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## craftymom (Jun 27, 2005)

This is a toughie. I've been fortunate (so far) to be at schools where the kid who's dad gave 3 bags of funyuns for lunch got stared at in horror by the other kids!

Some thoughts:
--Homemade oatmeal and choc chip muffins; cranberry choc chip muffins; orange chic chip muffins (you get the picture)
--Fruit--especially a few things of different colors packed in a cute container with dividers (the other kids will be so jealous of his container!)
--Cute veggie animals--like celery with nutbutterand pretzel stick legs, or something, if he's into stuff like that (my kids won't eat anything cute, they play with it and want to keep it







)


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## Babytime (May 4, 2004)

Where did you get the Twinkie pan? I can think of lots of possibilities with that pan!


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## blissful_maia (Feb 17, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *daisylynn*
Some of you mentioned yogurt "dips". How do you make that? Or is it just yogurt, with nothing added, used for dipping?

You could use a fruit-type yogurt, since they are already sweet! But what I prefer to do is use plain yogurt and mix either a tiny splash of maple syrup (you need barely any to make the yogurt soooo sweet) or a little spoon of my homemade jam (also lower in sugar). My dd actually prefers to eat plain yogurt with fruit, so you could try this too! Fruit is already pretty sweet.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *daisylynn*
And speaking of yogurt, what percentage is whole? I have looked for whole milk yogurt but only see the m.f. %.

Whole is usually around 3.8%, same as whole milk.


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## 2kidsmamma (Nov 22, 2005)

One more suggestion: Robert's American Gourmet Veggie Booty


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## leomom (Aug 6, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *2kidsmamma*
One more suggestion: Robert's American Gourmet Veggie Booty

My dd LOVES this!!


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## Momof3inMI (Feb 28, 2006)

:
Subbing.
Thanks for all the great ideas. Lets hope they work on a 12 y/o, who is set in her eating ways.


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## kroonkles (Jan 20, 2004)

subscribing


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## HappyToBe (Jul 31, 2006)

I have to come back & check this out more. One quick suggestion...homemade cereal bars! Someone posted an incredible recipe in the Nutrition forum some time ago for cereal bars that calls for rice crispies, peanut butter & choc chips. Hold on...it actually is healthy







and tastes just like Cliff Bars. If anyone can't find it, I probl. have it online.

Oh and I just bought a stainless thermos (short & fat, wide mouth) to send ds his favorite lunches; ie. fried rice, spagetti, etc.


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## HappyToBe (Jul 31, 2006)

Oh and re: yogurt, I've found that often the regular dairy section doesn't have whole milk yogurt. Try the natural foods/organic section. We get Brown Cow or Nancy's.


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

You mamas rock my world!







:

alsoSarah


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## ikesmom (Oct 29, 2005)

This might be a little non AP but I will admit I am doing it. When I see stickers of characters ds likes I buy them. He really wanted Scooby Doo snack chips that someone brought to his class. He talked about them like they were the greatest thing invented. So I put Scooby stickers on some tissue paper and wrapped his veggie crackers in it. A little firefighter sticker at the tip of the toothpic made eating grapes more exciting. I know it plays into commercialism but it makes him feel special.


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## Momof3inMI (Feb 28, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *ikesmom*
This might be a little non AP but I will admit I am doing it. When I see stickers of characters ds likes I buy them. He really wanted Scooby Doo snack chips that someone brought to his class. He talked about them like they were the greatest thing invented. So I put Scooby stickers on some tissue paper and wrapped his veggie crackers in it. A little firefighter sticker at the tip of the toothpic made eating grapes more exciting. I know it plays into commercialism but it makes him feel special.

I think that is a great idea. My DD starts preschool in a few weeks, I'll have to try that with her.


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## lilyka (Nov 20, 2001)

how does he feel about being singled out with an alternate snack? Unless they could fall back on a medical reason my kids would be mortified. and would prefer not to have snack at all rather than bring out something other kids might tease them about. I know I would have felt the same way.

i think it would be more worth the effort to work on having healthy snacks for everyone. parents and teachers got together and fussed at my MIls preschool and it ended up with "approved" list. certain types of crackers (including easy ones like ritz) and real cheese, any fruit, pretzles, granola bars, etc It wasn't perfect but it wasn't little debbies and fruit snacks either. also in light of new carpeting they had a strict "water only" policy.

i woudl work on changing the rules before I made my child the odd guy out. it doesn't matter how good the alternate snack is if it is different. not to mention it is just better for all the students if the snacks are reletively healthy and low sugar and more natrual.


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## leomom (Aug 6, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *lilyka*
i think it would be more worth the effort to work on having healthy snacks for everyone. parents and teachers got together and fussed at my MIls preschool and it ended up with "approved" list. certain types of crackers (including easy ones like ritz) and real cheese, any fruit, pretzles, granola bars, etc It wasn't perfect but it wasn't little debbies and fruit snacks either. also in light of new carpeting they had a strict "water only" policy.


I see where you're comig from, but I disagree. I would rather supply the snacks for my dd and kow what she was eating daily, rather than rely on other parents' interpretations of a "healthy" snack. For instance, I wouldn't let my dd eat Ritz (or most granola bars) b/c they are chock full of trans fat and other yuckies, IMHO.







I also think that if everyone has different snacks, the kids aren't going to see this child's as healthy and therefore not good. All of the snacks will be different, and if this child's has some "pizz-azz" no one will be the wiser to the nutritional content.







Again, just MVHO.


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## chlobo (Jan 24, 2004)

subbing.


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## alsoSarah (Apr 29, 2002)

I think that your point about it being best for *all* kids to have healthy snacks is a good one, Lilyka.

I tried to get some suport behind that idea last year, and I was met with a lot of, "my kids don't eat *that stuff*," (when I hadn't even made specific suggestions, just broad ones.... so it came off more as hostility toward the whole concept than anything else







: ), and a lot of parents who said that healthier snacks would cost too much.... which depends on what each family chooses to send....

alsoSarah


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## lilyka (Nov 20, 2001)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *leomom*
I also think that if everyone has different snacks, the kids aren't going to see this child's as healthy and therefore not good.

i was under the impression that all the kids had the same snack (one parent bringing for the class) and the child in the original post would be the only one not allowed to have what everyone else was eating. It does make a huge difference if everyone is bringing thier own snacks. no will erally notice what everyone else is having and it really doesn't matter (from a social perspective) what the guy next to you has.

we just got snack assignments for my dds co-op. they are militant (not to mention feeding our children massive amounts of food!) My assinged snack is 6 pounds of small apples. about $8 for organic. $6 for regular. not as cheap as 3-4 boxes of little debbies or fruit snacks but not going to break the bank either. too expensive. I say keep fighting it. (easy for me to say







)


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## Peppermint (Feb 12, 2003)

So many great suggestions, I was thinking too, what I did with my dd was sent the types of snacks she has at home along with something little like a chocolate kiss, or 3 pieces of candy corn, or a Choc. Chip cookie. The true "junk" was not anywhere near enough to kill her snack need, but she felt like she was getting something close to the other kids, and would still happily eat the yogurt or nuts I sent







.


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## callmemama (May 7, 2002)

In a pinch, mix up some trail mix. Equal parts dried fruits and nuts ... and chocolate chips.







I try to use at least 3 different dried fruits and 3 different kinds of nuts. The chocolate ratio isn't quite as high then.


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## serenetabbie (Jan 13, 2002)

I have been packing healthy snacks now for two weeks for my kids. DD (in K) said that the other kids are asking to try her "different" snacks! YAY! Props to Mommy!









I get whole milk yogurt at the store... Stonyfeild farms makes it in plain and in vanilla. I usually buy plain and make it into dip (use in place of sour cream) or add a little applesauce (or plum sauce or whatever) or jam.









What kills me is the school sent home a long note detailing the types of snacks the kids were allowed to bring in. It said, very clearly, NO CANDY. What does the school supply for snacks? Fruitsnax. Um, _not_ fruit people!


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## TeresaLovesTy (Apr 28, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *HappyToBe*
I have to come back & check this out more. One quick suggestion...homemade cereal bars! Someone posted an incredible recipe in the Nutrition forum some time ago for cereal bars that calls for rice crispies, peanut butter & choc chips. Hold on...it actually is healthy







and tastes just like Cliff Bars. If anyone can't find it, I probl. have it online.

Oh and I just bought a stainless thermos (short & fat, wide mouth) to send ds his favorite lunches; ie. fried rice, spagetti, etc.

Hi HappyToBe,

If you can please send me the homemade cereal bar recipe that would be great. Looking forward to trying it!

Thanks a bunch!

Teresa


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## rosie29 (Aug 18, 2004)

Oh! Good thread! Bumping up.


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## Samjm (Mar 12, 2005)

Just wanted to add, you can do a search on a website like http://www.recipezaar.com for muffins and you'll literally get thousands of choices. You can make most of them healthier by using the following subs:

You can usually safely sub half the (white) flour with whole wheat without any discernable difference. Any more than that and your muffins start getting too dense.

You can sub apple sauce for most of the oil. I find that all apple sauce makes the muffins too dry. You want to leave at least 2 tablespoons of oil in. I usually leave 1/4 cup. (You can use other fruit purees too, depending on the flavor of the muffin eg pumpkin, banana, prune - great for chocolate stuff, etc)

You can usually cut the sugar in half or even only add 1/3 with no difference, especially if you're subbing a fruit puree for most of the oil (the fruit puree is sweeter than the oil would be). In sweeter muffins you might be able to only use 1/4 of the sugar in the recipe.

You can pretty much always added dried fruits, raisins, nuts etc as an extra if desired.


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