Easy, Healthy Snacks for Kids

Snacktime. My son loves his snacks and I know most other children do too. I find it’s also a good time to get in some healthy nutrients, especially if you tend to have trouble at mealtime. When it comes to food and snacks, kids love small, simple bites. Mini muffins, energy balls and cut-up fruit and veggies are normally big hits. You can also prepare many snacks ahead of time or pack them up to bring with you if you’re on the go. Here is a list of our favourite healthy snacks for kids, that are also adult-approved!

Veggies with Hummus or a Yogurt-Based Dip – This is K’s favourite snack, is so simple and also healthy. Hummus is perfect after-school or afternoon snack as it’s packed full of protein and is the perfect dip for veggies like carrots and celery. Alternatively, you can use a yogurt-based dip.
Apple slices with Peanut or Almond Butter – Remember ants on a log? That was one of my favourite snacks as a kid. You can spread a thin layer of nut butter on the apple slices and serve them with raisins if you want as well.
Fruit Kabobs – You can also easily add a honey yogurt dip to go along with these, although they’re sweet enough on their own too. We normally make up simple fruit kabobs for occasions like birthday parties, using whatever is in season. Fruits like pineapple, grapes, strawberries and melon work best for fruit kabobs.
Dried Fruit and Nuts – Packed full of nutrients and tasty, dried fruit like apricots and raisins mixed with nuts such as cashews and almonds, is a favourite in our house. This is also a great snack to take on the go and is a quick energy or hunger fix.
Hearty Muffins – I make at least one batch of muffins each week and love experimenting with new ones. Some of our favourites are Dreena Burton’s Apple Hemp muffins and Oh She Glows carrot spice muffins. You can also sneak tons of stuff into muffins like zucchini and carrots. Sprout Right, a wonderful cookbook for starting solids, also has a recipe for delicious healthy Sneaky Little Muffins for toddlers.
Smoothie – This is by far our go-to easy snack, especially for when we’re on the go. I’ll often make a Date Almond smoothie if we’re heading out somewhere like to the market or appointments in the morning and we can bring them with us in our smoothie cups. There are SO many variations, from a tropical smoothie, to a green smoothie, to really any combination you can think of, and it’s so easy to mix in greens and other healthy vegetables without the taste being too overpowering. You can also easily add in chia or hemp hearts which we do with almost every smoothie.
Energy Bars or Bites – We make a lot of raw snacks in this house as they’re full of nutrients, provide energy and are not only healthy but so delicious. There are also a ton of raw energy bar recipes, which makes things even quicker. Our go-to are these nutty chocolate chip energy bars. Some of our other favourites are Gimme Some Oven’s No Bake Energy Bites, Super Healthy Kids No-Bake Snack Bars, Oh She Glows Chewy Granola Bars and My Whole Food Life’s Apple Almond Energy Bites.
Yogurt with Granola – This is a great morning snack. Mix up some hearty granola with your favourite yogurt. If it’s plain, we’ll sometimes add a little bit of maple syrup for sweetness as well.
Kale Chips – I LOVE kale chips. I honestly prefer them to any store-bought potato chip. I just wish they lasted longer in our house haha. I find them slightly time consuming to make but the end result is so worth it. “Cheezy” kale chips are an especially easy way to get dark leafy greens into kids. Little Green Dot has a great recipe for yummy kale chips.
Almond Butter Banana Roll-Up – So delicious, easy to whip up and the kids love them. We spread a layer of nut butter on a mini tortilla (mix with a bit of honey and cinnamon for an extra-special treat), slice up some banana thinly, layer on top, then roll up tightly. Cut into small rounds (like sushi) and they are great bite-sized hearty snacks for little hands and mouths. This is also a favourite lunch item of K’s.