Courtesy of ShopWell
Planning healthy meals and healthy snacks for a family can be a true test of creativity and diplomacy. Having several meals and plenty of healthy snacks at the ready for when hunger strikes (especially with picky eaters at the table) can tax even the most experienced parents. The trick is not to reinvent the wheel. Offer a variety of foods and make them readily available to encourage a healthy diet and eating habits that will carry your kids through into adulthood. ShopWell has done half the work for you with this long list of healthy snack ideas that will help preserve your sanity during even the craziest weeks (don’t miss the ShopWell Pinterest board).
Refrigerated Snacks
- String cheese
- Snack bag filled with sliced fruit or cleaned and prepped berries
- Snack bag filled with baby carrots/carrot wedges, bell pepper strips, or celery sticks
- Cheese cut into star shapes (aim for 1-2 ounces) in a snack bag
- Individual serving size hummus containers
- Hardboiled eggs
- Banana bread slices or zucchini muffins made with a whole grain flour
- Yogurt cups
- Snack bag filled with edamame (in the shells – it’s more fun that way)
Non-perishable Snacks for the Pantry
- Bananas and other fruits (uncut to prevent browning)
- Nut/Seed butter in individual packets
- Snack bag filled with whole wheat crackers or pretzels
- Sandwich bag with 2 rice cakes
- Sandwich bag of popcorn – lightly salted and flavored works great
- Snack bag with ¼ cup of trail mix (if you are feeling adventuresome you can make your own by mixing and matching nuts, whole grain cereal, dried fruit, and a little something sweet)
- Granola bars – look for ones that have 80-120 calories per serving and > 2 grams of fiber
- Individual fruit cups packed in their own juice (not syrup)
- Snack bag filled with ¼ cup dried fruit
- Snack bag filled with ¼ cup of dry roasted nuts (pistachios in the shell are always fun to eat)