It’s day 834882248 of “quarantine” with minimal play dates and eating out. Are you tired of cooking yet? Tired of serving up 7,000 snacks per day? No? Just me? The struggle is getting REAL. I’m here to save the day and give you a few new snack ideas that will not only satisfy the ‘starving’ children, but also hopefully take up a good chunk of time for them to devour as well.
Snack tray
This is my absolute go-to and I know I’ve shared about this super simple snack many times before. On particularly restless days my kids will often ask for snacks every 30 minutes or less. Instead of allowing this, I make them one snack for the whole morning – a muffin tin with several different options to satisfy them for a longer time. They think they are hitting the jackpot since it looks like a lot of food, when really its the same amount they would normally get without the millions of questions and hours of whining.
Snack hunt
A game and a snack in one. Place small snacks in plastic eggs or even just ziplock bags and hide them in easy to find places around the house. Then send the kids on a hunt to find them and eat their snacks. This should take up a good chunk of your day!
Charcuterie board
This is my favorite lunch to make and share with the kids. I always choose adult snacks as well as kid friendly items to put on the board so we can both eat from it. I also try to sneak a few healthy things and new foods for them to try. It’s much easier to get them to try new foods when they reach for it themselves. We’ve learned that Cole loves snap peas and Ella loves kiwi from eating a charcuterie board lunch.
Apple Donuts
On the days when it seems like all the kids want to snack on is junk, I love to pull this snack out to trick them into thinking I’m giving them a treat. All you do is cut the apple into circular slices, punch a hole in the middle, “frost” the ring with yogurt, and add a few sprinkles for looks. Apples that look just like donuts!
Fruit Ice Cream Cones
Another good trick, I mean alternative, for dessert when you don’t feel like dealing with the certain crash ice cream always brings. Cut up fruit in an ice cream cone and top with cool whip (or homemade whip, which is actually super easy and delicious to make). Don’t forget the sprinkles!
Build-Your-Own Trail Mix
Do you have several partially empty cracker/pretzel/nut containers in your pantry? It feels like this always happens to us. Instead of letting them go stale before we finish them all, I like to pull out all of the options and let the kids build their own mix. Pro tip if you get some resistance on this – a few M&M’s go a long way!
Good luck and happy snacking friends! Remember – this Summer will be a marathon, not a sprint. I’m here for you always and forever.
