As a busy parent, it is difficult at times to prepare a healthy but also nutritious snack all at the same time. You might be tempted to reach for those high calorie, sugar packed, and fat filled “quick” snacks. Keep in mind most of those items are considered “junk” food that can slow down your child’s metabolism, cause digestion problems, and making your kids sluggish and inactive. This is why The Lunch MOB is devoted to providing healthy, fresh, and tasty lunches to kids in the Orange County area.

Here at The Lunch MOB we have put together 4 quick and easy snacks that you can prepare for your kids. These are great ideas to throw into their lunches, serve at your upcoming holiday party, or simply provide after the holidays are all complete.

Party Cheese Ball Pops for the Holidays

Holiday party cheese ball pops are similar to the classic cheese ball. However, you can kick this cheeseball up a notch with adding the flavors of cranberries and toasted pecans that make it sweet but healthy. It is a perfect treat for the kids during the holiday parties or just as a snack.

Bagel Buddies

Most kids despise veggies, you may even go as far as to say “hate”, simply because of the “earthy” taste, and that is why some skip their veggies or meals altogether. Bagel Buddies come with a happy smiling face to lure kids into eating their much needed veggies. For a homemade bagel buddy, spread a half piece of bagel with cream cheese (who doesn’t love cream cheese?) and trim the other half of the bagel to form a hat and fit it to the first piece you have cream cheese on. Decorate the edge of the hat with broccoli florets and press two halves of black olives to form eyes. Attach two halves of a grape tomato to the bagel to form the cheeks and complete your masterpiece with a chive smile and a bell pepper scarf.

Herb Topped Sesame Crackers

This is a very simple recipe we love here at The Lunch MOB. On your next grocery store visit, pick up some whole wheat sesame crackers, or you may also be able find gluten free ones depending on where you like to shop. Apply a thin layer of cream cheese to your sesame crackers. Then sprinkle your or your kids favorite dried herbs right on top. Change it up with some dried basil, or some dried chives. You can also find no salt dried herb mixes at the grocery store, which can result in an explosion of flavor your kids will love! Play around with different herb options until you find the ones your kids like.

Healthy Version of a Gingerbread House

What child doesn’t love building a gingerbread house and then of course eating it right after? How about a healthy spin on a holiday kid favorite? To make this Holiday healthy version, first take some graham crackers, these will form the walls, doors, and the roof. Normally you would be reaching for the icing to bind everything together, but remember we are going for healthy here. Grab your peanut butter, or for those with a nut allergy, hummus (as long as it’s thick enough) or cheese can also be used. You can add your peanut butter or hummus and put a few scoops into a ziplock bag and seal it up. Work the peanut butter down to one corner of the bag where you will then snip off a small amount of the bags edge to create a “icing” tool. This keeps your hands clean while you are able to control where the peanut butter gets applied. To decorate, be creative! Use some healthy snacks items such as dried fruits, nuts, healthy cereals and whole wheat pretzels.

It’s important to remember a few things while trying these fun but healthy snack ideas for your kids. Be sure to get them involved. This is a great way to use these simple snacks as “teachable moments” with your kids. Helping them understand that healthy snacks not only provide fuel for their growing bodies, but also the vitamins and nutrients that their “super” minds need to grow and learn. Not only does this become a “teachable moment” but it also allows you to have some fun time with your kids. With our hectic schedules and technology that our kids often have to compete with in order to get our attention, these are the moments your kids will remember for years to come. You can also add this to or make it part of your holiday tradition moving forward.

Here at The Lunch MOB, we understand especially at this time of year things get hectic, it’s our goal to relieve some of that daily pressure from your schedule by providing healthy and nutritious meals that your kids will love and thank you for.  

Original article and photo’s from Parents.com