All of us are constantly in a headache over what to eat, and if you are a parent, over what to cook. We want food to be delicious, as taste is the most important. More so for kids, they can take a bite and stop eating if food is not up to their liking, so taste cannot be compromised! Not just that, kids are still growing and as parents, we hope food can also be healthy and nutritious too.
The usual meat, eggs and vegetables are common place in kids' lunchbox but how about some easy snack ideas to make it colourful and vitamins loaded?
Here are the top 5 ideas that are definitely popular with kids:
1) Dried fruits
Nothing can go wrong with raisins, they are easy to bring out with long shelf life. Kids love them, they are naturally sweet and great to impart some dietary fiber. How about other dried fruits and try some natural apricots and blackcurrants? These do not contain additional sugar but taste sweet and widely welcome by both kids and adults.
We also have yoghurt raisins if you just want to offer a special treat!
The problem with kids and vegetables, is that most vegetables do not taste good. Think green peas and bitter gourd and kids will go screaming in the corner, refusing to touch any food. If your kids are averse to trying vegetables or even new food, perhaps these vegetable crackers are a good way to excite them! These Truly Veggie Medley taste like chips but much, much healthier and definitely with more artificial colourings and preservatives. Get them more open to greens and it's one step towards victory!
How about some pastilles that taste like jelly and are sweetened with apple juice? Some chia seeds are also added to give them a chewy texture. The commercialized jelly commonly available in the market has added sugar so avoid those and try out these Apple Chia Seeds Pastilles!
We know parents do not like to give nuts to kids especially when they are unsupervised due to the risk of choking. Not just that, there may be some kids who are allergic to nuts (Introduce nuts as early as possible to avoid allergy). So how about some pumpkin seeds? These are crunchy and so full of nutrients that makes it a perfect snack.
These biscuits may come as a surprise but some old school biscuits are indeed of lower calories and sugar content than potato chips, cereals and granola or even Gerber Puffs. The recommended ones are also free of artificial sugar and colourings so perhaps some treats for the children do not have to be junk food. These biscuits are particularly suitable for kids:
Snacks do not have to be boring. Taste does not have to be compromised for nutrition. Try out some healthy snacks in your lunchbox and let us know how beautiful they are!
