Kids' Corner

Food for Kids

After School Snacks

Below you will find suggestions that bridge the snack gap, and they all can be whipped up by school-age kids with minimal assistance.

Whichever treats your family settles on, be sure to keep in mind the four commandments of snacking.

1. Snacks should not take longer to make than to eat.

2. Never eat snacks with forks and knives. It's a proven fact that anything eaten with fingers tastes better.

3. Stock up on basic ingredients, such as grated cheeses and cold cuts to pair with corn chips or pita bread for microwavable snacks and fruit, granola bars or nuts for instant snacks.

Simple Snack Suggestions

These snack suggestions are simple for older children to make themselves, meet nutrition needs and of course taste great:

• Mini-pizzas made on English muffins, topped with low-fat cheese and veggies.

• Cold or hot cereal topped with fruit and low-fat milk.

• Sandwiches made with pita bread, bagels, rice cakes or whole-wheat bread.

• Bite-sized pieces of raw veggies paired with a dip made from low-fat ranch dressing.

Some simple recipes for the little fingers

• Fruity Kabobs

• Kringlers

• Peanut Butter & Jelly Surprise Muffins

• Inside-Out Pizza

• Tater Boats

• Peanut Butter Balls

• Cheese Straws

• Granola Bars

• Yogurt Dipping Sauce

• Peanut Butter Pinwheels

Play with your food!

Much like an arts and crafts project, making a snack can become an after-school activity. The bonus: Kids get to eat their artwork, and you get to sneak nutritious foods into their diet.

• Snack Art

• Wiggle Worm

BAG IT

For kids on the go, snacks must be portable. When the kids are full (or, more likely, too busy to eat), they can stuff the bags into their pockets and save them until they're hungry again.

• Tex-Mex Popcorn

• Gobbledy Gook

• Baggy Bugs

DIP IT

Many kids feel that food tastes better when it is dipped before it is eaten.

• Fish in a pond

• Apple Fondue

• Say Cheese

MAKE IT BITE-SIZE

• Cookie-cutter Cutter Cheese Toasts

• Painted Toast

• Toast Toppers

MAKE AN ANIMAL

Tap into your child's fascination with animals by letting him make snacks that resemble lions and tigers and bears.

• Freckle-Faced Bear

• Penguins

• Zoo Food

FIND A FUN CONTAINER

Kids are more likely to try a new food if it is served in a fun container. For instance, strawberries from a champagne glass or carrot sticks in a paper party hat.

• Goofy Waldorf Salad

• Party Parfait

• Super Salad Pitas