We’re back to school next week in the Fingerlakes and getting all our healthy lunch and snack ideas dusted off and ready! If your kids are going back to school or already have, a healthy afterschool snack will help your kiddo recharge after a busy day. I don’t know about you, but my little one comes home from school tired, hungry, AND thirsty! We head straight home and make a healthy snack after pick-up. Having a steady stream of vegetables to choose from helps us make good choices together. Here’s my 4 1/2 year old’s list of favorite snacks we can make from our CSA – all things he loves to eat (like beets!). These are also great in a lunch box, just go here for some of our other lunch ideas.
Want to start the school year off right? It’s not too late for CSA Share deliveries through mid-November! Sign-up online and your share is automatically pro-rated! Just click here to learn more.
Smoothies. What kid (or grown-up) wouldn’t love a brightly colored sweet smoothie after-school? Our smoothies get their vibrant color from beets or kale, try our recipe or start with a base of yogurt, milk, and frozen banana. Add frozen berries, shredded beets or carrots, chopped kale or spinach, you get the idea. You can freeze leftover smoothies in a popsicle mold for another tasty, healthy snack!
Vegetable Chips. Make vegetable chips at home and you’ll be surprised how fast these will get snatched right up! All you need is an oven, parchment paper, and a mandoline or food processor with a slicing blade. Try our recipes for beet chips and kale chips, then get creative! Try carrots, parsnips, or even turnips.
Hummus. Try one of our vegetable hummus dips! These are easy to make in advance, and kids can dip chopped up veggies, crackers, pita, or pretzels. So far we have recipes for Parsnip Hummus, Pink Hummus with Pickled Beets, & Emma Frisch’s Rutabaga Hummus. If you don’t have time to make hummus, add some shredded veggies to your favorite store-bought option.
Raw Vegetables. Yes, kids will eat just raw vegetables! We’ve yet to meet a kid that doesn’t love our sweet bell peppers and carrots. Add a dip like our Buttermilk Yogurt Dressing, or even just a good quality store-bought favorite.
Pickles. Another fun, naturally sweet treat! Bonus: they also travel well in a lunchbox. We like beets, kohlrabi, carrots (without the spicy), and just regular dill pickles.
