Snacking!  The world seems to have gone snacking mad. My children seem to be snacking all the time and I’ve turned into a mobile fridge. We’re all on the go a lot more and with that comes hungry children, so we arm ourselves with various healthy snacks to abate these incredible appetites.  The team at Hoop, a free app that helps parents discover family activities in their area, are bringing together top tips for parents looking for healthy snack ideas for their kids while they’re out the house so it got me thinking about healthy eating on the go.

It’s quite boring thinking about what snacks to take out, especially when you want them to be healthy, and expensive unless you make your own. So after conversations with other families and hearing their similar stories I drew up a list of healthy snack ideas to stick on the fridge.  I involved the children and once we’d got past the sweets, crisps and chocolate ideas, they were rather helpful!  Firstly, I’d say stick to specific times to have your snacks.  Children like routine and it stops them eating continually and ruining appetites at meal times. I would also say make sure you have a good selection of containers, whether they are bought or recycled from other things you’ve eaten.  Finally, you can get loads of ideas for recipes on the internet or make up your own with the children, anything goes and don’t forget these won’t just be eaten by them, the whole family can enjoy a healthy snack.

1. Banana muffins or banana bread – try different sizes and shapes to keep interest!

2. Courgette and cheese mini muffin bites

3. Grapes and cheese cubes

4. Leftover pancakes – if you’ve made some in the morning they taste great later on too!

5. Sandwich bites – basically sandwiches with fillings like jam, peanut butter, Marmite, cream cheese cut into smaller bite size cubes. Makes them more exciting and less like a sandwich!

6. Rice Krispie cakes (made with oats, coconut and brown rice syrup)

7. Melon – cut up before you go out

8. Homemade granola bars – there are loads of recipes for healthier versions you can freeze

9. Popcorn – make it at home, it’s so cheap and great fun

10. Claudi & Fin Mini lollies are a welcome treat when you turn up at the school gates on a hot day with them in a cool bag… give it a try!

I’d love to know what your go to snacks are for you and the kids.  And don’t forget to take a look at Hoop.  It’s a free app that helps parents discover what’s on for kids and is trusted by over one million families across the UK.  Every week, it lists over 80,000 different family activities, from cool cookery workshops to local baby and toddler groups, dance classes, sports clubs and more.  It’s a brilliant resource for families and one I rely on when it comes to local activities for my kids.

Have a great week!

Lucy.