Snacks glorious snacks!
27 January 2014
There is no doubt that the best approach to snacking is to be prepared, and by that I mean having stuff available instantaneously for when the need arises. When my boys are hungry, they are not just a teeny bit peckish, they are RA-VEN-OUS and having them prowling round the kitchen in search of food is never good. Likewise for us adults: being hungry and not having the right snacks around simply leads to biscuit tin raiding and Nutella pot scooping! So being prepared is essential.
Here are three healthy snack recipes for you to give a go – some are more kids oriented and others are all-rounders:
Carrot, apple, raisin and mixed seed muffins with zesty orange
Ingredients
- 420g self raising flour: half wholemeal, half white
- Ground cinnamon to taste
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 10 tbsp sunflower oil
- 190g muscovado sugar
- Two large eggs
- Grated zest of a scrubbed orange
- A couple of grated apples
- 300gr finely grated carrot (use the food processor grater)
- A few handfuls of raisins
- A couple of handfuls of mixed seeds eg linseed, sunflower and pumpkin
Step 1
Mix together all the dry ingredients
Step 2
Mix together all the wet and liquid ingredients and use an electric beater to combine. Beat until foamy
Step 3
Fold all the dry ingredients into the wet ones.
Step 4
Spoon into large muffin cases in a muffin tin
Step 5
Bake at 180ºC. They are ready when you give the top of the muffins a bit of a prod and they spring back, rather than leaving an imprint of your finger!
Packed lunch pizzette (mini pizzas)
Ingredients
- Wholemeal muffins, wholemeal bread rolls or flat breads
- Tomato concentrate or passata
- Cheese – mozzarella or mild cheddar
- Italian herbs
- Toppings such as olives, sliced mushrooms, prawns
Step 1
Slice the bread in half
Step 2
Spread the tomato sauce on the bread and sprinkle liberally with herbs
Step 3
Place the toppings on the tomato sauce
Step 4
Sprinkle with cheese and place until a hot grill until golden broan and bubbling
Coconut, lemon and vanilla oaties
Ingredients
- 50g flaked coconut, or desiccated coconut
- 50g ground almonds
- 150g oats
- 50g granola
- 2 large eggs
- 100g of fruit purée – use a pot of baby purée
- Grated zest of 1 lemon
- Vanilla essence to taste
- 3 tbsp honey
- 5 tbsp sunflower oil
Step 1
Beat together the eggs, honey, vanilla, sunflower oil and fruit purée
Step 2
Mix together all the ingredients
Step 3
Place tablespoons of the mixture onto a non-stick baking tray and bake at 180ºC until golden brown. Don’t overcook or they will dry out.
Other ideas:
- Dried apricots half dipped in very dark chocolate
- My American-style fruit pancakes
- Make fruit kebabs, using sticks and a variety of fruits (just so long as the kids don’t poke each other in the eyes with the sticks…)
- Spanish omelette/frittata is pretty good for children’s packed lunches – very portable and not messy!