No Prep, Low Prep, and Prep Ahead Snack Options for Kids
Snack Prep.
Some families do it and others don’t, but we can’t address “what is a good snack for kids” without first addressing: what is realistic to your family.
Because if you ask me, “What are the best ‘snack bars’ for kids?” and you have zero plan to ever meal prep, my answer needs to focus more on premade snack bar options available for purchase. However, if you don’t ever plan to buy premade snack bar options (except for maybe a backup reserve to stash in the car), then what you are asking me is really more for nourishing snack bar recipes and/or strategies to make such homemade snack options more practical on a day to day basis.
Neither one of these approaches to snacking is inherently “better” than the other; they are just different because the priority and means of producing these as a feasible snack option for your family differ.
So let’s identify some of the advantages and disadvantages of no prep snacks to those snacks that require you to prep ahead (or on the spot). There are more ideas than those listed of course, but this will help us to see that there is both a time and a place, or in motherhood what we might say as a season and/or a situation, where both options are a “best fit” for your family. Following this, we will dive into actual snack ideas that are either no prep, low prep, or can be prepped ahead.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Prepackaged (No Prep) and Homemade (Prep Ahead) Snacks
Every family is different. Every parent is different. Every child is different. So for anyone to expect that there is a “one size fits all” approach to snacking, I believe you would be mistaken.
Instead, I find that families have to address where their priorities lie and how snacks fit into that. Because I can come up with a snack rotation for any family, but if it doesn’t align with their desire to cook (or have convenience) or end goal to focus on filling nutritional gaps (or stick to the staples), honor their food budget (or not have to work within one) or the manner of offering snacks (at home, at school, or on the go), or acknowledge how many mouths there are to feed (and what developmental feeding stages they are at) that plan could quickly be ill-fit for a given family.
So only you know what works for you. That doesn’t make your preferred snacks better or worse than another family’s; it just means what works for your family is different than another’s. That’s why in this post, I want to address some of the common pros and cons of prepackaged (no prep) snacks for kids and homemade snacks (that require you to prep ahead or in the moment). Both have their give and takes, but I hope in reading this post, parents will see that no one snack is “better” than another and thus, no family is feeding “better” than another necessarily. We all find what combination of snack foods for our kids works best and adapt as it fits us - no comparison needed.
Here are some of the common things I hear parents say as to why they do or don’t have prepackaged snacks versus homemade snacks:
Prepackaged (no prep) snacks:
PROS:
Usually more convenient
Usually easier for kids to get for themselves
Usually easier on parents to buy versus prepare
Usually easier to store
CONS:
May be more expensive (and thus unsustainable to include on a regular basis)
May have unnecessary, added ingredients that negatively affect the nutrition
May create more waste (with single serve packaging)
May be more limited when addressing nutritional needs (or dietary restrictions)
Homemade snacks:
PROS:
Usually gives more hands on cooking/learning opportunities with kids
Usually less expensive
Usually offer more opportunities to boost nutrition or omit allergens
Usually promotes variety and minimizes picky eating
CONS:
May be more difficult to store
May be more effort to package for on the go options
May require more work
May be easier to get in a rut with
No Prep, Low Prep, and Prep Ahead Snack Options for Kids
The following snack options will include four main categories for a continuum of snacks that require no additional prep to those that are entirely homemade.
No Prep Snack Options for Kids
Low Prep Snack Options for Kids
Snack Ideas You Can Prep on the Spot
Prep Ahead Snack Options for Kids
No Prep Snack Options for Kids
We all live in a real world with real life challenges, including not enough time to always prepare the foods we wish our family was eating. This doesn’t need to be guilt-inducing though! Instead, check out some easy, no-prep snack options that provide nourishment with no added effort. Pre-packaged snack options do tend to come with an added expense, so consider how you can stretch a packaged snack option with some added fresh produce. This will help fill your child up more at snack time without them necessarily eating through all of your packaged snack foods. Including a combination of no-prep snack options with some of the DIY snack ideas below can be helpful when coming up with a snack food strategy that fits your family’s preferences, needs, and food budget.
Here are some nourishing snack ideas that require no prep:
Baby carrot packs (with or without dips or a hummus cup)
Granola bars (I share all of my favorites, like Purely Elizabeth, on the snack edition of my Combination Cards)
Dino Bars (or other no-sugar added fruit bar options)
Low or No-Sugar Added yogurt (I share all of my favorites, like Siggi’s, on the snack edition of my Combination Cards)
Chomps (or other all-natural non-perishable meat options)
Hard boiled eggs (bonus if already peeled)
Bars without added sugar (I share all of my favorites, like Skout bars, on the snack edition of my Combination Cards)
Whole grain bars (I share all of my favorites, like Bobo’s Oat Bites, on the snack edition of my Combination Cards)
Nut and seed bars (I share all of my favorites, like 88 acres, on the snack edition of my Combination Cards)
Overnight oats (I share all of my favorite oat options, like these from Zen Monkey, on the snack edition of my Combination Cards)
Healthy dips (I share all of my favorites, like Wholly Guacamole, on the snack edition of my Combination Cards)
Granola Bites (like these from My Super Snacks)
Milk (find non-perishable packs, like these from Horizon, at Target)
Cheese (pick an all-natural option)
Whole grain crackers (I share all of my favorites, like RW Garcia’s, on the snack edition of my Combination Cards)
For more no-prep snack ideas from each food group, check out my Healthy Snack Ideas for Kids post here.
Low Prep Snack Options for Kids
When I reached out for questions about snacks, a lot of people wanted to know, “What are some easy, minimal prep snack ideas for kids?” We don’t always want the single-serve no prep options above (see listed disadvantages, with cost and package waste being at the top of my list), but we also don’t want to make snack time take a ton of time, yield a bunch of dishes, or become a big deal.
So without sacrificing nutrition for simplicity’s sake, here are a few kid-friendly low-prep snack ideas:
Toast a whole grain English muffin and enjoy as a mini pizza or with nut butter and banana
Toss together some trail mix with nuts, dry cereal, crackers/popcorn, and dried fruit
Add some plantain chips to guacamole to share
Make a yogurt dip for fruit or graham crackers
Toast up a waffle and top with nut butter (Birch Bender’s Paleo is a great GF/DF option)
Heat up a mini egg cup or frittata from the freezer stash (Veggies Made Great has great tasting freezer muffin and egg frittata options)
Add a warmed liquid and a little fruit for added flavor to an oatmeal cup
Divide up energy bites to share or transfer to a bag for a snack on the go (I love Made in Nature’s for a premade option you can split into single-servings)
Add warmed pita wedges to a container of hummus
Warm some freezer french toast sticks (like these from Dr. Praeger’s)
Soften a tortilla and add a little cheese and avocado for a simple roll up
Make a piece of toast and top however you like
Transfer yogurt to a Squeasy Gear for spoonless snacking on the go
Blend up a simple smoothie mix
Warm a freezer muffin (from Soozy’s or Muffin Club for Moms)
I share several ideas that fall under this in my post on Creating a Kid-Friendly Snack Drawer.
Kid Snack Ideas You Can Prep on the Spot
In order to maximize the advantages of a homemade snack options while still getting some of the added benefit of convenience (that comes with prepackaged options), many families find that having an arsenal of ready-made snack options helps. This often cuts down on food costs from premade items but also allows you the convenience of having snacks ready to go. Even 10 minutes of intentional washing, cutting, prepping, or storing of snacks can make a big difference to adding in nourishing options that are ready to eat come snack time.
So don’t let the idea of some major “meal prep” stress you out or leave you without snacks on hand. Here are 8 easy ideas to prep as you go, offering them there in the moment and prepping the rest for later:
Edamame: heat and eat from the pod (if not already shelled), then stored cooled edamame ready to eat in little containers in the coming few days
Energy bars: Make a batch and press them in a pan to enjoy, then wrap up individually for fruit+nut bars to enjoy over the coming week (can also roll as bites, if preferred)
Yogurt: Layer yogurt and fruit to eat fresh, then with the ingredients still out stack some up in sealed mason jars for easy snacks in the coming day or two
Cheese & Crackers: Enjoy together, then stack both elements in a container for later
Smoothies: Blend up a large smoothie to enjoy the day off, then pour extra into a sealed jar to freeze until needed. Just thaw in the microwave for 15-30 seconds and stir until the desired consistency
Trail mix: Mix up a bigger batch than you plan to eat in a single sitting, then store in snack-sized containers to enjoy over the next couple of days
Oatmeal: Add the dry elements to your family’s favorite oatmeal combo (like oats, hemp hearts or flax seeds, freeze-dried fruit and a little brown sugar) to a mason jar, so all you have to do is add liquid next time
Guacamole: Mash up avocado to eat for snack with plantain chips, bell peppers, or carrot, then add lime juice and put into small containers for the next day’s snack
For more on how to store fruits or veggies prepped in advance, check out this handy guide.
Prep Ahead Snack Options for Kids
For some families, making things from scratch is something they both desire and find space to do. I know this is not realistic for every family in every season of life though, so it would be misguided for me to lead with the advice that the only “healthy” snacks for kids are those that are entirely homemade. Clearly there are so many ways to make healthy kid snacks happen, regardless of how much you plan to prep.
This said, homemade snacks do offer so many great opportunities to get kids involved in the kitchen and hands on in preparing their own food though, so you might consider which of these ideas might be ones you want to start incorporating into your family’s diet. It might be one new recipe a month that you swap in for a less-nourishing store bought option (like granola, granola bars, etc.) or one where you are already doing that and eager to add more healthy homemade snack ideas. Here are a few to try:
Make DIY Smoothie Bags: Layer fruits, veggies, and even nuts or seeds into a bag for an easy smoothie mix to blend up later
Make edamame on the cooktop to then cool it in the fridge for simple snacking
Make up a large jar of your families favorite trail mix
Make homemade energy bites/bars (here is a list of my family’s favorites)
Bake homemade granola
Bake muffins (like those from Muffin Club for Moms)
Bake oatmeal to slice and serve for a quick snack later
Bake a loaded loaf of quick bread, like zucchini bread with white beans
Prep DIY fruit on the bottom yogurt cups for later
Prep overnight oats for an easy grab & go snack another time
Prep DIY uncrustables to freeze then pull out anytime you need one quickly
Prep smoothie jars that are blended and ready; just thaw, swirl, and serve
Still need more snacking ideas?
Be sure to check out my Snack edition of Combination Cards - available for purchase on 9/16!