Snacks for kids at school can often be nerve-racking for parents. It is undoubtedly clear that it is important for children to have breakfast or at least to take a healthy snack to school. Consuming the necessary energy through food should be on the top of the agenda for any healthy child’s nutrition. However, there are often distinct differences between healthy snacks and the appropriate break meal for children. So, if you want to avoid those little morning discussions about the perfect snack for school, you should certainly read this blog post.
Snacks for kids – everything you need to know
Children are well-known for being energy bundles. In order for this to continue and for your child to grow up healthy and cheerful, the right nutrition is imperative. The German Society for Nutrition recommends five servings of fruits or vegetables for children.
Since this proves to be quite challenging even for adults, you have to be more vigilant with children. Snacks in between meals should be made with as many vegetables and fruits as possible.
The Biggest Snack Mistakes for Kids
Time pressure and stress are among the most common causes of unsuccessful child nutrition. Chocolate bars, pretzels, and ready-made pizzas are prepared or purchased very quickly but should be avoided in the long run. The increased sugar and fat content is not beneficial for growth and should be minimized as much as possible.
Sugar and fat can quickly lead to addiction, especially in childhood, negatively impacting health. This may lead to future problems that could have been avoided, such as diabetes and other health conditions.
Healthy breakfast for children: how important it is
While we sleep at night, our energy reserves are depleted. In the morning, they must be replenished so that we can start the day full of energy. That's why a healthy breakfast is the most important foundation for a energy-filled day.
If you skip breakfast in the morning, you will quickly notice how your energy level drops throughout the morning. In children, this becomes apparent at school when concentration wanes, and everything seems more important than school.
Children who eat a morning meal can perform better in class, and this also helps them maintain a high level of performance in the afternoon. This energy boost in the second half of the day is absent when children don't eat breakfast.
Breakfast as a concentration boost
Breakfast is particularly important for schoolchildren; without providing your body with energy in the morning, you risk performance loss. This is especially noticeable in children's attention and concentration during class. Students who skip breakfast often have difficulties focusing in the morning and find it hard to follow lessons attentively, easily becoming distracted.
Healthy breakfast makes your child fitter!
Not only does breakfast influence the mental performance of children, but it also significantly boosts physical endurance. According to a study by ETH Zurich, children who regularly eat breakfast exhibit higher motor performance, as determined by their physical motor skills.
Which snacks for children are suitable at school?
Especially at school, your child should have a snack with them to avoid going hungry. The cafeteria food at school may often be quite tasty and well-prepared, but the snacks need to be of higher quality.
In principle, however, there are no limits to your imagination. Of course, you can take anything with you. Whether it’s bread with various toppings, fruits, vegetables, yogurt, overnight oats, porridge , or muesli. The most important aspect is that it does not contain high amounts of sugar or fat – as that would be rather counterproductive.
But if your child consumes enough nutrients and variety at school, nothing stands in the way of a successful and energetic day! This helps maintain concentration throughout the entire lesson.
Which snacks for children are really healthy?
Since children can often be quite picky when it comes to food, it can be challenging to find the right and healthy snack. Tasty and healthy are often closely related, but this is frequently not the case for children.
Nuts as a perfect snack for children
Nuts are definitely very healthy – and almost every child loves nuts in various forms. However, for nuts, you should ensure that you don’t provide too many as a snack for school. Nuts contain a lot of healthy fats, but even healthy fats have an upper limit. A simple rule for nuts is to eat a maximum of a handful a day.
Overnight oats or porridge
If breakfast is occasionally too hectic or if there is no time for a hearty meal, why not bring breakfast to school? Oatmeal is a local superfood, and with the right preparation, there’s almost no child who doesn’t love the delicious flakes! Especially when combined with healthy toppings such as nuts, seeds, and fruits, porridge or overnight oats are a staple on the breakfast plate and an excellent school snack.
Fruits and vegetables as tasty snacks for children
Fruits such as apples, pears, bananas, or berries are perfect as tasty snacks. They are sweet, nutritious, and simply delicious without much fuss. For vegetables, you can provide carrots, cucumbers, radishes, or cherry tomatoes. Carrots and cucumbers paired with a light sour cream dip and fresh herbs are always well-received by children. Fruits and vegetables are packed with healthy nutrients and vitamins and should not be missing from any meal plan.
Homemade bars are an excellent snack for children
Homemade granola bars are a great option to provide children with a tasty snack. With homemade bars, you can control how much sugar ends up in the product – or you can bake bars that are completely sugar-free, which is the best option for children. Baking together can also serve as a recreational activity – involving children in daily cooking can help alleviate their fear of unfamiliar foods, potentially avoiding some discussions at the dining table.
The Best Snack Recipes for Kids
So that you don't have to scramble for recipe ideas for children, here are our best breakfast and snack ideas:
Sugar-free Bircher cereal bars with dates
Ingredients
- 150 g Bircher Porridge
- 150 g Bircher Muesli
- 80 g dates
- 30 g flaxseed
- 20 g quinoa pops
- 30 g cashew nuts or nuts of your choice
- 1 apple grated
- 2 tsp. lemon juice
- 1 tsp. salt
Preparation
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Put the flaxseeds in a bowl with a little water and let them swell. Coarsely chop the nuts of your choice. Grate the apple.
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Place Bircher Porridge, Bircher Muesli, Quinoa Pops, salt, and nuts in a bowl and mix. Then add the apple, sliced dates, lemon juice, and finally the swollen flax seeds and mix well.
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Spread the mixture evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
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Bake at 180 degrees for about 30 minutes. Allow to cool and cut.
Nutritional values
Recipe: Bircher Porridge cookies
Ingredients
- 100 g Verival Bircher Porridge
- 40 g flour
- 50 ml milk or plant-based drink
- 50 g honey or agave syrup
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 tsp vanilla sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- Choice of chocolate chips
Preparation
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Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
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For the dough, mix all the ingredients together.
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Place the dough in small portions on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
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Bake the cookies for about 20 minutes.
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Let cool and enjoy.
Nutritional values
Bircher breakfast in a glass
Ingredients
- 30 g Bircher Porridge
- ½ apple
- 3-4 tbsp. yogurt
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- Milk
Preparation
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Let the porridge boil briefly with milk or water, turn down the heat, and let it steep for about 3 minutes. Then pour into a glass.
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Cut the apple into cubes and simmer with a little milk and cinnamon until the apple pieces become slightly soft.
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Add a few tablespoons of yogurt, like Greek or plain yogurt, to the porridge.
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Finally, layer the apple pieces on top as a third layer in the glass and garnish with a few cashews.
Video
Nutritional values
Chocolate Crunchy Breakfast Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 ripe bananas
- 3 eggs
- 1 knife tip of bourbon vanilla
- 1 pinch of salt
- 50 grams of coconut oil
- 80 grams wholemeal spelt flour
- 120 grams of ground hazelnuts or almonds
- 30 grams of cocoa (unsweetened)
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 80 ml milk (or a milk alternative)
- 60 grams of VERIVAL Chocolate Max and a little more to sprinkle
Preparation
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First, preheat the oven to 180°C top/bottom heat and line a muffin tray with paper liners.
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Mash the bananas with a fork and set aside for a moment.
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Then lightly whisk the eggs with salt and bourbon vanilla for about 5 minutes.
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Add the banana puree and coconut oil and stir together.
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Then sift the wholemeal spelt flour into the bowl along with the baking powder and cocoa and add it with a whisk.
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Fold in the milk with the ground hazelnuts and finally the Verival Chocolate Max Crunchys.
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Pour the batter into the prepared muffin tins, sprinkle with the Verival Organic Chocolate Max Crunchys, and bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes.
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Allow the chocolate crunchy breakfast muffins to cool completely before consuming.
