Snacks To Make With Kids In 1 Hour Or Less

The most anticipated time of the year is finally here. That's right. The summer season has arrived

It's easy to understand why many of us consider summer our favourite season out of the four. Besides the warm weather, trips to the beach, and lazy days by the pool, there's a reason so many Canadians love summer – the food!

Yes, we all love to indulge our taste buds and break the 5th cardinal sin of gluttony. The summer brings barbeques, burgers and other must-have faves like ice cream and freezes. The pandemic has changed a lot regarding our daily lives, but one thing that hasn't changed is the food.

The season is also a great time to do fun activities with kids. Why not introduce your little ones to some of your favourite summer foods? There are so many fun ways to incorporate food into your family time besides dinner. Introduce your kids to fresh, locally grown produce by taking them to the farmer's market or going strawberry picking.

Take a look at our amenities here to find farmers’ markets right in your neighbourhood. Perhaps you can purchase in-season options like corn and blueberries.

You can also start to plant and care for a vegetable garden in the backyard. Finally, why not get together every week and make your favourite meals using summer staples. Here are a few fun, easy recipes, food ideas to make with your family this summer.

Personalized Salads

Summer is the perfect time to make a salad. There's plenty of fresh and in-season options to choose from. Salads are an excellent snack to make with your kids. Not only are they healthy, but you can introduce fine skills like washing and cleaning your produce.

You may think your kids hate salads, but what is good is you can personalize them to satisfy your taste buds. This will also help your kids recognize that there are healthy foods that they really enjoy. If your kids don't like veggies, make a fruit salad like the Simply Recipes blog. There is no limitation on what can be incorporated in a salad. Salads are quick and easy, and they can be made gluten-free. Try making a fruit salad with blueberries, strawberries and bananas. Kids will love the sweet, healthy, delicious taste of the strawberries and bananas mixed with the tangy taste of the blueberries.

You and the family can customize your silky smooth creations however you wish. You can keep it simple and just add vanilla beans, or you can explore unique options. Some alternatives can be adding chocolate syrup or cocoa powder to make chocolate ice cream. You can even add tea and make green tea ice cream.

We All Scream For Ice-Cream

You can be young, or you can be old, but one thing is for sure – we all love ice cream. You can go the simple route and get store-bought ice cream, or you can purchase an electronic ice cream maker. If you want even more fun, buy the manual crank ice cream churn. Ice cream is great because it is a versatile snack.

You and the family can customize your silky smooth creations however you wish. You can keep it simple and just add vanilla beans, or you can explore unique options. Some alternatives can be adding chocolate syrup or cocoa powder to make chocolate ice cream. You can even add tea and make green tea ice cream.

The varieties are endless. If you don't want to use cream, you can also substitute dairy with alternatives like almond milk too. Making ice cream will introduce skills like measuring, but it will also teach your kids science as they learn about solids and liquids. Take a look at this fun and interactive here from the youtube channel Scishow Kids as they make ice cream and teach science in the process.

Transform Fruits into something unique

Summer is the best time to have fresh fruits, but sometimes you may want to keep your meals exciting. If your kids like popsicles, how about making them out of watermelon.

All you have to do is cut the watermelon into small triangles. Then get the jumbo-sized popsicle sticks and skewer the watermelon. Viola, you have watermelon popsicles.

Here's another fruit transformation. How about making nachos using apple slices. Cut your apples into slices and align them on a bowl or plate like you would with regular chips.

Drizzle some peanut butter and chocolate over the apples and watch them disappear. Check out the watermelon popsicle and the apple nacho recipe in the Super Healthy Kids blog here, along with 28 other refreshingly good healthy snacks for you and your kids to try.