Thursday, March 29, 2012

Rainbow Snack Tray

Rainbow Snack Tray

Ready to rev up snacking?

step 1: Fill a muffin tin with assorted healthy snacks
step2: Challenge yourself (or your kids) to eat all of it through the day

This tip is a life changer. I do this for myself when I feel I'm in need of more fruits and veggies in my day. I do this for my kids regularly. Is it just me or are kids in general absolutely crazy for snacks these days? Put food out and kids that were enthusiastically playing whatever (that was previously so engaging that when you yelled their name to try and get their attention it was as if you were not there) come flocking to the table in hoards to eat a snack. I find it a little weird. Kids are weird. Snack time is a lot easier with this method becuase there is no "snack time"-they just graze all day whenever they want. And since I don't fill the tray with anything to terribly filling, they are still are hungry for meal times.

Rainbow Snack Tray

Rainbow Snack Tray

Try filing the cups with as many colors of the rainbow as you can (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, pink). Kids and even adults are drawn to colors. The more the better.

Some ideas:

red: strawberries, red bell pepper strips, radishes, cherries, apple slices, cherry tomatoes, raspberries, pomegranate seeds, kidney beans (um, yeah, my kids like plain beans sometimes-what?)

orange: mango, papaya, orange segments, cantaloupe, mini carrots, dried apricot, roasted sweet potato wedges or butternut squash

yellow: mango strips, golden raisins, yellow bell pepper strips, star fruit, pineapple, peaches, spaghetti squash

green: edamame, cucumber slices, sugar snap peas, pistachios, kiwi, honeydew, broccoli, peas, celery sticks

blue and purple: blueberries, blackberries, grapes, plums, purple cauliflower

pink: watermelon chunks, guava chunks, pink grapefruit

miscellaneous: mixed nuts and seeds, vegetable chips, whole grain pita chips with hummus for dipping, pickled vegetables, hard boiled egg halves, kale chips, olives, roasted and seasoned chick peas.

Be creative. Think outside the box. I once filled a tin with only mint leaves. They are yummy, refreshing and nutritious. And sometimes, I get crazy and freeze the fruit I put in my tins. I love frozen grapes and kiwi chunks.

I should say that I didn't come up with this. I totally stole it from some Juice Plus video I saw years ago.

10 comments:

  1. Yes great idea! Such a great way to get the kiddos to eat healthy

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  2. Such a great idea! And it looks pretty!

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  3. ummm...has anyone called you genius lately?! Because they should. (even though you say you saw this idea somewhere else, I will forever, in my mind, be giving credit to you. And you make it so stinkin' beautiful!) I LOVE this idea! I'm a grazer at heart, so it has extra-appeal. :) And I'm totally going to print off your color-list.

    Wow. I haven't been this excited about a blog post in a long time...
    :)
    xoxoxo

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  4. This is a wonderful idea! Thanks for sharing! :)

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  5. what a cool idea, this will definitely get kids to eat.

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  6. :) :) :) http://www.flickr.com/photos/teagannicholle/7034023081/in/photostream :)

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  7. What a great principle for grazing - applies to snacking at work as well! you are a wonderful daughter(in-law)!

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  8. I have been doing this. Was pretty proud of myself for thinking of it. I do this every day so I limit it to three containers with something different each day so they don't get tired of things. I use seasonal plates and bowls to make it fun and change things up. I have had fun collecting receptacles like tin buckets or sectional platters with flowers for spring, reindeer for Christmas, etc. Right now we have little ceramic Easter baskets with bunnies on the table. I try to add a little seasonal centerpiece with it. Since I homeschool we often have a centerpiece that goes with something we happen to be studying.
    ~A. Jenny

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