Back to School Food: Healthier Snack Time part 2

Update on my Snack Time part 1 post!

Several of the snacks that I listed was a link to The Healthy Pantry. I sent them a copy of my post because I wanted them to know that I was giving them a blog shout out! I have reviewed their products and love all of them that I have reviewed.

In Snack Time, part 1 I listed my granola recipe and mentioned that my daughters and I will work on trying other recipes as part of our homeschool program this school year.

Many thanks to The Healthy Pantry Chef and Nutritional expert! He reworked my recipe to make it more like I was wanting for my daughters Snack Time! Here it is:

HEALTHIER CRUNCHY GRANOLA

2/3 cup chopped dates
1/3 cup chopped dried fig
1 cup water
8 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup almonds, raw-whole or slightly chopped
1/2 cup juice-sweetened cranberries
1/2 cup juice-sweetened blueberries
3/4 cup oat bran
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1/2 cup sunflower seeds (roasted and salted is good)
1/2 cup raw-slivered almonds
1 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed
craisins (they added this for us because we love craisins)

Preheat oven to 350. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine dates, water, canola and apple juice concentrate. Cook stirring occasionally until the mixture forms a thick paste. Remove from heat-set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together remaining ingredients minus the craisins. Spread out onto thin layer on a baking sheet. (1 full sheet or 2 half sheets). Bake for 15 minutes or until lightly toasted. Transfer to a large bowl and mix in date paste mixture. Bake an additional 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until lightly browned.
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This looks like a winner! I can't wait to try it! I guess the butter and brown sugar mixture in my recipe was really a down fall for a healthy granola. This new recipe relies on natural fruit
sweetness! You too can make this recipe for your kiddos that are headed back to school! This would be a great class snack too!

My post made them hungry and inspired them to put together a snack kit in time for Back to School! A poll was posted to see what people would choose for a Back To School Snack!

Please click and take the ONE QUESTION poll! It will take you 3 seconds!!! Thanks friends!

Happy Back to school planning! CLICK HERE FOR THE HEALTHY PANTRY POLL!

You too can get a recipe makeover! Check out The Healthy Pantry and submit a recipe that you want to be made tasty and healthy for your family!
About This Post

It’s back-to-school time, and this year Sprite and TwitterMoms have
partnered with bloggers like me to share back-to-school tips and
tricks, advice, stories and more!
href="http://spritebts.twittermoms.com">Visit Sprite's back-to-school
channel on TwitterMoms to get helpful ideas, learn how to survive
the back to school rush, seek out advice from other TwitterMoms and
join the conversation. You can bit.ly/UW2GJ">learn more about
donating your My Coke Rewards Points to support your local school, how
to enter for a chance to win some Back to School cash, check out
recipes, or even play some fun games. Here's to a successful and
stress-free back to school season from Sprite and TwitterMoms!

Back To School Food: SNACK TIME

We are a homeschool family! It is our 4th year to homeschool. Lately I've had on my "Back to School" thinking cap! (Bet you all have one of these! LOL)
We usually do not start school until after Labor Day. So I use the month of August to work out what we will be doing up to Christmas Break.

For some reason I've been thinking a lot about FOOD! Teaching at home also means eating at home- ALL DAY! I've always thought that it was important to have easy to grab snacks. A wise mom told me that she has a list on her fridge of snacks that her kids could have anytime. I haven't done this but plan on starting it this year. We do not have a scheduled snack break. When you get hungry and if it is not meal time then you can grab a snack.What snacks are great to have around for a quick grab?

I am the shopper so it is up to me to keep the snack stock full. Each girl gets to pick out one special snack at the store. This helps me with making the decision on what to buy.

I've created 4 weeks of snacks. We can rotate snacks in and out of the schedule. This will allow us to incorporate seasonal recipes. The fruits and veggies will change depending on the season. The schedule will allow some variety and easier for me as I head off to the store!

I want to make sure that my daughters are following recipes and preparing the snacks too! This is a very important to me. I want my daughters to be able to cook for themselves and others.

This year I'm going to work on teaching them how to make something from what you have in your pantry. I love doing this. It takes practice for some!

Here is the first 4 weeks of snacks. Some have links. Others need recipes. I will post recipes in September.

Week 1 Snack options

• Pencils
• Granola bars
• Cheese sticks
• Sea Salt Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
• Fruit snacks
• Bugles
• Apples, Pears & Banana Kabobs

Week 2 Snack options

• Granola (1/2 c each: butter, honey, wheat germ, brown sugar, raisins, 3 cups oats, 1 c each sunflower seeds and other nuts. Melt together butter, honey, sugar. Add all other ingredients. Microwave on high for 4 min. Spread out on baking sheet to cool. Store in covered container or Ziploc bag.) *We are going to try some new granola recipes which are lower in sugar. I will post those recipes results in September.
  
• Apples, Pears and Grape Kabobs
• Whole Grain Chocolate Chip Cookies
  
• Yogurt
  
• Cheese and crackers
• Fruit snacks

Week 3 Snack options

• Sticks and Stones
• Pretzels
• Apples
• Yogurt
• Pudding cups
  
• Rice Krispy bars (make according to box directions)
  
• Soft Pretzels (We will try out a few recipes and post in September)
  

Week 4 Snack Options

• Craisins
• Nuts
• Fruit Leather (Never made it but want to. I have several recipes. We will do these and report back in September!
• Cheese
• Snack crackers
• Yam n Jam Muffins
• Spiders (share recipe later)

What isn't on the list are carrots, celery, ranch dressing and peanut butter. They are staples around our house because the kids love to eat them.

If you have any snack recipes to share please include them in the comments. If you have a blog and want to share your snacks or Back To School Ideas please add your link in the above Back To School MckLinky! That way my visitors and I can come visit you too!

Stay tuned for more Back To School Food ideas featuring those other meals!

About This Post
It’s back-to-school time, and this year Sprite and TwitterMoms have
partnered with bloggers like me to share back-to-school tips and
tricks, advice, stories and more! href="http://spritebts.twittermoms.com">Visit Sprite's back-to-school
channel on TwitterMoms to get helpful ideas, learn how to survive
the back to school rush, seek out advice from other TwitterMoms and
join the conversation. You can bit.ly/UW2GJ">learn more about
donating your My Coke Rewards Points to support your local school, how
to enter for a chance to win some Back to School cash, check out
recipes, or even play some fun games. Here's to a successful and
stress-free back to school season from Sprite and TwitterMoms!

This post has been sponsored as part of a larger campaign.