Every day, we try to help tiny bodies grow into strong, healthy humans. In order to nourish those tiny people the best way we can, it’s important to feed them the healthiest foods possible. So at the Sweets & Snacks Expo in Chicago, we kept our eyes peeled for the newest innovations in kids’ snack foods. We were looking for snacks that fulfilled our two basic criteria: They must be healthy and they must satisfy the pickiest taste buds of all-children’s.
“When choosing snack foods for children, you want to look for dyes that come from natural sources (paprika, saffron or annatto) and sweeteners that come from natural sources (honey, maple syrup, molasses),” says Amari Cheffer, registered dietician and owner of Eat Chic Chicago, which provides various nutrition coaching services.
In snacks, you should be able to recognize and pronounce all the ingredients-and there should only be a few ingredients, says Lara Field, registered dietician, board certified specialist in pediatrics in Chicago.
The following snacks passed the test.
If you’re looking for snacks that are healthy and satisfy picky kids’ taste buds, we’ve got some suggestions for you.
Barefruit Crunch Granny Smith Apple Chips
Why we love it They have one ingredient: Granny
Smith apples. The chips have no added sugar but have 2 grams of
fiber per bag.
Why our kids love it They’re crunchy, fun andyummy. Plus, my children think they’re actually getting to eat awhole bag of chips.
Other flavors Crunchy Cinnamon Apple Chips
Get it Some Costco and Whole Foods stores.
Why we love it They have one ingredient: Granny
Smith apples. The chips have no added sugar but have 2 grams of
fiber per bag.
Why our kids love it They’re crunchy, fun and
yummy. Plus, my children think they’re actually getting to eat a
whole bag of chips.
Other flavors Crunchy Cinnamon Apple Chips
Get it Some Costco and Whole Foods stores.
Rockin’ola BerryBerry
rams of whole grains and some blackberry puree, raspberry puree andreal yogurt. Plus, it only has 7 grams of sugar.
Why our kids love it It has freeze-dried mixed berry yogurt drops,which taste like candy. The granola clusters are yummy, too.
Other flavors ChocoBerry
Get it Rockinola.com
Why we love it. It has 16 grams of whole grains
and some blackberry puree, raspberry puree and real yogurt. Plus,
it only has 7 grams of sugar.
Why our kids love it It has freeze-dried mixed
berry yogurt drops, which taste like candy. The granola clusters
are yummy, too.
Other flavors ChocoBerry
Get it Rockinola.com
Happy Valley Farms Dried Cantaloupe
Why we love it It’s dried cantaloupe. ‘Nuff
said. But really, the only ingredients are cantaloupe, sugar,
citric acid and cantaloupe flavor.
Why our kids love it It’s chewy and sweet and
an easy sub for candy.
Other flavors Dried mango
Get it Coming soon to retailers.
Buddy Fruits Raspberry Coconut Milk Pure BlendedFruit
Why we love it It doesn’t contain any preservatives, artificialflavors or thickeners and we love the short list of healthyingredients: Apples, raspberries, banana, coconut milk, apple juiceconcentrate. But since it contains 15 grams of sugar, we give thisout as a special snack treat.
Why our kids love it Coconut milk combined with fruit and applejuice makes it taste like a tropical drink.
Other flavors Tropical Coconut Milk
Get it Coming soon to retailers.
Why we love it It doesn’t contain any
preservatives, artificial flavors or thickeners and we love the
short list of healthy ingredients: Apples, raspberries, banana,
coconut milk, apple juice concentrate. But since it contains 15
grams of sugar, we give this out as a special snack treat.
Why our kids love it Coconut milk combined with
fruit and apple juice makes it taste like a tropical drink.
Other flavors Tropical Coconut Milk
Get it Coming soon to retailers.
Wholesome Goodness Cranberry Omega GranolaBars
Why we love it They have 6 grams of whole
grains per serving and are a natural source of Omega 3 and 6. They
also have lots of good stuff like dried apple pieces, pumpkin
seeds, roasted sunflower seeds, sliced almonds and dried
cranberries.
Why our kids love it It tastes like a chewy
cookie.
Other flavors Apple cinnamon
Get it Rite Aid
