Wondering Which Healthy and Delicious Snacks to Give to Your Preschooler Kids? Here are the Top Lip-Smacking Snack Recipes They will Love to Finish in No Time (2020)

• Make sure the child has food items belonging to at least 2 food groups at a time on their plate.
• Encourage the child to eat healthy snacks by making it fun for them.
• Meals and snacks should be offered at fixed time so that they can identify when they are hungry.
• Offer food in a set portion size depending upon the child’s appetite and the nutritional content of the food.
• Give the kids a little choice in deciding their snacks as it helps to keep them interested.
• Keep chocolates and candies as occasional treats.
• It is essential to figure out when your child is hungry and when he is just seeking attention.
• No TV, electronics, mobiles or other distractions should be allowed during meals and snacks.

• Encourage your child to make healthy choices.
• Offer a food item that you know they enjoy.
• Avoid processed food as much as possible.
• Lead by example, eat healthy food along with your child.
• Offer side dishes, dips or healthy drinks.
• Cook at home.
• Keep some healthy snacks available for times when cooking is not an option.
• Fruits make great snacks too.
• Let your child read the food labels or read them out to him to give him an idea of what he is about to consume, and it would be a great habit to maintain later in life as well.
• Offer limited portion sizes so that he doesn't get overwhelmed simply by looking at it.

Ingredients Required:

• 4 whole wheat brown bread
• 1 broccoli, cut into florets
• 150 gm paneer (cottage cheese), crumbled (homemade preferred)
• 4 tbsp roasted peanuts
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp red chilli sauce
• 1 tsp black pepper
• Salt to taste
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil

How to Prepare:

• Boil a cup of water and pour it into a mixing bowl.
• Add broccoli florets to the hot water and set it aside.
• Heat oil in a pan and saute garlic until it turns light brown (this will not take more than 60 seconds).
• Strain the florets out of the mixing bowl and stir-fry with the sauteed garlic in the pan for no more than 2 minutes to avoid over-cooking the broccoli and keeping the nutrients intact.
• Add in the crumbled cottage cheese along with the salt, pepper and schezwan sauce (optional), mix well and saute.
• Take the pan off the heat when done and add in the roasted peanuts and let it cool.
• Apply butter on the sides of 2 slices of bread, put in the stuffing and make a sandwich.
• Use a sandwich maker or toast on a heated pan until golden brown on either side.
• Cut diagonally and serve with fresh juice or a smoothie.

Ingredients Required:

• ½ cup homemade ragi or finger millet flour
• ½ cup wheat flour
• ½ cup powdered white sugar or organic jaggery
• 50 gm butter (cold)
• 1 tbsp baking powder (to be avoided when preparing for babies less than a year old)
• Milk to knead

How to Prepare:

• Sift together the ragi, wheat flour and baking powder in a mixing bowl.
• Add cold butter and mix using your hands until a crumb-like texture is achieved.
• Add the sugar or jaggery and mix.
• Add in 1-2 tbsp of milk and knead to make a soft dough. Do not add too much milk as that would make the dough too soft or runny.
• Refrigerate the dough for half hour.
• Now, divide the dough into small balls and flatten to get the shape of a round cookie.
• Line on a baking tray.
• Use a fork to make stripes on the cookies in the tray to aid even baking.
• Preheat the oven to 180°C and bake for 15-20 minutes at 180°C.
• Keep a check in case the cookies bake quicker.
• Remove, cool and store in an airtight container for up to 15 days.
• These cookies are a great snack even for babies above 8 months provided they are made using jaggery.

Ingredients Required:

• 1 cup almonds, chopped
• 1¾ cup instant oats (oats can also be processed to break them up if using old-fashioned oats)
• 1 cup coconut flakes or shreds, preferably unsweetened
• ½ tsp cinnamon powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup almond butter or peanut butter
• ½ cup honey
• 1½ tsp vanilla extract

How to Prepare:

• Toast the almonds until they are aromatic and light brown along the edges.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
• To the mixing bowl add the toasted almonds, coconut shreds or flakes, cinnamon, salt and oats and stir.
• Whisk together the almond butter, honey and vanilla extract and add to the dry ingredients.
• Mix well making sure to coat everything.
• A drier mix will make firmer bars. If the mixture seems wet, you can add some more oats or if it seems too dry, add a little more honey to get the right texture.
• Transfer to the baking tray and use a spoon to press down firmly and even it out.
• Cover and refrigerate overnight for best results as the bars will have enough time to set properly.
• Pull out using the parchment paper at the opposite sides.
• Cut out the bars.
• To help the bars retain their flavor for months, wrap in a freezer safe bag and freeze.

Ingredients Required for the Batter:

• ½ cup chana dal
• 1 cup urad dal
• 1 cup moong dal
• 1 cup rice
• 5 tbsp green chilli and ginger paste (avoid or reduce when preparing for younger kids)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp red chilli powder (optional and best avoided for younger kids)
• 2 tbsp oil for greasing
• 2-3 cups of water
• Salt to taste
• ⅓ cup finely chopped coriander leaves

Ingredients Required for Tempering (Can be Avoided for Younger Children):

• 4 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 4 green chillies (chopped)

How to Prepare the Batter:

• Wash all the lentils and soak them overnight.
• Drain off the water and grind to a smooth, paste-like consistency using minimum quantity of water.
• Pour the paste into a large mixing bowl and set aside for fermentation for about 6-7 hours.
• Take out 3 cups of this batter in a different bowl and add salt, chilli-ginger paste, haldi and mix. Add water to fix it to pouring consistency.
• Addition of Eno fruit salt at this point is optional. If you do, make sure to mix it in properly.
• Grease the plate or idli-mould using oil.
• Fill 1-2 inches of water in your steamer or cooker and place the steamer plate inside.
• Steam for 15 minutes. Use a toothpick to check if the dhokla has cooked through.
• Remove from the steamer and set it aside to cool.
• For tempering, heat some oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and allow it to crackle, add in sesame seeds and chopped chillies.
• Cut the pieces, garnish with the tempering and chopped coriander.
• Serve hot.

Ingredients Required:

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 3 tsp oil
• 1 tsp mustard
• ½ tsp urad dal
• 1 tsp chana dal
• ½ tsp jeera
• Curry leaves
• ½ tsp ginger paste
• 2 finely chopped chills
• 1 grated carrot
• ¼ tsp haldi
• ½ cup coarse rava or semolina
• ½ cup dahi or yogurt
• 1 cup water
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves
• ¾ tsp salt
• 7 cashews cut into halves
• ½ tsp Eno fruit salt

How to Prepare:

• Heat oil in a wok or kadhai and add mustard seeds, urad and chana dal along with cumin and curry leaves and let it splutter.
• Now add the ginger paste and chillies and saute.
• Add the carrots and haldi and saute again for 2 more minutes.
• Add the rava and roast until fragrant.
• Add powdered oats and combine well.
• Take it off the flame and let the mixture cool.
• Now add the curd and ½ cup water and mix to remove all the lumps.
• Add coriander, salt and ½ cup water and mix until pouring consistency is reached.
• Rest for 15-20 minutes to allow the rava to soak up the water.
• Add Eno fruit salt and combine well.
• Pour into greased idli moulds and steam for 15 minutes on medium flame.
• Serve with sambar (less spicy version for kids) and coconut chutney.