Top 10 easy and healthy homemade snacks for your toddler

Feeding your toddler the right snacks helps keep them satisfied throughout the day. As little ones have smaller stomachs and it’s harder for them to eat big meal, snacks are essential. 

Snacks should be “mini-meals” — nutritious and filling. Your little one should have either a meal or a snack every two to three hours, and not “graze” on foods throughout the day. This has the added benefit of encouraging a regular eating schedule, and helping your child identify when they’re hungry and when they’re full (so they can learn to regulate their eating).

It’s crucial for toddlers to eat a variety of nutritious foods (that don’t contain added salt or sugar) from all food groups, says the USDA, because eating patterns in the first 1,000 days shape lifelong eating habits. 

What foods should toddlers eat, according to the USDA guidelines?

• Fruits and vegetables in many colors and varieties (they should be a priority)
• Protein-rich foods like meat, fish, seafood, eggs, soy products, nut products, and seed products
• Whole grains 
• Dairy foods, like milk, yogurt and cheese

Opting for healthy homemade snacks that meet the USDA guidelines helps little ones choose and love healthy foods throughout the rest of their lives. Today, we’ll share 10 easy and healthy snacks that your little one will enjoy. 

1. Yogurt and fruit 

Ingredients

• Plain yogurt with no added sugar
• Chopped fruits such as peaches, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries kiwi, pears and mango. Be sure to bake, steam or otherwise soften harder fruits like apples 

Instructions

With fruit and plain yogurt, the possibilities are nearly endless! 

1. Keep it simple and add 1-2 fruits at a time to yogurt. 
2. Or, create a rainbow of fruits on top of baby’s yogurt with blueberries, strawberries, kiwi, and peaches (or any multicolored combination).
3. You could also place the fruit on the bottom of a container and then spoon in the yogurt for a homemade take on “fruit on the bottom” yogurt cups. 
4. Or, layer different colors of fruit and plain yogurt in a see-through cup for a colorful fruit and yogurt parfait! 
5. Try softening apples, peaches or pears in the microwave, sprinkling the fruit with cinnamon, and adding it to the yogurt.

2. Sugar-free banana, avocado, and apple muffins

Inspired by My Fussy Eater

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole wheat all-purpose flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 medium banana
• 1 medium avocado
• 1 cup applesauce
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 egg

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine the flour, oats, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl.
3. Mash the banana and avocado in another bowl. Then, mix in the applesauce. Add the milk and egg, and mix well. 
4. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix just enough to combine all the ingredients.  
5. Place cupcake/muffin tin liners into a muffin tin and pur the mixture into the liners.
6. Bake for 25 minutes. 
7. Let the muffins cool, remove the liners, and serve.
8. The muffins can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days, or frozen and saved for later.

3. Butternut squash hummus with veggies 

Inspired by Yummy Toddler Food

Ingredients

• 2 cups chickpeas (or 2 cups white beans)
• 1 cup butternut squash, either pureed or roasted and cubed (or 1 cup pureed or roasted sweet potatoes)
• 3 tablespoons plain Greek yogurt with no added sugar (or 3 tablespoons tahini/sesame seed paste)
• Lemon juice from 1 lemon
• ½ – ¾ cup water

Instructions 

1. If the chickpeas are canned, drain and rinse them off to remove as much salt as you can. 
2. Combine all the ingredients together in a food processor. Add as much water as you need to make the hummus light and fluffy. 
3. Serve as a dip with cucumber slices or sticks, cooked bell pepper slices, thin raw bell pepper slices, cooked and sliced carrot sticks, chopped tomato pieces, green beans, or snap peas. 

*This hummus can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days.

4. Roasted carrot “fries”

Inspired by Yummy Toddler Food

Ingredients

• 6-8 sliced medium carrots 
• Olive oil (approx. 1 tablespoon)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Cut the ends off the carrots, peel them, and slice them into matchstick” shapes (about the width of a pencil)
3. Place the sliced carrots onto a large rimmed baking sheet. Toss the carrots in the olive oil. 
4. Spread out the carrots evenly on the baking sheet.
5. Bake for 20-24 minutes or until they’re soft and just starting to brown. 

*You can store the carrot fries in the fridge for 3-5 days, in an airtight container.

These carrot fries are great on their own, paired with the hummus above for dipping, or paired with sliced fruit. You can also serve them as a side dish during a meal.

5. Peach and zucchini smoothie bowl

Inspired by The Lean Green Bean

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cup frozen chopped zucchini
• 1 ½ cup sliced peaches (fresh or frozen)
• 1 cup plain yogurt with no sugar added
• 1/4 – 3/4 cup water 
• Sliced fruit for a topping (you could try strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, or mango)

Instructions

1. Combine all the ingredients except the topping fruit in a blender. Blend until smooth. (Add the water as needed, but keep a relatively thick texture.)
2. Pour into a small bowl. 
3. Top with the sliced fruit and serve right away. 

This recipe makes enough smoothie for you and your toddler to enjoy together. You can also freeze the leftover smoothie in popsicle molds for later. 

6. Cheesy spinach egg rolls

Inspired by Parents Magazine

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 2 tablespoons shredded baby spinach
• 4 teaspoons shredded cheddar
• 2 teaspoons butter

Instructions

1. Whisk together 3 eggs in a bowl.
2. Add in the spinach and cheese, and whisk together.
3. Melt the butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet, over medium-high heat.
4. Add the egg mix into the skillet and swirl to cover the bottom of the skillet. 
5. Cook until the egg is set (about 2-3 minutes). Occasionally shake the pan to prevent burning.
6. Cover a cutting board with parchment. Slide the egg onto the cutting board with a spatula, and roll it up in the parchment.
7. Let the rolled up egg “log” cool for 5 minutes (seam side down). Then slice it into round rolled-up pieces and serve.

7. Veggie, egg, and cheese mini muffins

Inspired by Yummy Toddler Food

Ingredients

• 1 cup veggies (either shredded zucchini squeezed to dry, shredded yellow squash squeezed to dry, grated carrots, grated sweet potato or finely chopped broccoli)
• ½ cup shredded mozzarella 
• 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan
• ¼ cup whole wheat flour
• 2 lightly beaten eggs

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Grease a mini muffin tin with nonstick spray. 
3. Pour all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well until fully combined. 
4. Fill 12 cups of the mini muffin tin right to the brim.
5. Bake for 14-16 minutes or until the tops feel firm and the edges are just starting to brown.
6. Let cool, then serve.
7. Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days, or freeze in a freezer bag (with as much air removed as possible) for up to 3 months.

8. Cucumber chicken salad bites

Ingredients

• 1 cup roasted shredded chicken
• ¾ cup plain yogurt with no sugar added
• A drop or two of lemon juice
• Finely chopped cucumber (approx. ¼ cup)
• Whole-wheat bread

Instructions

1. Combine the chicken and yogurt together to make chicken salad. Add a few drops of lemon juice.
2. Chop the cucumber into small pieces and combine with the chicken salad.
3. Spoon the cucumber chicken salad onto small rectangles of whole wheat bread and serve.

9. Berry smoothie bowl

Inspired by Yummy Toddler Food

Ingredients

• 1 cup cow’s milk or almond milk
• 1 cup frozen blueberries or mixed berries
• 1 sliced banana 
• ½ cup plain yogurt with no sugar added
• 1 tablespoon pre-soaked chia seeds
• Sliced banana for a topping 

Instructions

1. Blend half of the sliced banana, all the frozen berries, the milk, the yogurt, and the chia seeds together until very smooth.
2. Pour into bowls and top with the rest of the sliced banana. 

This recipe makes enough smoothie for you to enjoy with your little one. Freeze any leftovers in popsicle molds. 

10. Yummy fruit and veggie salsa

Inspired by Yummy Toddler Food

Ingredients 

• 1/2 medium mango 
• 1/2 small kiwi
• 2-3 medium strawberries 
• ½ of a small cucumber 
• 2-3 diced yellow tomatoes
• 1 1/2 teaspoon fresh lime juice

Instructions

1. Cut the fruits and vegetables into small pieces: Peel and dice the mango and kiwi, and dice the strawberries, cucumber, and tomatoes.
2. Combine all the fruits and veggies together in a bowl, then add the lime juice. 
3. Let the salsa sit for 5 minutes. 
4. Baby can eat the salsa with a spoon or with small slices of whole-wheat pitas/tortillas. (Make sure the pitas/tortillas don’t contain added sugar, and don’t contain too much added salt). 

This recipe makes enough salsa for you and your toddler to enjoy together. The original recipe is halved because this snack is best served fresh!

Reviewed by the Ovia Health Clinical Team

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Content provided by Ready, Set, Food!. Ready, Set, Food! is a complete guided system that gently introduces your baby to the top 9 most common childhood food allergens, including peanut, egg, and milk.