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It’s that time of year again — when your hungry child runs off the bus and straight into the kitchen for a perfect after-school snack. Making snacks for your child shouldn’t be complicated or take you forever, and that’s where yogurt comes in. We’ve got some ideal go-to yogurt recipes that make after-school snacking easy, fun, and healthy. But what makes a healthy snack healthy?
It’s easy to choose pre-made and pre-packaged items when thinking of quick things to hold your child’s hunger off until dinner time. The reality is that most of the time, those aren’t the healthiest options. These items are often highly processed, high in sodium, and packed with added sugars. To prepare the perfect after-school snack, include protein and fiber and skip the added sugars.
Components of a Perfect Snack
Protein and fiber are two critical components of a great snack. They not only help balance blood sugar, but they also keep kids full for a lot longer than a simple carb like chips or cookies would.1 Generally, fiber is easier to get into a snack than protein since fruits and veggies are packed with fiber. Protein can be a challenge, but a great kid-friendly option is yogurt. Yogurt gets its complete protein from milk, making it vegetarian-friendly and loaded with other nutrients, including calcium and vitamin D.2 It also contains probiotics, which may have benefits on your child’s immune system — and we all know that could be taking a hard hit this back-to-school season.3
Avoiding high-sugar options is the final key to keeping kids full for longer. Sugar is a fast-burning source of carbohydrates, and that often leads to a sugar high hours before bedtime.
Now that you have the tools to build healthy (and kid-friendly) snacks, here are four yogurt snack ideas you can prep beforehand, either with your child’s involvement or on the spot, to curb that after-school hunger. The best part is they all take less than 10 minutes to prepare.
1. 3-Ingredient Frozen Yogurt Bites
These yogurt bites are great to make ahead and serve later in the day as a kid-friendly treat. They make eating yogurt way more fun, and your child can customize what they want in their cup of yogurt. For this yogurt snack recipe, you’ll need muffin tin liners and a 12-count muffin tin.
Description
These yogurt bites are great to make ahead and serve later as a kid-friendly treat. They make eating yogurt way more fun, and your child can customize what they would like in their own cup of yogurt. It’s like a tasty frozen parfait bite that your kids are sure to love!
- For prep; cut up your fresh fruit into small pieces.
- Place your muffin tin liners into your muffin tin and sprinkle a layer of granola (about 1 tablespoon) into the bottom of each liner.
- In a bowl, add the Stonyfield yogurt and 1½ cups of your cut fruit and mix together. Use a fork or potato masher to blend your fruit into your yogurt until it is mostly mixed in.
- Spoon a layer of the yogurt and fruit mixture, roughly 2 tablespoons, in each cup on top of the granola.
- Top each with a sprinkle of granola, then the remaining berries.
- Place the muffin tin into your freezer for 4 hours or until frozen.
- Take them out of the freezer when ready and allow them to thaw for 10 minutes before enjoying!
Notes
This recipe is good in the freezer for up to 2 months! Place them in a freezer-safe container for storage.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Snacks
- Method: Chill
- Cuisine: American
2. Cheerio & Yogurt-Covered Strawberries
Here’s another easy, 3-ingredient yogurt snack recipe! Meet the chocolate-covered strawberry’s healthier cousin! Your child will love this healthy yogurt snack with an added crunch from Cheerios. For this recipe, you’ll need parchment paper and a large plate or baking sheet.
Description
Meet the chocolate-covered strawberry’s healthier cousin! Your child is sure to love this healthy snack that has an added crunch from Cheerios.
- Wash and pat dry whole strawberries.
- Then, hold each strawberry by the stem and dip each end into the Stonyfield yogurt.
- Place the Cheerios on the yogurt around each strawberry, fully covering them. Another option, place the dipped strawberries on the parchment-lined plate or sheet pan and sprinkle the Cheerios over your yogurt-covered strawberries.
- You can enjoy them right then or move the sheet pan with the Cheerio and yogurt-covered strawberries to the fridge and refrigerate!
Notes
For this recipe, you’ll need parchment paper and a large plate or baking sheet.
- Prep Time: 15
- Category: Snacks
- Method: Chill
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: yogurt-covered strawberries
3. Yogurt Pops
These two-ingredient yogurt pops should be a household healthy popsicle staple. They are easy to make and stay well in the freezer whenever your child is craving a sweet treat. This also makes for a fun after-school activity and treat! You’ll need six popsicle sticks for this recipe.
Description
These two-ingredient yogurt pops should be a household healthy popsicle staple. They are not only easy to make but stay well in the freezer for whenever your child is craving a sweet treat.
- Take the yogurt cups, remove the wrapper on the tops, and stick a popsicle stick into the yogurt.
- Place them in the freezer for at least four hours until firm.
- When set, pop the popsicle out from the desired yogurt cup without disturbing the stick. Roll the pop in your child’s favorite topping and enjoy!
Notes
You’ll need six popsicle sticks for this recipe.
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Category: Snacks
- Method: Chill
- Cuisine: American
4. Yogurt Granola Banana Pops
Another great freeze-ahead option can be made using bananas. These make the perfect warm-weather treat. For this recipe, you’ll need eight popsicle sticks, a baking sheet for freezing, and parchment paper.
Description
Here’s a delicious freeze-ahead option using bananas. A perfect snack for the kids and the whole family!
- Peel and cut a banana in half vertically.
- Stick a popsicle stick or cookie stick through the cut end. This makes the banana easier to hold and decorate.
- Dip the end of the banana in the yogurt. You can roll this in a bowl, but we found it easier to dip it directly from the Stonyfield yogurt carton.
- Have the granola and dried fruit on a lined baking sheet and roll the yogurt-covered banana into the mixture. Another option is to sprinkle on the granola and dried fruit. Have fun with the toppings. This could also be dark chocolate chips!
- Place the bananas on a lined baking sheet and put them in the freezer between 2-4 hours before serving.
Notes
For this recipe, you’ll need four popsicle sticks, a baking sheet for freezing, and parchment paper.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Snacks
- Method: Chill
- Cuisine: American
These four yogurt snack recipes are quick, easy, and affordable ways to get your child to eat more protein and fruit. The key elements of a healthy snack can allow you to get creative with your choices, like high-fiber fruits and veggies like bananas, berries, apples, pears, broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower.4 High-protein options that avoid meat include yogurt and cottage cheese.5 Whether these yogurt snacks are a treat or a daily staple, your child will love a healthy, sweet way to kick their after-school hunger.
