Healthy Toddler Snacks Part 1: Fruit

I was recently asked for some ideas on healthy toddler snacks, now everyone has different standards for "healthy" snacks.  To clarify, for me healthy snacks mean all natural, non-gmo (genetically modified organisms), preferably organic, unprocessed, no artificial colors/flavors, no high fructose corn syrup, and no MSG or like substances.  Using natural sweeteners like honey and maple syrup is also important, but I'm not terribly bothered by using organic cane sugar.  So over the next few weeks, I'll try to add a few ideas for snacks that meet my standards for healthy.  I'll also throw in a tutorial here and there.

Fun Snack Ideas: Fruit

  My toddler LOVES helping me make his snacks, and he usually enjoys his snack more when he gets to help.

• Bananas dipped in yogurt and rolled in chopped nuts. Freeze them on a popsicle stick.  You can use chocolate instead of yogurt for a special treat (still much better than packaged candies/cookies).  You can also roll them in homemade granola or graham crackers instead of nuts.  Strawberries are also yummy but if you don't eat them right away they get mushy.
• Yogurt mixed with pureed fruit and honey.  Pour into ice trays or popsicle molds and freeze.
• Frozen bananas blended in the food processor or blender.  Super creamy just like ice cream, you can add peanut butter or chocolate as well.
• Apples or bananas with peanut butter.
• Fruit salad, add as many colors as possible & discuss the colors/fruit in the mixture.
• Fruit kabobs, have your toddler help skewer the fruit.  Great for hand-eye coordination, you can use a wooden chop stick for a safer alternative to skewers.
• Frozen blueberries are an easy yummy snack, and can be eaten right away.
• Homemade applesauce is easy and a toddler favorite.  Cook apples down, add cinnamon, and sugar (if desired) blend in food processor.   
• Smoothies are fun and easy to make.  You can add pretty much anything to them, of course fruit and yogurt, milk, orange juice, peanut butter or any nut butter, honey, ice (or you can freeze your fruit).
• Fruit Leather, tutorial coming soon.
• Dehydrated fruit, you can dehydrate the fruit in a dehydrator or a conventional oven.

I hope these give you some ideas, there are more to come.

A note about ingredients. I use organic peanut butter, because peanuts are a "dirty" food for pesticides, and because most peanut butter has a lot of garbage in it like hydrogenated oils.  I make my own chocolate syrup with cocoa, sugar, and water.  I use plain whole milk yogurt (I buy organic as well) because once they start adding flavors the extra sugar and garbage gets added as well.  I also always buy full fat dairy products due to free glutamates (more on that later).