Chatting School Snacks With The Snack Queens

We’re all too familiar with that mid-afternoon feeling of hitting the wall and how important a snack is in restoring our energy.

Your kids most likely need that little boost too, whether it’s to get them through the rest of the school day or to give them a little boost before the soccer game or the dance class.

We chatted with Ceri Marsh and Laura Keogh, the self-professed “snack queens” behind Sweet Potato Chronicles, what they offer their little ones for school snacks.

“The good thing about snacks is (you can) get in those vegetables and fruit, that’s a food group that’s hard to make your quota on,” Ceri says. “(For a mid-morning snack,) rather than offering a baked thing, which is what everyone wants including myself, offer a bowl of berries, or cut-up vegetables or cheese and crackers to get a little extra protein, that’s a great way to go.

“As for the 3pm slump, that’s maybe where you have a granola bar or a low-sugar cookie.”

The Sweet Potato Chronicles site is full of mouth-watering snack recipes such as Cranberry Granola Balls, Blueberry Spelt Oat Bars, and Rice Crisps.

“There’s a method to our madness,” Laura jokes, saying she and Ceri make things that they’d happily eat for late-in-the-day snacks as well. “I give out a late-morning snack and it’s not a sugary item at all. It’s also not something that’s going to lessen appetite for lunch. It’s cucumber, cut-up, or some carrot sticks. Every child’s different. Some kids have a voracious appetite, some kids like to graze all day.”

Ceri and Laura agree that it’s inevitable kids will gravitate toward sugary items – limiting that is a battle, but a necessary one.

“As kids get older, there’s so much sugar marketed at them. I try really hard to make it known that, ‘That’s not a snack, that’s a treat,’” Ceri says.

“You’re setting their palate, and sugar’s addictive. If they get a lot of sugar, no matter where it’s from, they want it. I want it too. I want it badly at 3pm. But if I ate it in the morning, I’d want it in the morning. There are people who start their day with a danish. You’re also just setting habits, too.”

Check out these delicious snack ideas from Sweet Potato Chronicles:

Put the packaged granola bars on hold and give these low-sugar, antioxidant-rich Blueberry Spelt Oat Bars a try.

An apple-a-day never looked so good until it became the applewich. A protein-packed snack (use any nut or seed butter your family prefers) and sprinkle it with just about seed, chip, nut or fruit you can dream up.

This Rice Crisp treat gets a nutritious shot of blueberries and the sweet addition of raisins.