My Healthy Pantry Guide
Healthy Pantry Snacks
Are you struggling with after-school snacking? I often get asked by parents how to encourage healthy after-school snacking. It's an ongoing challenge for many of us.
Our kids come home famished, and the pleas for snacks are ongoing. Unfortunately, because we're so busy, we don't always have something fresh on hand… meaning that convenience food often enters the snacking equation. Packaged convenience snacks usually contain little nutritional value, are low in fibre, high in sugar, and unfortunately loaded with hidden nasties too.
But the good news is that with a few simple swaps, we can ensure our fridge and pantry options are as nutritionally sound as possible. This will support healthy after-school snacking, and choosing wholefood snacks made from wholegrains, healthy fats, and protein will ensure kids feel fuller for longer - and hopefully, this will mean less nagging and more playing.
Follow these three steps to overhaul your Pantry Snacks:
Learn to read and understand product labels:
Don't be fooled by all the marketing hype. A basic understanding of how to read and understand the ingredient labels on food packaging is essential in arming ourselves with the purchasing power and nutritional knowledge needed to fill our pantries with cleaner and more nutritious options. Remember, it's not just the nutrition panel that counts for young children. We need to understand the ingredient list too. For more info, check out this article on which food additives to avoid and watch my videos on Instagram and empower yourself with the knowledge required to read food labels.
Focus on your kids' everyday snacks:
It's the snacks our kids eat on a daily basis that will make a difference, so forget about focusing on what your child eats at the occasional birthday party and start exploring healthier options to stock in the pantry and fridge. Basics to begin with include crackers, yoghurts, dips, cheese, spreads and dips. Ensure they contain wholegrains and healthy fats, are low in sugar and sodium, and are free from additives such as MSG and food colouring.
Place nutritious options in plain view:
Assess which are the first items your child sees when opening the pantry. Generally, what the eye sees the tummy wants (just like most adults!) – so a simple and helpful strategy could be to move the lesser nutritious options to higher shelves or pack them away in sealed plastic containers. Keeping whole food snacks at lower, more accessible levels can improve snack choices.
My top ten nutritious pantry snacks:
Popcorn, lightly salted or homemade
Seaweed
Wholegrain crackers
Wholefood nut and seed bars or bliss balls
Dark chocolate or carob bears
Almond, peanut or cashew nut butter (no added sodium, sugar or vegetable oils)
Canned salmon or tuna in springwater
Wholefood Granola (less than 1 tsp of added sugar per serve, high in fibre and no additives)
100% natural fruit straps or dried fruit (no added sugar or preservatives – offer in moderation as can be detrimental for little teeth)
Grass-fed or organic beef jerky with no additives
For more information on how to choose pantry snacks for your family and my favourite brands, head to my Instagram page.