Coming up with nutritious healthy snack ideas for toddlers can be a bit demanding. But it doesn't have to be. We've put together a list of healthy snack ideas, both fresh, store-bought (no added sugar or nasty ingredients), and homemade which are yummy and nutritious. Including on-the-go, airplane/travel snacks, pantry snacks, bedtime snacks, and high-fiber kids' food.
*This post has been reviewed by Dora Babic-Cikos, PhD Nutritional Science
Jump to:
- How many snacks do toddlers need?
- How to make healthy toddler snacks?
- Fruit toddler snacks
- Fresh veggie toddler snacks
- Carb-full & whole grain healthy toddler snacks
- Healthy dairy snack ideas for toddlers
- Protein snacks for toddlers (Meat/Eggs/Legumes/Nuts)
- Pantry snack ideas for toddlers
- On-the-go, travel/airplane toddler snacks
- Bedtime snacks for toddlers
- High fiber foods for toddlers
- How to store snacks?
- FAQ
- Final Note
- Recipe
How many snacks do toddlers need?
Around the time your kid reaches the 12-month mark, you're likely having 3 main meals and 2 snacks per day. If they're still bottle feeding, then these bottles can be considered the snacks.
But in general, once you wean from the bottle (and 12 months is usually the time to start doing so), you'd want some healthy toddler snack ideas ready.
How to make healthy toddler snacks?
As parents, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to make things perfect. But really offering healthy snacks can be easy.
Realistically it is anything that contains whole fresh local foods such as grains, milk and dairy products, fruit, vegetables, legumes, and healthy fats in the forms of nuts and seeds.
It's best to combine a few foods from different categories and your child will eat what their body mostly needs or enjoys.
With regards to store-bought snacks - try to avoid any processed food, food that has excessive amounts of salt and/or sugar as well as deli-meats. Below you will find recommendations for some store-bought snacks that are on the healthier side.
Separate healthy snacks into two categories to make it easier - light snacks and heavier snacks.
Light snacks - keep the child full for a short period, just enough to feed them something but not spoil lunch or dinner.
Heavier snacks - keep the child fuller for longer to have energy for activities and on-the-go days.
Fruit toddler snacks
Fruits have fast-releasing carbohydrates so on their own they are a light snack. Combine them with protein, fats, or carbs and you will have a more filling snack.
- Apples - cut up into thin slices or whole depending on the child's ability
- Bananas
- Kiwi - peeled, halved, or quartered
- Strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries
- Grapes - halved (whole grapes are a choking hazard)
- Mango - peeled and cubed
- Softer nectaries, peaches and apricots - either halved or whole (watch out for the pit)
- Melon
- Pears - softer whole, harder cut into slices like apples
- Dried fruits - dates, raisins, apricots, prunes (cut up for younger children)
Fresh veggie toddler snacks
Making fun crunchy veggie snacks for your toddler can get them into eating more vegetables. Serve them with dips (e.g. hummus), nut butters, or with crackers and they will love them.
- Cucumbers - cut in circles or sticks
- Carrots - cut in sticks
- Red peppers - cut in sticks
- Avocado mashed on a cracker or use a smashed avocado to dip other vegetables in
- Cherry tomatoes - halved or quartered
- Snap peas - slivered as needed
- Edamame - thawed
- Olives - halved, rinse to avoid excessive salt
- Eggplant - in a dip like babaganoush
- Blueberry Spinach Smoothie
- Carrot Kiwi Smoothie
- Beets Smoothie
Carb-full & whole grain healthy toddler snacks
Complex carbohydrates cause a slower increase of blood glucose and thus slower release of insuline into the bloodstream, as well as maintaining those glucose levels steady for some time which keeps the feeling of satiety longer.
Combine them with dairy, fats, protein, fruit, or vegetables.
- Whole-grain crackers
- Whole-grain toast
- Whole-grain tortilla
- Whole-grain breadsticks
- Muffins with whole-grain flour or oat flour
- Healthy easy pancakes
- Triscuit Crackers Original Flavour (other flavors have sugar and more processed ingredients)
- Made Good Crackers - made from cassava and oat flour
- Rice cakes (in moderation because of arsenic in rice)
Healthy dairy snack ideas for toddlers
When choosing milk and/or dairy snacks, full-fat options are better for children under the age of 2 years. An easy rule to follow is also sticking to ones with as few ingredients as possible and ideally no added sugar.
- Cottage cheese
- Mozzarella sticks
- Hard Cheese (sliced or cubed)
- Drinkable or plain yogurt
- Fruit yogurt (mashed fresh fruit stirred in plain yogurt; store-bought fruit yogurts have flavoring and sugar added)
- Greek yogurt
- Goat's cheese
- Kefir
- Milk
- Smoothies with yogurt or milk
- Broccoli Cheesecake
- Yogurt Berry Bark Snack
Protein snacks for toddlers (Meat/Eggs/Legumes/Nuts)
Protein have this great affect on the so-called satiety hormones - ghreline and peptide YY. Ghrelin is a hormone that "causes" the feeling of hunger and protein actually suppresses it while it boosts the hormone peptide YY which causes the feeling of "fullness".
Combine it with whole grains, vegetables, or fruit for a versatile snack.
- Hummus with crackers or veggie sticks
- Hard-boiled egg
- Mozzarella sticks
- Deli meats that have minimal processed ingredients and nitrites - not too often
- Chopped walnuts, cashews, hazelnuts, pecans
- Nut butter with fruit like apple or banana or on crackers and bread
- 10-min no bake energy balls - one of our most popular recipes
Pantry snack ideas for toddlers
Store-bought shelf-stable snacks with no added sugar or nasty ingredients. These are the snacks that need absolutely no preparation, just take them out of the cupboard/ pantry and serve them to your toddler.
- Raisins, dates
- Dried mango, dried peaches
- Trader joes freeze-dried strawberries
- Slivered almonds
- Bare Chips - Apple chips and Banana chips
- Larabars - Peanut Butter Cookie, Cashew Cookie, and Pecan Pie are our favorites as they are made from just dates and nuts
- Popcorn chips
On-the-go, travel/airplane toddler snacks
By the time my first child was 3 he had already been on 19 flights (9 of which were transatlantic) so I learned a few things about how to plan travel and airplane snacks. You want something filling, mess-free, and ideally something that takes a long time to eat so you can use up as much of that flight time as possible!
- All types of healthy pancakes that can be breakfast or snack - easy to make and mess-free. My favorites are Banana Pancakes and Spinach Pancakes
- Peanut butter smoothie - if you are scared of choking because you are on-the-go but need something quick and filling
- Fruit with a peel that does not need prepping or washing - bananas, oranges, mandarines
- Healthy Applesauce Oatmeal Cookies
- Zucchini Cake
- Spinach Cornbread Muffins
- Raisins, chopped almonds, fruit
- Nut butter sandwich
Bedtime snacks for toddlers
Toddlers are great at stalling bedtime. In order to avoid battles, we always offer the same two snacks before bedtime (if they claim to be hungry). Either peanut butter wholegrain toast or a cup of milk. If he chooses the toast then we know he was actually hungry! Here are some easy bedtime snack options that you can choose from.
- Peanut butter toast (or any other nut butter)
- Full fat milk or yogurt
- Cheese and crackers
- A small bowl of oatmeal with fruit
High fiber foods for toddlers
Sometimes your toddler needs just a little bit more fiber in their diet. Below you will find a tasty list of high-fiber foods for toddlers that they will like.
- Apples, raspberries, apricots
- Prunes
- Hummus and vegetables
- Almond butter on wholegrain toast
- Homemade granola (dry)
How to store snacks?
It depends on the produce/product but food is always best contained in air-tight containers.
Fresh fruit, vegetables, dairy, and protein should be stored in the fridge.
Once opened, dry food can be stored at room temperature in airtight containers. My favorites are Pyrex glass containers or silicone bags.
FAQ
It's best to schedule your day so they have 3 main meals and 2 snacks. If they need less or more that is ok. It will be dependent on their activity level and if they are going through a growth spurt.
A 2-year-old can eat most of the same things as adults as long as it is cut up appropriately. They can have fruits, vegetables, dried fruits, nut butters, seed butters, yogurts, milk, smoothies, cheese, crackers, breadsticks, and more.
Give them healthy fats (nuts, olive oil, avocado), healthy protein (meat, eggs, legumes), wholegrain carbohydrates (bread, crackers, pasta, quinoa, oatmeal), and full-fat dairy.
Final Note
As you've reached the end of this post then you now probably have a good idea on what healthy snacks for toddlers and kids look like. And don't forget that you can use each of these ideas to build up a main meal or simply use leftovers from a main meal for a quick and easy toddler snack idea.
What is your toddler's favorite healthy snack? Comment below and we can add it to the list!
Recipe
Best Healthy Snack Ideas For Toddlers
Ingredients
Fresh Fruit Snack
- apple cut up into thin slices or whole
- banana
- kiwi peeled, halved, or quartered
- berries strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries
- grapes halved (whole grapes are a choking hazard)
- mango peeled and cubed
- nectarine or peach either halved or whole (watch out for the pit)
- apricots either halved or whole (watch out for the pit)
- pear softer whole, harder cut into slices like apples
- dried fruits dates, raisins, apricots, prunes (cut up for younger children)
Fresh vegetables
- cucumber cut in circles or sticks
- carrot cut in sticks
- red pepper cut in sticks
- avocado mashed on a cracker or use a smashed avocado to dip other vegetables in
- cherry tomatoes halved or quartered
- snap peas slivered as needed
- edamame thawed
- olives halved, rinse to avoid excessive salt
- eggplant in a dip like babaganoush
- kale chips homemade or store-bought
Carb Snacks
- wholegrain crackers
- wholegrain toast
- wholegrain tortilla
- wholegrain breadsticks
- wholegrain muffin
- healthy pancakes
- rice cakes
- homemade granola (dry)
Healthy Dairy Snacks
- Cottage cheese
- Mozzarella sticks
- Hard Cheese (sliced or cubed)
- Drinkable or plain yogurt
- Fruit yogurt (mashed fresh fruit stirred in plain yogurt; store-bought fruit yogurts have flavoring and sugar added)
- Greek yogurt
- Goat's cheese
- Kefir
- Milk
- Smoothies with yogurt or milk
- Broccoli Cheesecake
- Yogurt Berry Bark Snack
Protein Snacks
- Hummus with crackers or veggie sticks
- Hard-boiled egg
- Mozzarella sticks
- Deli meats that have minimal processed ingredients and nitrites not too often
- Chopped walnuts, cashews, hazelnuts, pecans
- Nut butter with fruit like apple or banana or on crackers and bread
- 10-min no bake energy balls
Instructions
- Pick ingredients from the list. For a lighter snack offer fruit and vegetables. For a heavier snack combine them with protein, carbs and/or dairy.
- For produce, usually serve 1 produce, and for other ingredients about ½ a cup. Offer more if the child wants more.
- Let them decide when they are full.
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