Healthy Gluten Free Snacks for Summer Outings
Do you find it frustrating feeding your kids gluten free, healthy snacks when sending them off to summer camp, or going for a picnic? What if I told you, you could easily create a variety of healthy, gluten free snacks that would take you less then 5 minutes to prepare, would you want to know how?
As parents we do our best to provide nothing but the healthiest foods for our children. With time not always on our side, we often rely on quick, convenient, cheap, sugary and salty snacks that don’t really provide our kids with the energy they require to grow up strong and healthy.
Recently I took one of my nutrition clients, Jodi, for a grocery store tour around her local grocery store. Jodi has a 3 year old daughter, Mandy and a 6 year old son, Jack. Jack has recently been diagnosed with celiac disease and is now on a gluten free diet.
Jodi hired me out of frustration. She really wanted to help her son, but had no idea where to begin. Here research on gluten free foods only took her so far and she did not want to rely on expensive packaged foods that were not really healthy, even if gluten free.
On the top of Jodi’s list was a desire to know more about gluten free snacking options that were also healthy. With so many North Americans suffering from celiac disease, we are finding more and more options for gluten free foods on our grocery store shelves, but when it comes to healthy snacks, there are surprisingly very few options that are truly healthy.
I could feel Jodi’s frustration as we walked the isles of her grocery store and came up with only one or two items beyond fruits and vegetables that I would consider healthy, gluten free snacks, her son Jack could take to summer camp.
So we decided to head into Jodi’s kitchen for our next nutrition coaching session where I showed Jodi how to prepare her very own gluten free snacks. These snacks did not just provide all the right nutrients for a growing young body, but they taste fantastic so even kids love them.
I am now happy to introduce to you my top 3 Healthy Gluten Free Homemade Snacks
Yum Yum Energy Bars - Gluten Free Energy Seed Bars
Ingredients (Makes 6 bars)
¼ cup flax seeds – ground
¼ cup sesame – ground
¼ cup sunflower – ground
¼ cup hemp seeds
1 tblsp of almond butter
¼ cup shredded coconut
2 cup pitted dates – chopped
2 tblsp water
How to prepare
Place dates into a food processor with water and blend. Add all other ingredient and blend together. Cover a square baking dish with wax or parchment paper and place mixture evenly throughout. You want the mix to be about 1 inch thick to be cut into bars once done. Refrigerate overnight. Cut into bar serving sizes and freeze to be eaten when desired
Recipe Tip
Try making these bars with another dried fruit such as raisins, apricots or cranberries.
Magic Macaroons
Ingredients (Makes 14 Macaroons)
3 cups unsulphured coconut
¼ cup sesame seeds – ground
½ cup raw cane sugar
4 organic egg whites
¼ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Optional Additions
Dash of cinnamon
How to prepare
In a large mixing bowl mix coconut, raw cane sugar, sea salt, egg whites, ground sesame seed and vanilla extract. Mix all ingredients together until combined. Pack mix into small teaspoon size balls and place on baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. So easy and so tasty!
Recipe Tip
Try adding 1/3 cup cocoa powder to make chocolate macaroons.
Pecan Chocolate Spice Cookies
Ingredients (Makes 8 cookies)
1 ½ cups pecans
1 cup pitted dates – chopped
¼ cup hemp seeds
½ cup shredded dried coconut
2 tblsp all natural cocoa powder
½ tsp Himalayan crystal salt
½ tsp grated ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 tblsp water
How to Prepare
Soak pecans in water for 1 hour. Blend all your ingredients in a food processor until the mixture begins to stick together when pressed between your fingers. On a cutting board place individual cookie sized portions. Press down into desired shape and serve.
Recipe Tip
Try replacing the pecans for a different nut to make several varieties.
There you have it. These three snacks will help get you started. Just remember, the more creative you get, the more types of snacks you can create.
Please leave a comment below to share with me your experience with these snacks.
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