These Homemade Snacks For Kids recipes are inspired by popular store-bought favourites, with flavours and textures kids recognize and enjoy! They’re not meant to replace anything or feel like a “better than” option, just simple, fun, from-scratch ideas you can add into the mix whenever it feels right for your family.
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I am not here to demonize packaged, store-bought snacks – there absolutely can be a place for them. They’re convenient, familiar, and honestly, they help a lot on busy days (and if you want to see some of my favourite store-bought snacks, check out this post here for my Healthy Toddler Snacks + Store-bought Ideas here). The recipes in this post are simply here to highlight that many of those familiar snacks can also be made at home when you have the time and energy to do so (who knew you could make homemade fruit roll ups?!).
I also love finding simple ways to boost nutrition in kid-friendly snacks. You’ll notice that many of these homemade snacks include small additions like chia seeds, hemp hearts, or flax as easy nutrition boosters, and aim to be lower in sugar than store-bought versions.
What makes a healthy toddler snack?
A balanced snack is one that keeps toddlers and kids satisfied between meals and helps fuel their play and growth. I like to think of snacks as “mini meals”, and try to still include a variety of foods. Here is my simple Snack Building Formula.
- Protein and/or fat (like nuts, cheese, chicken, yogurt, seeds, or avocado) +
- Fibre (like fruit, veggies, or whole grains)
This pairing helps keep energy levels steady and tummies full for longer. So for some of the snacks listed below, I’ll pair them with something else to round out the snack. For example, I’ll pair fruit with the goldfish crackers, or a hardboiled egg with the fruit snacks.
Ok, let’s dive into the snacks!
Homemade Snacks For Kids | Copycat Store-Bought Recipes!
1. Homemade Chia Seed Fruit Snacks
Who doesn’t love fruit snacks!? These took a lot of attempts to perfect but we did it! These homemade Chia Seed Fruit Snacks come in strawberry, mango, orange, or blueberry flavours. Lower in added sugar than store-bought options, and a little addition of chia seeds for a fibre boost, your kids are sure to love these. Plus you can choose your fruit snack shape, try out gummy bears, gummy worms, or heart shapes around Valentine’s Day!
2. Better Than Store-Bought Homemade Goldfish Crackers
Homemade Goldfish Crackers are surprisingly a lot simpler than you think! This recipe adds hemp hearts for a fibre boost, and nutritional yeast for an extra cheesy flavour and vitamin B12 boost. If you don’t have any nutritional yeast, don’t worry, you can just omit it. These crackers are a huge hit in my house and have become a go-to snack that we prep on the weekend! You will need fish-shaped cookie cutters like this one here.
3. Chia Seed Fruit Roll-Ups (3 Flavours)
These Chia Seed Fruit Roll-Ups are SO good. They have no added sugar, and of course a boost of chia seeds mixed in. I’ve provided three flavour options – Strawberry-Apple, Blueberry-Apple, and Mango. These fruit roll-ups taste similar to a “That’s It Bar”, but with the classic fruit leather/fruit roll up texture. They are easy to make, but they do take awhile (they need to dry out in the oven), so prep ’em early on a Sunday morning and let them dry out over the next 5 hours in the oven! Fruit roll ups are such a great snack to have on hand for the week!
#4. Homemade Healthier Pop Tarts with Chia Jam Filling
These Healthier Pop Tarts with Chia Jam are made with a simple Greek yogurt dough, and filled with a no-sugar added strawberry chia jam filling. Rated 5 stars by all the kids who taste tested them! What I love most about these pop tarts is you can batch prep them on the weekend, and then during the week just pop them in the toaster (may need to toast twice if they are straight from the freezer), and then you’ve got an easy breakfast or lunchbox item!
5. Baked Apple Chips
The BEST homemade baked apple chips! A simple and easy apple chips recipe. Most online recipes say to use a mandolin for apple chips (an incredibly sharp kitchen tool). But honestly, there are so many mandolin accidents (🙋♀️) that I don’t think this tool should be in anyone’s kitchen (unless you are pretty advanced in the kitchen and comfortable with them). I suggest using a spiralizer, like this one here. This is a far safer tool to use, and makes a perfect size apple chip. Plus, bonus you can use it for other fun shapes that your kids will love!
6. Copycat Lara Bars
Homemade Copycat Larbars are an easy, no-bake, healthy snack to make. Sweetened only with dates and three different flavour options provided, these bars are so easy to add to a lunchbox or for a snack on the go!
7. Homemade Uncrustables
For some reason that simple step of removing the crusts and sealing makes sandwiches all the more fun in this Homemade Uncrustable Recipe! I definitely don’t do these all the time, but they are quite helpful to batch prep a few and they make for an easy weekday lunch. You will need a sandwich sealer like this set here (affiliate link) or you can use a fork, but it’s a bit trickier. My kids love the fun shapes. And yes, I know these uncrustables are more like a lunch main than a snack, but it’s such a fun copycat favourite and works just as well as a hearty snack on busy days!
8. Dunkaroos
Oh boy was it ever a good day if you had a pack of Dunkaroos in your lunch. Nothing beats dipping fun little animal shaped crackers into a delicious dip. Well, if you’re like me and loved Dunkaroos, you are definitely going to want to try out this Homemade Dunkaroos Recipe! It uses an easy, dairy-free whipped coconut dip, paired with healthier, gluten-free animal crackers!
9. Animal Crackers
Homemade Animal Crackers are a classic, fun snack for kids. Cute little animals and a soft crunch, kids love having fun with these! These animal crackers (which are more like a cookie) are gluten-free, as they use an oat flour base and egg-free – AND they still taste amazing.
I hope you enjoyed these homemade versions of many classic store-bought snacks! Let me know what you end up making by commenting below or tagging me on Instagram @the.toddler.kithen!
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