With June rolling around, Summer is knocking on the door. Summer also (arguably) brings the best snacks for old and young – so here is a breakdown of seasonal snacks, that are also easy to prepare for your little ones this Summer! Although the respected boterham is convenient and usually a crowd pleaser, we thought this might be the season to branch out a bit, and try some summer snacks for kids!
First off – fruit. Obviously.
The Netherland’s seasonal fruits in June and July are cherries and strawberries. These are a great snack on their own, washed and served.
To make the strawberries even more of a special treat for the kids, you can halve- or quarter them (depending on the size), toss them in a big bowl and add a tablespoon of white sugar on top. Cover the bowl with a cling film or a wax sheet to lock in the moisture and flavour and place it all in the fridge for a few hours. The strawberries will absorb the sugar and become extra juicy. Simple and great! Serve in small bowls by itself, with whipped cream, icecream, or yogurt!
Cherries and yogurt – a match made in heaven. A simple and fun summer snack is to dip the cherries into some greek yogurt and place them on a tray or in a container before tranferring them to a freezer. The yogurt will harden and create a fun alternative to a popsicle-bite!
If you want more traditional popsicles, you can mix some yogurt with blueberries, strawberries ro cherries and honey, or maple syrup, fill the mixture into the popsicle mold and wait a few hours for it to freeze before serving!
Adding 1/4 cup of yogurt, a dash of cinnamon and 1 tablespoon of peanutbutter creates a delicious dip for fruits like strawberries, cherries, apples and more!
Alternatively, a skewer is always a fun snack! Placing some strawberries, cherries, and other fruit on a stick and serve with a bowl of yogurt to make a filling, healthy snack that everyone enjoys!
Apple Donuts – a fun name for a fun snack! These are quick as a whip to make and a sure-fire crowd pleaser. Simply cut an apple into slices, cut out the core and cover the slices with a topping of your choice – cinnamon, peanutbutter, yogurt, sprinkles are all great to pair with the apple.
Next up: Veggies
Summer vegetables are just as much fun as the fruit, if done right.
Getting kids to eat greens is a famously hard task for a lot of parents. That’s why this recipe to serve baked brocolli bites with a mayo (or ketchup) dipping sauce is so great for little ones with a pickier palette. It’s tried and tested, and we can say first-hand, that these healthy little snacks do not disappoint!
Carrots, celery and cucumbers are classic summer vegetables. They also happen to pair beautifully with hummus, alioli or a yogurt-based dip! Sometimes its as simples as veggie sticks with a really good dip! Here are some of our favourites:
Honey mustard and yogurt dip
1/4 cup full fat greek yogurt, 1 tsp mustard, 1 tsp honey (or maple syrup for young babies under a year)
Mix all the ingredients until smooth! Ready to serve.
Blended feta and yogurt dip
1/2 block of feta, 1/2 cup of yogurt, a squeeze of lemon juice and some dill to season
Blend the feta before adding the yogurt and lemon juice. Once combined, blend until smooth. Ready to serve!
1/4 cup full fat greek yogurt, 1 tsp mustard, 1 tsp honey (or maple syrup for young babies under a year)
Mix all the ingredients until smooth! Ready to serve.
A non-traditional take on Vietnames Summer Rolls: these are a great way to incorporate heaps of veggies into a snack (or even meal) for the kids!
For this, you will need some rice paper sheets, shredded carrot, shredded cabbage, lettuce, mint, and thin rice noodles.
Tip from Hungry Huy: using bánh hỏi instead of regular rice noodles will save you a lot of energy arranging everying when its time to roll up the rice paper.
This recipe is also great for using up some veggies, that you simply don’t know what to do with. Even if this means you steer away from tradition, summer rolls are very variable and hard to get really wrong. Cucumber, cooked leek, spring onion would all work well in a summer roll too.
You can include cooked seafood, like shrimp or prawns, as well as meat – traditionally it would be pre-cooked pork belly. If you prefer to keep these vegetarian, opt for tofu or more veggie filling instead!
To actually assemble the roll, you will have to dip the rice paper sheets in water for a few seconds before laying it on a flat surface and placing your filling in it. After the rice paper has become moldable, fold over the edges and start roling it up. A tutorial can be found here.
Pair these healthy rolls with a peanut sauce, hoisin sauce, sweet chilli sauce or whatever tastes best to your family!
P.S. we have another set of snacks, which are autumn-themed, If you are interested in those, click here.