Simple Healthy Recipes For Preschoolers To Make

While I loved transitioning my kids from bottles to solid foods, there’s something to be said about the transition from serving your kids food to actually getting them in the kitchen with you to cook. My toddlers might not be the best at kitchen quality-control, but they love topping, stirring, and dipping— when a recipe calls for it.

Studies show that the earlier you get your kids involved in the food making process, the more likely they are to try and accept new foods, AND the greater the chance they’ll enjoy doing the dishes for you [actually that’s just wishful thinking].

Healthy

So here are a few easy recipes to get your kids excited about trying new foods… at their favorite time of the day: snack time!

Easy Recipes Your Kids Can Make All By Themselves

This sweet treat is not as messy as a big bowl of yogurt, but just as healthy! With warm weather heading our way this simple recipe can become an interactive activity for your children and you. Just have them stir together the yogurt and fruit and help them pour the mixture into popsicle molds. Cover, freeze, and enjoy!

You know this one… the classic peanut butter and celery snack. The kids will have fun topping the “log” with “ants” and other “friends.” This is a great snack to add some protein and fiber into their diets. Nut allergies? Swap out the peanut butter for sun butter! If your kids are finicky about eating celery, you can use bananas or apple slices for the “log.”

A healthy twist on the classic indulgent dessert. Peel and split a banana and let the kids do the rest. They can add on the yogurt, chocolate chips, and strawberries as they please. The toppings and yogurt varieties you can use are endless!

Top 10 Healthy Kid Recipes

Kids can pick out their favorite fruit and dip such as yogurt, peanut butter, or chocolate. Be sure to get your kids involved in the dipping assembly line! And let them do the sprinkling… my two-year old loves doing that.

Similar to Ants and Friends on a Log, help your kids create their own, unique healthy caterpillar with new fruits and veggies! This fun activity will help them add fruits and vegetables into their day all while helping their imagination grow. It’s also a great source of calcium to build strong bones.

I get that sometimes it’s easier for Mom and Dad to make a recipe or meal without your child’s help because of the extra time it usually takes PLUS the mess factor— which gets me every time. Just remember the memories you are making will hopefully last a lifetime, both in the kitchen and in life!

Healthy Snacks For Toddlers (quick And Easy)

Katie Serbinski MS, RD, is a Registered Dietitian specializing in nutrition and health communications. As a public relations and food industry expert, Katie creates social marketing campaigns and customized media content aimed at engaging communities, families, and individuals in healthy and nutritious lifestyles. Along with consulting, Katie is a Millennial Mom blogger, writing about all things family and food related: healthy recipes, maternal and child health, and musings about motherhood at http://MomToMomNutrition.com. Katie resides in Metro Detroit with her husband and three young children.This Master List of 75 Toddler Meals is full of healthy and easy breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner recipes for your little one! Most of these recipes can be made in 5-30 minutes, are freezer-friendly and have allergy modifications. Great for toddlers 1-3 years old!

Feeling stressed about what to serve your toddler? Are you short on time and not sure what your toddler might actually eat? Do you need some fresh ideas for new recipes?

That’s right – I’ve tested them for you, so you won’t have to! Over the years, I’ve tested out hundreds of recipes on my daughters when they were toddlers and preschoolers, and these 75 recipes were clearly the winners 🥇 because they still love eating them to this day!

The Best Healthy Recipes For Snacks

I’m not sure it’s okay to call your kids 👭 your test subjects… but we are just going to go with it! 👍

Feeding toddlers can be tricky! But, don’t worry, I’ve got you covered! Here you will find real-life toddler meal ideas, over 100 toddler snack ideas, great hidden-veggie recipes, 50 cooking with toddler recipes, and so much more! For even more toddler-friendly recipes, be sure to check out my best-selling cookbook: Little Foodies: Recipes for Babies and Toddlers with Taste.

Healthy,

According to the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, nutrients of concern for underconsumption in a child’s second year are vitamin D, calcium, fiber, and potassium, so make sure your toddler gets a variety of foods with these nutrients daily.

Making Mealtime Fun: 6 Quick And Healthy Recipes For The Kids

Below are recommended daily intakes for toddlers of different ages. Still, it’s important to look at what your child eats throughout the whole week instead of focusing on each day since toddlers’ eating habits can be erratic and unpredictable. As long as you keep offering a variety of foods from all of the food groups, your child’s nutrition should balance out each week.

A good method for building a well-balanced meal for 1-3-year-old toddlers is to include foods from a variety of food groups each day. You don’t have to have all food groups represented at every meal but make sure you offer a protein at all meals and snacks to help keep little bellies full.

When serving dairy products, give whole milk products until age 2. Focus on whole fruits instead of fruit juice and aim to make half of grains whole grains for more fiber and other nutrients.

Quick Healthy Meals For Kids: In Pictures

Offer foods multiple times, even if your toddler acts like he does not like it, because it can take up to 15 times of being presented with a food for a child to develop a taste for it. Try offering foods cooked in a variety of ways so your toddler can explore different tastes and textures. Even better, serve your child what you are eating (in age-appropriate sizes, of course) and eat meals together so you can model healthy eating behaviors for them.

Below is a sample 5-day meal plan for toddlers. Feel free to use leftovers if you have them to add to the next meal.You can also add in sides of cut veggies and fruit that you have on-hand.

Best

Made with only 3 simple ingredients – banana, egg and flour, yet these pancakes are fluffy, soft and perfect for baby, baby-led weaning and toddlers!

Easy Healthy Snack Recipes For Kids

Don’t forget about baby’s dinner on your favorite meal night of the week – Taco Tuesday! This flavorful meal is filled with your favorite taco flavors, only mini-sized for those little hands to be able to eat.

These Blueberry Avocado Mini Muffins are loaded with fruit, healthy fats, and whole grains. Their mini size makes them perfect for small baby and toddler hands, and they are great for baby-led weaning. Yum!

These easy-peasy pizzas come with a fun surprise – pepper “sprinkles”. Toddlers will love adding these bright and colorful veggie sprinkles onto their lunch pizzas.

Healthy Halloween Food And Tips For Kids Halloween Recipes

These naturally sweetened frozen treats are a fun and tasty way to serve a fruit and veggie to your toddler. Great for snack time or dessert.

These Chicken Parmesan Meatballs are the perfect family dinner – easy to make and loved by all! This healthy dinner is great for all ages – baby to adults! Made in 30 minutes with only 5 simple ingredients!

Cooking

This Easy Garlic Broccoli Pasta is the perfect family dinner! Using one-pot, 5-ingredients and made in less than 20 minutes, what's not to love?

Healthy Recipes Kids Can Make

Handheld and portable, these egg cups are great for baby and toddlers on-the-go. These savory cheddar cheese and broccoli breakfast cups can be served warm at the breakfast table or packed cold for a morning playdate or school lunch.

Easy and quick to make, these whole wheat chocolate chip cookies are the perfect treat for the whole family. Ready to enjoy in 20 minutes and made with simple ingredients, these cookies are wonderfully chewy and crunchy.

Looking for naturally sweetened muffins for baby-led weaning? Babies, toddlers, and even big kids love these soft and sweet ABC Muffins made with Apple, Banana, and Carrots! Perfect for 6+ months.

The Best Doctor Approved Healthy Snacks For Kids

If you have a picky one at home who refuses to eat their vegetables, this chocolate peanut butter smoothie is a great way to sneak them in! This kid approved smoothie is great for a quick and easy breakfast or snack and is nutrient dense.

These savory cheddar cheese and broccoli breakfast cups can be served warm at the breakfast table or packed cold for a morning playdate or school lunch. Plus, enjoy 74 more healthy and easy meal ideas for your toddler!

Recipes