Healthy Snack Tips for our kids

Snacks are important part of a growing childʼs diet. Healthy snacks give children extra calorie and nutrients between meals and offer an opportunity to add a few more vegetables and fruits to their diet. Sometimes you just need a few new ideas.

List of Tips For Creating A Healthy Lunchbox For Your Child  

       
-Get rid of unhealthy snacks that can derail your child’s goals. 

-Try some kiwi for a tasty green snack!
  
-Cashews, almonds, walnuts, pecans, and peanuts have heart healthy oil. It makes a great after school snack. One ounce if nuts is equal to one serving of meat.   

-Set out a bowl of veggies with a low fat dip for healthy kid snacking.   

-Keep the total calories down by choosing baked chips instead of regular potato chips   

Snack on dried fruits such as apricots, figs or raisins.   

-If your child isn’t hungry at dinner, you may need to move snack time to at least 2 hours prior to the evening meal.   

-Wash fruit the night before so they’ll be ready for a healthy afternoon snacks.   

-Skip the chips at snack time and serve celery with peanut butter.   

-Think of snack time as mini meals rather than "junk food" time.   

-Avoid foods that have sugar or high fructose sugar as the first ingredient.   

-Bring healthy snacks like fruit cups, raisins, celery with peanut butter, low fat cheese and crackers or trail mix in baggies.   

-Limit the amount of processed ready to-eat-snacks you buy (such as potato chips or cookies).   

-Pack mini carrots for your child’s snack today.   

-For chocolate lovers, eat antioxidant-rich, heart-healthy, organic dark chocolate   

-Children need a healthy snack between meals.   

-Snacking is the opportunity to add more servings of healthy foods from the food groups   

-Make snack kabobs. Put cubes of low-fat cheese and grapes on pretzel sticks.     Limit the amount of added sugar in your child’s diet.   

-Banana Split: Top a banana with low-fat vanilla and strawberry frozen yogurt. Sprinkle with your favorite whole-grain cereal.   

-Microwave a small baked potato. Top with reduced-fat cheddar cheese and salsa.   

-Limit the availability of high-calorie, high-sugar, high-fat foods that have little if any nutrients.   

-Spread mustard on a flour tortilla. Top with a slice of turkey or ham, low-fat cheese and lettuce. Then roll it up.   

-Peel a banana and dip it in yogurt. Roll in crushed cereal and freeze.   

-Mix together ready-to-eat cereal, dried fruit and nuts in a sandwich bag for an on-the-go snack.   

-Spread celery sticks with peanut butter or low-fat cream cheese. Top with raisins.   

-Stuff a whole-grain pita pocket with ricotta cheese and Granny Smith apple slices. Add a dash of cinnamon.   

-Smear a scoop of frozen yogurt on two graham crackers and add sliced banana to make a yummy sandwich.   

-Top low-fat vanilla yogurt with crunchy granola and sprinkle with blueberries.   

-Spread peanut butter on apple slices.

Safety Food Tips for our family

Food safety means keeping our food free from bacteria and other germs that can make us very ill.  

Unfortunately, there is still a knowledge gap about food-borne illness. Many parents believe that food poisoning only occurs shortly after eating. The real truth is that symptoms can occur as early as two hours after eating to a few days after exposure.  

So it is can be difficult to determine the source of food poisoning, it could have been something you ate out or at home.


Avoid Common Food Safety Mistakes To keep your family healthy and safe from germ free foods avoid the most common mistakes and follow these recommendations:   

-Whether you are eating at home or in a restaurant, make sure your food is cooked thoroughly.  Avoid raw eggs and rare meat.  Food cooked at the proper temperature will kill any bacteria  

-Don't leave food sitting on the stove or counter.  Label them with date and store them right away.  Store food at the proper temperatures.    

-Don't leave food out for 2 hours or more.  If food is left out because of a party or some other event, follow the 2 hour rule and throw the food away.
   
-Don't let your family get sick because of a faulty refrigerator.  Check your refrigerator routinely to make sure they are set at 40 degrees F and your freezer at 0 degrees F.    

-Most people do not wash their hands long enough.

-Wash your hands vigorously for 20 seconds before and after touching or eating food.  

-Check the expiration date on cans and packaged foods.  Throw them out if they are expired.  

-Fruits and vegetables can be a source of bacteria. Wash your fruits and vegetables well.  Use a vegetable scrubber if you have one.  It is hard to know how many people touched the produce before you bought it.

Also Read :
Healthy foods during pregnancy
Healthy snack tips for our kids

6 Healthy Foods during pregnancy

During pregnancy, for example, you’ll need protein and calcium for your baby’s tissues and bones. You’ll also need extra folic acid to protect against neural tube birth defects, as well as more iron to help red blood cells carry oxygen to your baby. 
 
Get off to a good start with these pregnancy super foods.
Whole grains  
Enriched, whole-grain breads and cereals are fortified with folic acid and iron and have more fiber than white bread and rice. Work whole grains into your day: oatmeal for breakfast, a sandwich on whole-grain bread at lunch, and whole-wheat pasta or brown rice for dinner. 

Beans  
Add black beans, white beans, pinto beans, lentils, black-eyed peas, and kidney, garbanzo, or soy beans to your diet. Try them in chili and soups, salads, and pasta dishes. Besides providing protein and fiber, they are also good sources of key nutrients, such as iron, folate, calcium, and zinc. 

Salmon  
Omega-3 fatty acids are good for your baby's brain and eyes, and salmon is a great source. Plus it provides protein and B vitamins. Salmon is also relatively low in mercury compared to other fish. Try it grilled, broiled, or on a salad. You can safely eat up to 12 ounces of low-mercury fish, such as salmon, per week. 

Eggs  
Eggs are versatile and a good source of protein that provides amino acids you and your baby need. They contain more than a dozen vitamins and minerals, including choline, which is good for baby's brain development. However, be sure not to eat undercooked or raw eggs.

Berries  

Blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries are delicious snacks and taste great in pancakes and on top of cereal. Berries are packed with vitamin C, potassium, folate, and fiber.

Low-fat yogurt  
One cup of plain, low-fat yogurt has more calcium than milk, is high in protein, and doesn’t have the added sugar of flavored yogurts. Dress it up with fruit or crunchy, whole-grain cereal.

BBQ Pork Ribs

Ingredients
10  tablespoons chili powder
1/2  cup light brown sugar
6  tablespoons minced garlic
2  tablespoons coarse salt
2  racks (2-1/2-lbs. each) pork spare ribs
3  tablespoons olive oil plus additional for brushing
2  large onions, chopped
2  cups ketchup
2  cups strong coffee
1/3  cup apple-cider vinegar
1  recipe Confetti Coleslaw

Directions :
1.Whisk together 4 tablespoons chili powder, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons garlic, and the salt in a small bowl for dry rub.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Rinse and pat pork dry and place in 2 lightly oiled large baking pans. Rub pork all over with dry rub and cook in upper and lower third of oven until meat is slightly pink, about 30 minutes, depending on thickness.

3. Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons oil in a large saucepan over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and cook onion, stirring, until softened, about 8 minutes. Add remaining 6 tablespoons chili powder and 4 tablespoons garlic; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in ketchup, coffee, vinegar, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar; simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced to 4 cups, about 40 minutes. Remove pan from heat, transfer 2 cups sauce to a bowl for basting and place remaining sauce in a small bowl for serving on side.

4. Preheat grill. Brush top of ribs with some of barbecue sauce and place sauce side down on a lightly oiled rack; cook over moderately high heat, turning once and basting remaining side with sauce, until browned and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer ribs with tongs to a platter and let stand 10 minutes. Separate ribs by cutting between the bones with a sharp knife and serve with Confetti Coleslaw and remaining sauce on side. Makes 8 servings.

Choc Hazelnut Meringue Cake

Ingredients 
Melted butter, to grease  
125g butter, chopped  
100g dark cooking chocolate, coarsely chopped  
2 eggs, lightly whisked  
100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar  
75g (1/2 cup) self-raising flour  
55g (1/2 cup) hazelnut meal  
2 tbs cocoa powder, sifted  
125ml (1/2 cup) thickened cream  
100g (1/3 cup) chocolate hazelnut spread
 
Chocolate meringue      
3 egg whites  
155g (3/4 cup) caster sugar 
 100g dark cooking chocolate, melted


Method :
Preheat oven to 160°C. Brush a 22cm (base measurement) springform pan with melted butter. Line the base and side with non-stick baking paper.

 Place the butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan half-filled with simmering water (make sure the bowl doesn't touch the water). Use a metal spoon to stir occasionally until the chocolate melts and the mixture is smooth. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool slightly.

Whisk the egg into the chocolate mixture. Add the sugar, flour, hazelnut meal and cocoa powder and stir until well combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake for 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Meanwhile, to make the chocolate meringue, use an electric beater to beat the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until firm peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is thick and glossy.

Increase oven temperature to 200°C. Divide the meringue in half. Fold half the melted chocolate through half the meringue to create a swirled effect. Spoon on top of the cake. Repeat with the remaining melted chocolate and meringue. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the meringue is firm. Step 6  Stir the cream and chocolate hazelnut spread in a small saucepan over low heat for 2-3 minutes or until smooth. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool and thicken slightly. Drizzle over the cake.

Nasi Goreng (Fried Rice)

Nasi Goreng  
The famous Indonesian fried rice. original made from leftover rice and eaten as a breakfast dish.  Now more usual server for lunch or as the basis of a larger evening meal, for example with a rijsttafel. It is very easy to make and won't take more than 20 minutes to prepare.

Ingredients :
350 gr. Long Grain Rice
2 Tbs. Vegetable Oil
3 Eggs
1 Onion
2 Green Chillis, Sambal Ulek or Sambal Badjak.
1 Garlic Clove
1 Leek
1 teaspoon Ground Coriander
1 teaspoon Ground Cumin 250 gr. Chicken meat 250 gr. Shelled Prawns 3 Tbs. Kecap Manis


Preparation: 
This dish is best made from cold leftover rice, but you can cook a fresh batch and leave it to cool for at least 4 hours. Beat the eggs and make into a omelette, slice into strips and set aside. Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan. Add the chopped onion, leek, garlic and chillis. Fry until the onion is soft. Add the Coriander and Cumin. Slice Chicken into strips and add with the prawns to the onion mixture and cook, stirring occasionally until they are well mixed. Add the rice, soya sauce and omelet strips and cook for a further 5 minutes.Decorate with some of the leftover leek and serve hot. Enjoy.

Carrot-Pineapple Smoothie

Ingredients
3/4 cup chopped fresh pineapple
1/2 cup ice
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup chopped carrot
1/2 banana

Directions
Place the pineapple, ice, orange juice, carrot, and banana in a blender.
Blend until smooth and frothy.