After School is Made for Snacking

[Carmen S]

My kids come home from school completely ravenous. No matter how full the lunchbox is packed, it never seems to be enough. When the 3 p.m. bell rings and they fly out the door to me, the first words out of their mouth are always, "Did you bring anything to eat?" Never, "Hi, Mom, I missed you!" - just a request for sustenance.

I can appreciate that. I can remember many a long bus ride home, hoping that there'd be something amazing to eat when I got home. I remember being super envious of a friend who was a foreign exchange student from Germany - when he got home, his mother met him - every day! - with a fully set table of hot dishes. It was absolutely stunning.

I didn't know anyone whose mom made them a hot snack.

I try, as often as I can, to make sure that my own children have a snack that is high in protein when they stumble out of the school building. One of their favorites is commonly called "Pigs in a Blanket" - mini hotdogs wrapped in dough and baked. I recently decided to mix things up a little, and took ful size hot dogs and cut them into three equal pieces. I paired each section with a small piece of American cheese - I cut a square into thirds - and then wrapped the entire thing inside a flattened section of crescent roll dough.

The first pan I baked was a disaster. As the cheese melted, it leaked out of the roll and stuck to the pan, which meant that the crescent rolls were difficult to get off the pan. With the second batch, I wised up and lined the pan with parchment paper. Result? The rolls browned evenly and lifted off with no sticking issues whatsoever.

And my children were ecstatic when I met them at school with a hot, fresh snack. 

What was your favorite after school snack as a kid? What do you like to serve your own children?

©iStockphoto.com/StephanieFrey

[chantellesse]

Wow! Um. I never thought to give them hot snacks :( Usually they get fruit, wheat crackers with cheese, popcorn or trail mix. I try to keep a variety and sometimes offer granola bars or fruit rollups.

[michiganmom116]

I used to get off the bus after 5 p.m., and it was too close to dinnertime for a snack, so I didn't get one unless my mom would let me have a half sandwich. With my older kids (now adults), their favorite snack was milk and cookies or peanut butter on crackers. With my younger kids (now teens plus a 12 yr old), we eat a late lunch (around 1 p.m.) and it's filling enough with plenty of protein, fiber, and fat from whole foods (no processed foods or grains) that they don't get hungry until dinner...so no snacks are needed.

[KristinRox]

I didnt get after school snacks as a kid, so I didnt have any favorites. 

I dont actually serve anything for an afterschool snack. They come home and just grab something from the fridge or cupboard. usually yogurt, or a piece of fruit. 

[kellynh]

Fuit with peanut butter

[ceciliam]

I used to like to make a salad as an after school snack. My son likes yogurt or graham crackers with pb but we don't snack too much after school because it's too close to dinner time, once he gets home from school.

[aneela]

we homeschool ..but we do love fruit veggies cheeses...crackers...

[natesmom1228]

I don't remember if we got snacks. My sister and I were home with our grandparents most of the time and they didn't really believe in after school snacking. My mom worked.

This is the first year that my son is home early enough for a snack. He is rarely hungry when he gets home.

[Bmat]

yogurt, cheese, something easy

[mallowcup17]

This

Quoting kellynh:

Fuit with peanut butter

[mallowcup17]

Yum I used to do a lot of this too

Quoting Bmat:

yogurt, cheese, something easy