Healthy toddler snacks with #Chileaneasypeelers mandarins – a @britmums challenge post

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I’ve written several times about making snacks and lunches healthy, from making fun themed lunches to healthy Nom Nom pouches, well I’ve a super simple way in this post thanks to Britmums #ChileanEasyPeelers challenge. Having an almost 3 year old, she’s recently discovered biscuits and real crisps, ok Wotsits and Quavers. We hardly every buy them so they are usually a bribe when we do.  Anyway, she was always brilliant at eating fruit, raisins and Organix snacks at snack time, and no that’s changed, and cake features, or “let’s make cake mummy”, I do have to work harder to encourage her to just eat that fruit. Well, since we were sent these easy peel clementines, that’s not been much of a problem. A daily Chilean easy peeler clementine, a banana and an apple have been quite common. I probably shouldn’t have actually typed that, I’ve probably jinxed it now. But, hey ho, super simple juicy clementines are winners when trying to think of healthy toddler snacks.

Interestingly Chilean clementines and mandarins are full of fibre, calcium and magnesium, so just another reason to choose them over sugary snacks or crisps. I think the best thing about simple snacks like these are how convenient they are. We’re always taking packed lunches with us, even on simple trips to the shops, after all a hangry toddler is a toddler anyone wants to come across. I always throw a few pieces of fruit into the bag, along with a sandwich and it’s a super easy packed lunch.

If we’re home, I really do try to limit snacks to being fruit or veg, and keep things like Organix snacks in stock for when we’re out and about and there perhaps isn’t a place for either me or a toddler to start peeling an orange. Toddler’s are obviously eager to do everything themselves, and Toddler H is no exception, so mostly she has her elevensies or mid afternoon snack sitting peeling her orange popping all the peel in the bowl and then munching away. I think I love the fact oranges keep her busy and occupied for a few minutes so I can steal a hot cup of tea if I’m not otherwise occupied with Baby B!

 

BritMums sent us a few details as to why Chilean Easy Peelers are fab for kiddies and lunch boxes or snacks: 

“The demand for Chilean easy peelers are growing in the UK as the convenient, seedless fruits are sweet in flavor and a hydrating snack, perfect for families.

With year on year growth of 32% in tonnes sold in the UK, the amount of Chilean mandarins sold last season reached over 2,000 tonnes. The predictions for this year’s crop are even greater.

Available in supermarket shelves from September to November, the delicious fruits are the ideal snack for back to school season.”

We’ve always been fans of oranges/satsumas/clementines for snack time and our lunch box:

1. Grab and go! They make packed lunches or snack time easy – just grab them from the fruit bowl
2. Great for snack time – kids love doing things for themselves and great for dexterity.
3. Seedless – no pesky seeds to pick out!
4. “Easy peelers are about 87 per cent water” – eating foods with a high water content can help keep kids hydrated.
5. “Easy peelers are low in calories and fat and help provide fibre, folate, vitamin C, potassium, calcium and magnesium.”
6. In season now, from August to November so great for back to school/nursery

Lynne

This post is an entry for the BritMums #ChileanEasyPeelers Challenge, sponsored by Chilean Citrus Committee.