This guest post comes from Natalie and Holly over at The Modern Proper. Their mission is to change the way people think about hospitality, one delicious recipe at a time — and in our series with them, we’re excited to share recipes that will nourish you, your family, and loved ones alike. Here, they’re sharing an easy, protein-packed snack that toddlers and littles will love!
Is it just me, or do kids magically turn into snacking monsters once they reach toddler-dom? I mean, I get it. Their little bodies are working hard. Last week, my kids played at the park for six straight hours. Six! Afterwards, they gave the word hangry new meaning as I struggled to feed them fast enough to avoid a nuclear meltdown. Which, I didn’t by the way. Silly me, I didn’t have anything prepped, and in the time it took for me to quickly cook some quesadillas, things got straight up crazy. To make matters worse, I’ve never been one of those awesome snack-carrying moms. You know, the ones who when the kid says they’re hungry, goes into her mystical Mary Poppins’ bag and pulls out granola bars, fruit snacks, applesauce, crackers...you name it?
If I’m being honest, part of me feels that horrid mom guilt whenever I’m at the grocery store that I shouldn’t be buying my kid’s packaged food, and then the other part of me feels terribly neglectful when my kids want/need a quick snack and I’m just left there blinking. I’m sure no one can relate to this at all.
Lately, however, I’ve learned my lesson and upped my game. I’ve been trying to keep a small assortment of packaged snacks for when we are out and about, and they’ve saved my kids' and me’s attitudes on more than one occasion. However, it’s a different story when we’re home. At home, I’m still trying to stick to a “no packaged snack food” rule, because, come on, kids! There is a whole fridge of food just sitting there. Fresh fruit is always an obvious choice, but I’m always looking for ways to get more protein into my kids, and because from week to week they will either hate or love cheese, salami, eggs, meat (you name it), I love tricking them just a bit by making them this frozen yogurt bark. To a kid (or to my kids at least) frozen means treat, right? If it’s cold and even the slightest bit sweet, my little ones think it’s the best thing ever. So I started making this frozen yogurt bark as a “treat” for them because it’s versatile and most importantly, healthy and protein packed. It takes just a few short minutes to prep, and once frozen, it can be bagged and saved for later. You can use any fresh or dried fruit you have on hand, granola—even chocolate chips, shredded coconut, and nuts are fair game. Because it’s cold and sweet, your kids will gobble it up, and because it’s not packaged, you’ll feel great about yourself (I mean, I do). At the very least, it’s something quick to feed those sweet little snack monsters besides a granola bar.
Frozen Yogurt Bark
Ingredients
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2 (16oz) containers whole milk Greek vanilla yogurt
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¼ cup pure maple syrup
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1 cup granola + extra to sprinkle on top
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½ cup freeze-dried strawberries, roughly chopped
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¼ cup coconut flakes
Instructions
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In a large bowl, mix the yogurt, maple syrup, and 1 cup of granola until fully incorporated.
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Spread the mixture onto a parchment-lined, rimmed baking sheet.
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Sprinkle with additional granola, freeze-dried strawberries, and coconut flakes.
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Place the baking sheet in the freezer and allow to sit until frozen through.
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Once frozen, remove from the baking sheet in large chunks and store in a ziplock bag in the freezer until ready to use (up to 1 month)!
