Healthy after school snacks are a great way to ward off the wrath and destruction of a hungry kiddo. But with so many school days, it’s easy to feel stuck in a rut and out of ideas. Here’s 115 healthy after-school snacks that we think your kid will really love. You’ll never run out of ideas now!
Healthy After School Snacks: Gluten-Free
It can be hard to find good after school snacks that are both healthy and gluten free. Now, you can make gluten-free versions of traditional after school snacks!
1. Apple Sandwich with Almond Butter and Granola
Apples may make great gifts for your teachers, but they also make great healthy after school snacks! Not only are these almond-butter sandwiches gluten-free, but they are also paleo.
2. Gluten-Free Goldfish Crackers
Enough with trying to find good gluten-free versions of this childhood classic. Now, you can make your own!
3. Gluten-Free (and Vegan!) German Chocolate Macaroons
Don’t these look delicious? Your kids will be thrilled to come home to a plateful of these – if you can keep yourself from eating them all first!
4. Apple Fries
An apple a day keeps the doctor away – and with these French-fry cut apples, wrapped in a gluten-free tortilla, your kids can have fun while they enjoy these healthy after school snacks.
5. Homemade Cheese Crackers
These easy crackers are a great replacement for Cheese-its – or cut them into whatever shape you like!
6. Apple Cookies
Slice up some apples and put out the peanut butter and some fun toppings, and your kids can make themselves some fun cookies.
7. Cucumber Sandwich
Who says sandwiches have to have bread? Slice up some veggies, lunch meat, and cheese and you can throw together some cute cucumber sandwiches. No gluten, lots of veggies – what’s not to love?
8. Apple Cereal with Nuts, Seeds, and Cacao
Give this a try next time your kids are craving a bowl of sugary cereal for their after school snack!
9. Gluten-Free Vegan Raspberry Almond Squares
If your kids have a sweet tooth, try pulling these out of the oven right as the bus pulls up.
Bake Up Some Healthy After School Snacks
Sometimes, all your kids will want when they get home from school is a plate of piping-hot cookies straight from the oven. Once they try these healthy alternatives, though, after-school snacking will never be the same again!
10. Whole Wheat Oatmeal Fudge Bars
These fudgy chocolate bars are made with whole ingredients, so your kids are happy (and healthy, too!).
11. Banana Muffins
These sweet muffins are a great way to sneak fruit into your kids’ after school snack.
12. Cherry Pie Tarts
Instead of handing your kids Poptarts, wouldn’t it be great to watch them bite into homemade cherry pie tarts?
13. Apple Zucchini Muffins
Your kids will scarf down these muffins so fast you’d think they were eating candy! Nope, it’s just good old fruits and vegetables.
14. Baked Sweet Potato Tots
Instead of tater tots, try whipping up a batch of these good-for-you sweet potato tots. You could make them for dinner, or just give them to your kids for a snack after school.
15. Triple Chocolate Bread
This delicious vegan bread is full of great chocolate flavor (and no gluten or dairy). It will be your kids’ (and your) new favorite!
16. Homemade Goldfish Crackers
Skip the snack food aisle with its artificial colors and preservatives, and make your own fishy friends! Your kids will love them.
17. Quinoa Trail Mix Bites
If your kids are going straight from school to sports (or even just to the couch to play video games), give them some of these trail mix bites to fuel their fun.
18. Pear Muffins
These delicious pear muffins make a great healthy after school snack, full of fruit!
19. Homemade Cheese Crackers
Why buy Cheese-its or the knock-off brand when you can make your own?
20. Sweet Potato Banana Bites
These fun snacks are gluten-free, dairy-free, and full of good-for-you fruits and vegetables!
21. Sweet Potato Crackers
These gluten-free, dairy-free crackers only have five ingredients, and will be easy-peasy to throw together! You could cut them into boring squares or circles, but we all know that snacks taste better when they are cut into fun shapes. Time to pull out the cookie cutters!
22. Blueberry-Oatmeal Muffin Doughnuts
It’s a muffin! It’s a doughnut! No, it’s… both? Try baking blueberry-oatmeal muffins in a doughnut pan. It may be a healthy snack, but your kids will think it’s dessert. (All about the shape, people. All about the shape).
Fruit-full Healthy After School Snacks
Sometimes, you need to sneak the fruit into the treat. Other times, you can let it be the star! These healthy after school snacks all feature fruit in its rightful place – center stage!
23. Seahawks Fruit Salad
This fun fruit salad is a great way to show your team spirit while doing homework after school – you can change up the fruit to cheer on a different team!
24. Cranberry Applesauce
Your kids will love this as a snack (but you could also serve it at Thanksgiving if you want).
25. Baked Apple Chips
Who needs potato chips when you have these extra-crispy baked apple chips? Instead of worrying about all the fat and salt your kids are eating, you’ll be more concerned about getting a handful of your own before they all disappear! These are sure to top the list of favorite healthy after school snacks!
26. Dark Chocolate Almond-Coated Strawberries
These pretty strawberries are a great way to get your kids to eat some fruit in their after school snack.
27. Fresh Mango Salsa
This pretty salsa would be delicious on tortilla chips, or even just by itself!
28. Strawberry Mint Salad
Mint makes everything taste more grown-up, even if it’s just a bowl of sliced strawberries.
29. Ants on a Log 2.0
Are your kids tired of boring old ants on a log? Slice up some fruits and vegetables, grab some spreads and toppings, and create the world’s greatest ants on a log bar!
30. Yogurt Parfait with Fruit
Yogurt + fruit = extra healthy points (and a snack that totally tastes like dessert).
31. Apple Turtles
Fruit is always easier to eat when it’s cut into cute shapes, like these adorable turtles!
32. Carved Orange Warthog (with Fruit Salad)
These warthog oranges make an adorable cup for fruit salad. Try creating your own fun animals out of the oranges!
33. Fruit Sushi
Your kids might insist on using chopsticks to eat this fun fruit sushi.
34. Chunky Monkey Bites
Chocolate-dipped banana and peanut-butter sandwiches? Yes, please!
35. Daniel Tiger Tangerine Snack
I don’t know if your kids are as obsessed with Daniel Tiger as my son is, but even if they aren’t, this cute tiger makes a great healthy snack for after school!
36. Green Apple Fruit Leather
No more buying expensive “fruit” leather from the grocery store – it’s easy to make your own, and you can hand these to your kids knowing that there aren’t any artificial colors or preservatives.
37. Dehydrated Pears
If you loved the apple chips (or don’t have any apples), try these dehydrated pears!
38. Fruit and Vegetable Snacks
Those little pouches of fruit snacks from the store never seem to have enough in them – and have you seen the outrageous colors they come in lately? Make your own fruit snacks, and you can know that they are healthy (and you can have a proper handful!)
39. Grape Poppers
Fruit? Check. Candy coating? Check. Fun little stick? Check! Looks like we’ve covered all the snack bases.
40. Homemade Gummy Bears
Ah, gummy bears. Aren’t they lovely? Except for the lack of actual fruit and the ridiculous amount of artificial colors and preservatives. Why don’t you try making your own?
41. Green Fruit Salad
You could make this for St. Patrick’s Day, or you could cut the kiwi into whatever shapes you want and make a healthy snack for after school every day!
42. H is for Hippo Snack
After making this snack, you’ll never be able to see a pear without thinking “That would make a great hippo!” But that isn’t a bad thing, is it?
43. Ants on an Apple
No celery? Use apple slices instead!
44. Nutella Banana Sushi
Kids will eat anything if you add Nutella to it – even bananas! Turn the two into fun sushi bites and you’ve got snack time covered!
45. Homemade Applesauce
Yes, those squeezy pouches are easy. But make your own applesauce, and your kids will think you are Supermom. And they will totally be right.
46. Sugar-free Apple Butter
Instead of jam or butter on their after-school toast, why don’t you give your kids some of this no-sugar-added apple butter?
47. Homemade Mango Fruit Rollup
Mangos are some of my favorite fruits. If your kids are the same way, make them some of these mango fruit rollups!
48. Loaded Apple Nachos
Salty chips and greasy cheese? No thank you! These loaded apple nachos are a great way to get your kids to eat some fruit and protein.
49. Pumpkin Apple Fruit Leather
You know it’s fall when everything becomes pumpkin spiced. Now you can add fruit leather to that trend!
50. A is for Ant Snack
Who says snack time can’t be educational?
51. Strawberry Mint Spring Rolls
Snack time getting too messy? Try these spring rolls! They keep all the fruit inside, instead of all over the couch.
52. Tangerine Butterfly Snack
Not sure what to do with that bag of tangerines you bought? Try making butterflies!
Vegetable After School Snacks Your Kids Will Beg For
Maybe all those fun fruits aren’t in season, or maybe your kids aren’t big apple fans. Give them these fun snacks after school, though, and they won’t even care how healthy they are.
53. Kale Chips
These might not be potato chips, but your kids will love the crispy, crunchy texture! Top them off with salt, or mix it up and use your favorite spice blend!
54. F is for Fish Snack
Aren’t these little fish adorable? They’re made of sweet potatoes! With Finding Dory just out, your kids will love the chance to have a snack that “looks like Nemo”.
55. Crunchy Roasted Green Peas
Your kids can munch on a bowl of these crunchy peas while they work on homework, or fill a baggie for them to take to practice! Either way, these are sure to be a hit.
56. Carrots in a Blanket
Little piggies, step aside. There’s a new blanket hog in town, one packed with nutrition, not preservatives!
57. Zucchini Pizza Bites
Sure, those mini pizza bites you can get in the freezer section are fun. But where’s the nutritional value? These mini pizza bites have all the gooey, cheesy flavor your kids expect, and the vegetables they need.
58. Ants on a Log
Sometimes, traditional is best when it comes to healthy after school snacks.
59. Carrot Chips
Wondering what to do with those carrots in the crisper? Try making a batch of these carrot chips!
60. Homemade Potato Chips
If your kids are still begging for potato chips, turn to the produce aisle, not the junk food section! These homemade potato chips are baked, not fried, and you control the salt!
61. Crispy Coconut Eggplant Nuggets
Your kids might not be eggplant fans (yet). But once they try these delicious eggplant nuggets, they’ll be converted faster than you can say, “This isn’t chicken”.
62. Hummus Pizza Tartlets
These little vegan tarts are a great way to get your kids to eat their veggies.
63. Butternut Squash Latke
Forget all those boring things you usually do with squash (baking it whole, making soup). These latkes are your new friends!
64. Vegan “Cheesy” Kale Chips
Is your family vegan? Do you miss that cheesy taste on those chips that used to be your favorite? Make a batch of these kale chips and enjoy the “cheesy” flavor!
65. Pretzel and Celery Butterflies
Your littles will love this fun snack! If they’re old enough, you could even let them help you throw these butterflies together.
66. Crispy Parmesan Cauliflower Poppers
Sometimes, you have to disguise the veggies with a crispy fried coating to get your kids to eat them. They’ll love cauliflower this way!
67. Pumpkin Cream Cheese
Spread this fun pumpkin cream cheese on toast or a bagel, or dip crackers into it! What a great way to welcome fall.
68. Spinach Sesame Crackers
Don’t let your kids be off-put by the green color of these vegan crackers – they taste great!
69. Cheesy Broccoli Poppers
Your kids might not eat broccoli when it’s sitting limply on their dinner plate. But pull out a plate of these broccoli poppers, and they’ll be lining up for seconds!
70. Spiced Sweet Potato and Apple Fruit Leather
Fruit leather is always a favorite, and this spiced sweet potato leather is no exception.
71. Vegetable Hummus Bites
What a fun way to serve veggies! Your kids will love the little veggie cups filled with hummus and pepper spears!
Healthy After School Snacks for the Freezer
On those days when the weather seems to think it’s still summer, pull one of these fun treats out of the freezer. These after-school snacks are sweet, cold, and (best of all) still healthy.
72. Two-Ingredient FroYo Bites
It only takes two ingredients to make these delicious frozen yogurt bites. Try different combinations of fruit and yogurt to make these your own!
73. Frozen Bananas Covered with Chocolate
Your kids won’t mind eating bananas if you dip them in chocolate and sprinkles first.
74. Blueberry Frozen Yogurt Bites
The kids will eat these by the bowlful. Better hurry if you want some for yourself!
75. Banana Split Frozen Yogurt Bark
This snack has all the flavor of a banana split, but has lots of real fruit and healthy yogurt instead of ice cream. Top it with some chocolate chips and your kids will think it’s the best treat ever!
76. Pineapple Ice Pops
Why is it that putting something on a stick makes it so delicious? We don’t know, but your kids might be able to help you figure it out if you make them some of these ice pops.
78. Chocolate Avocado Freeze Bites
Avocados are so good for you and your kids, but it can be hard to find ways to get picky eaters to try them. Well, how about dipping some in chocolate and freezing it?
79. Frozen Snickers Banana Bites
These frozen Snickers bites are so delicious – and the addition of banana means you can eat a handful without feeling guilty. Or, you know, you could give them to the kids, I suppose.
80. Homemade Dole Whip
It’s hard, being so far away from Disneyland. Well, now you can bring the flavors of Disneyland to you by making your own Dole Whip with fresh pineapple.
Healthy After School Snack Mixes
Ah, the snack mix. That magical concoction of popcorn, nuts, candies, dried fruits, and whatever else you like that never seems to last as long as you think it will because your kids have managed to eat an entire bagful in half an hour. Yikes! How many servings was that? With these recipes, you won’t have to be quite as worried when that happens. Here are some of the internet’s healthiest snack mix recipes. Enjoy!
81. Cranberry Orange Chex Mix
This fun snack mix combines cereal, cranberries, and orange juice and tastes just like fall. Serve it before Thanksgiving dinner, or just as a healthy snack for your kids after school.
82. Dry-Roasted Edamame and Cranberries
Doesn’t this look pretty? Your kids will find it just as addictive as regular store-bought snack mixes, but you don’t have to worry about all the sugar, salt, and preservatives in the store brand.
83. Vegan Cheese Popcorn
Whoever figured out how to make not-cheese taste like cheese was brilliant. That said, this vegan cheese popcorn is pretty brilliant, too.
84. Crunchy Cinnamon-Sugar Chickpeas
If it’s sweet your kids are craving, these cinnamon-sugar chickpeas will be a protein-filled hit!
85. Garlic, Parmesan and Dill Popcorn
Why make boring popcorn when you could spice it up with some garlic and dill?
86. Tropical Popcorn Snack Mix
Summer may be months away, but with this snack mix, your kids can sit back and imagine themselves at the beach, enjoying the sun while they do their homework. Please.
87. Roasted Chickpeas
Loved the cinnamon-sugar chickpeas and want to try some other flavors? Here are six different recipes for roasted chickpeas to add to your healthy after school snacks rotation.
88. Sugar-free Caramelized Nuts
These are so good, you’ll have to make a double batch.
89. Sea Salt and Vinegar Cauliflower Popcorn
Cauliflower popcorn? Are we sneaking vegetables into snack mix? Yes; yes we are. Don’t worry; your kids will love this. And if they don’t – more for you!
90. Smoky Garlic Pumpkin Seeds
Save the seeds from your jack-o-lanterns and make a batch of these delicious garlicky pumpkin seeds!
Energy Bites and No-Bake Cookies
Nothing says “healthy after school snacks” like an energy bite, right? Whether you’ve never tried them before or are an old hat looking for some new recipes, you’re sure to find something tasty here. Or if your kids are craving cookies but it’s too hot (still) to turn on the oven, try making some no-bake cookies for them!
91. Chocolate Peanut-Butter Protein Ball Spiders
These cute spiders would make an adorable healthy snack after school. If your kids don’t like spiders, just leave the legs and eyes off.
92. Sweet Potato Ginger Protein Balls
More sneaky sweet potatoes! Your kids won’t mind, though, with protein bites this tasty!
93. Cranberry-Almond Energy Bites
These energy bites are full of protein and healthy fats to keep your kids going all day long.
94. No-Bake Oatmeal Fruit Cookies
Sometimes, you just don’t have time to put cookies in the oven. These cookies only take a few minutes to whip up, then just put them in the fridge until they are hard (or until you get home from work). Super easy!
95. Pink Lemonade Protein Bites
These grain-free, dairy-free protein bites are totally kid friendly and make great healthy after school snacks.
96. No-Bake Coconut Cranberry Energy Bites
Your kids will love eating a batch of these energy bites after school!
97. No-Bake White Chocolate Raspberry Protein Cookies
If you don’t tell your kids these cookies are good for them, they might not figure it out for themselves, these are so good!
Even More Healthy After School Snacks
Not everything is quite so easily categorized, so here are a bunch more assorted healthy after school snacks for you to give your kids!
98. Homemade Korean Kalbi Beef Jerky
If your kids are “starving” or “so hungry they could eat a horse”, have them try some of this delicious beef jerky!
99. Coconut Chocolate Macadamia Nut Butter
This coconut chocolate macadamia nut butter will quickly replace Nutella in your kids’ hearts.
100. Canned Tuna Sushi
Maybe your kids aren’t ready for “real” sushi yet, or maybe they just love canned tuna. They’re sure to love these sushi rolls made with canned tuna.
101. Quinoa Hummus Zucchini Rollups
Wondering how to get your kids to eat more quinoa? (Probably not). Well, even if you weren’t, your problem is now solved, with these delicious quinoa hummus zucchini rollups.
102. Granola Snack Wraps
It won’t take you long to throw together some of these amazing snack wraps for super easy healthy after school snacks.
103. Teddy Bear Toast
Your kids will love this un-bear-ably adorable toast!
104. Turkey Cheese Crescent Rolls
It only takes twenty minutes to create these easy crescent rolls, but we bet your kids can eat them even faster than that!
105. Lunchbox Kebab
As has already been said, everything tastes better on a stick.
106. DIY Gogurt
No more of those fake-tasting yogurt tubes from the store. Make your own with this easy DIY!
107. Sushi Turkey Sandwich
Okay, so these only look like sushi. But they’re still fun!
108. Grilled Cheese Rollup
Your kids thought they knew what a grilled cheese sandwich was. They were wrong.
109. Deviled Egg Pumpkins
Serve these cute pumpkin eggs at a Halloween party, Thanksgiving, or just as an after-school snack.
110. Japanese Rice Balls
Introducing your kids to ethnic food has never been easier than these adorable, tasty rice balls.
Drinks
And of course, if you give a kid a snack, they’re going to need a drink to go with it…
111. Dairy-Free Green Smoothie
Your kids might be a bit off-put by the green color of this amazingly healthy green smoothie, but once they give it a try, they’ll be hooked!
112. Vegan Tropical Green Smoothie
Throw some different fruits into your green smoothie, and suddenly a sip of smoothie becomes a quick trip to Hawaii – perfect for kids restless after being stuck inside all day.
113. Dairy-Free Chocolate Milkshake
Technically, this is a smoothie (No ice cream! No added sugar!), but don’t tell your kids that!
114. Sweet Potato Strawberry Juice
Sweet potatoes in juice? Why not? The sweetness of the potatoes pairs great with other healthy after school snacks.
115. Banana Split Smoothie
Yes, it tastes like dessert. But this smoothie has more than enough fruit and protein in it to count as a fun snack!
Now you have plenty of healthy after school snacks to offer your kids to appease the mid-afternoon munchies. Hopefully with all these ideas, you’ll never be stuck at snack time again! Let us know any of your favorite healthy after school snacks in the comments below. We love hearing from you!
Oh my word!! There are so many awesome snacks to choose from!! I love Apple and PB, but definitely need to try the apple and almond butter stack! (or maybe the whole wheat fudge bars :D)
These are great suggestions. I’m always looking for new healthy snacks to feed my kids.
OMG..what a great collection of healthy snacks you have here, even I don’t mind to munch on these..thanks for sharing.
Wow! Thats a crazy impressive list…. the question is which one will I start with first!~ Love it!
What a great list! My kids would go for any of the fresh or frozen fruit options!
Holy moly talk about a comprehensive list. You are a lifesaver. My kids are so great at trying new things problem is that means they are always looking for new after school snacks. Pinned this so I don’t have to scour pinterest everyday 😉
I am always looking for healthy snack ideas for my kids! These are great ideas.
LOVE all these ideas! Especially the almond-coated strawberries and the carrots in a blanket! Just all too cute!
thank you for the cute idea Diana. they are all adorable and looks yummy for kids indeed.
Great roundup! Going to try the apple sandwiches.
Apple zucchini muffins are going on my after-school snack list. Thanks for the suggestion!
What a precious roundup! Looks tasty for kids of all ages.
These are such great ideas!
So many cool and delicious recipes that I do not know what to try first!