30-Day Nutrition Challenge: The Healthy Snack Kids and Adults Love

Our bodies need healthy snacks to get us through the day with energy. The best thing is when you find a healthy snack that not only gives you energy but that you also look forward to. What if this snack also happened to be one of your kids’, nieces’, or nephews’, favorites as well? Wouldn’t that make an easy way to get yourself and them through the mid-afternoon slump?!

The Hype Behind the Snack

The snack kids and adults both love is a smoothie with protein powder! Yes, there has been a lot of hype about smoothies not necessarily being healthy. That’s because not all smoothies are made equal. If you go to Jamba Juice or another smoothie shop, a lot of their smoothies are made with sherbet, sorbet, or frozen yogurt … all ingredients that you don’t want to be adding to a naturally sweet snack. More and more smoothie shops, including Jamba Juice, now have healthier smoothies on their menu, using ingredients such as plain regular yogurt or Greek yogurt. They also typically give you the option of adding whey protein, soy protein, or another type of protein powder for less than a dollar.

I recommend making your own smoothie as you can determine exactly what goes into it, and it’s a quick, easy snack at home. Either way, you can still find ways to get healthy smoothies at home or out and about.

What Should Go In Your Smoothie

Try to keep your smoothie as natural as possible. The fruit in a smoothie makes it instantly sweet. So, you really don’t need to add any extra sweeteners. Plus, when you add a protein powder, it may have a very small amount of sweetener already, which adds to the flavor.

1. Fruit. Have fun with it! You can do almost unlimited combinations and still have the smoothie taste good. Try mixing berries, tropical fruits, or a mixture. You can even have a one-fruit smoothie, such as blueberry or raspberry. Use frozen fruit (or add ice) if you want your smoothie to be both refreshing and cold.

2. Yogurt and/or Liquid. It’s often a bit tricky to make a smoothie with only fruit, although it is possible with the right kind of blender. When using yogurt, look for plain non-fat Greek yogurt for some added protein or plain regular yogurt, as the flavored yogurts tend to have added sugar and ingredients in them. The liquid can be soy milk, almond milk, orange juice, or another type of liquid. If you’re using a juice, try not to use too much as it will add extra sugar to your smoothie.

3. Protein Powder. You can use whey protein, rice protein, or another protein powder. This is key in making your smoothie a healthy snack. Although fruit is a healthy snack, is has a lot of natural sugars in it. When turning your fruit into a drink, it means the sugar will be directed to your blood stream even quicker. Therefore, to slow down this process so you don’t have a sugar spike and crash, add protein powder. Protein helps level out this reaction and turns a smoothie into a healthy snack including part of your five a day.

4. Healthy Fats. Your smoothie is only complete when you have fruit, protein, and healthy fats. You can skip this step. However, adding it will give you a more balanced snack or even mini meal. Chia seeds go great in smoothies and are very good for you. Flax seeds or sesame seeds work well, too. You could sweeten the smoothie with some shredded coconut. Just make sure the coconut is not sweetened additionally. You can even add a certain oil. Just be very careful with these as you only need a tiny amount, and make sure you know the oil is good for you.

5. Vegetables (optional). Although this is optional, you can add in a vegetable or vegetables without affecting the flavor much. I often enjoy it even more. Orange (or tropical fruits) and carrots go great together. Spinach and berries also work well as a combination.

Blend and Enjoy

It’s as easy as that! Blend all your chosen ingredients, pour, put a straw in, and drink up. You can even make it extra fun for the kids if you put a cute drinks umbrella, fun straw, strawberry or pineapple on the rim of the cup. Be creative.

You can also try different combinations to create certain colors. Then you’re doing a color activity as well.

Combining the different ingredients when they are whole and then blending them together can help make it very clear for kids what is good for them. Then when it tastes great, it’s even more appealing. Whatever you choose, it can be a healthy snack and activity in one!

Smoothie Recipes

Here are some of my favorite smoothie recipes!

Peanut Butter Protein Smoothie

Watermelon Berry Smoothie Recipe Video