How much fruit do your kids waste? Most fruit isn’t “kid size” and is too much for them to consume in one setting. As a helper at my kids’ schools for lunch, I see plenty of 1/2 eaten fruit getting tossed in the garbage every day! It is awful. I just learn about kid size fruit called Lil Snappers. Lil Snappers fruit varieties are sized small for kids. They offer 20 varieties of apples, pears, and citrus that are sized right for kids.
Kid Size Fruit – Lil Snappers
My kids were home on Spring Break when we received a sampling of Lil Snappers including Pink Lady apples, Mandarines, Minneola (tangerine/grapefruit hybrid), and Cara Cara navel oranges. They eagerly grabbed a snack! I like that the fruit comes in 3 lb bags that stand up on their own and can be resealed. It makes it easy to place on a shelf or anywhere in your refrigerator.
I like to keep my fruit in the humidity controlled fruit drawer in my Maytag refrigerator.
My kids ate the delicious Pink Lady Lil Snappers up in the matter of days. True pink lady apples are hard to find. The Lil Snappers were perfectly sized for kids hands and offered the mildly tart and crisp apple flavors kids love. They were amazing. When my son asked for a snack, he asked for “the good apples” and my daughter overhead him and asked for one too. Unfortunately, there was only one left, so they shared it! I thought it was funny that even kids can tell the difference between Lil Snappers and other fruit!
I’ve never tasted a fresh mandarine before – have you? The Lil Snappers Mandarines are sweet, juicy, and so flavorful. It is my favorite of the four we sampled. I’ve been sending one to school with my kids every day since they have been back to school from Spring Break – they love them. This is huge for my daughter because she doesn’t like regular oranges. I like that she can get Vitamin C, fiber, and folate from this delicious little snack. They are very easy for kids to peel even.
The Minneola Lil Snappers has been a favorite for my husband – Yes, adults can enjoy Lil Snappers too! 🙂 Minneola is a tangerine grapefruit hybrid that offers a bold, tangy flavor unlike anything else. It is a juicy snack that delivers 100% of your daily requirements for Vitamin C too.
The Cara Cara navel oranges from Lil Snappers surprised me. The inside wasn’t orange, it was pink. I expected it to taste like grapefruit but instead enjoyed a sweet orange instead. The Cara Cara is called the Power Orange because it offers 30% more Vitamin A and 20% more Vitamin C than ordinary oranges. It is the lycopene that gives it the pink color.
I send a piece of fruit to school with my kids for lunch every day. Like I said, I see so much fruit thrown away every time I help on lunch duty. It is sickening. I like that with Lil Snappers, kids won’t waste food because it is perfectly sized for kids. I also send a piece of fruit most every day for my kids to snack on during snack time, Lil Snappers are perfect for that as well.
Kid Approved Fruit Recipes
The Lil Snappers website has a bunch of really fun kid-approved snacks that are guaranteed to get your kids excited about eating healthy at snack time, lunch time, or anytime. Keeping your routine for healthy snacks fresh and exciting will help ensure that your kids will have a positive attitude about eating healthy and healthy living. Before bedtime, we offer a healthy snack for our kids, usually fruit, vegetables, yogurt, etc. Although we often have fresh fruit plain, it is always exciting when it is prepared in a fun way!
We tested out the PB&O Toasties Recipe, it combines a hearty whole wheat bread with peanut butter and Sunkist navel or Cara Cara oranges. This recipe is great for a healthy lunch or after-school snack.
Take 4 slices of whole wheat bread and toast it. Use a cookie cutter or top of a glass to cut a circle in the toast. My kids thought this was fun as we used the top of a glass to cut the toast! Peel and remove pith from 2 oranges. Spread 2 teaspoons of peanut butter on all 4 pieces of toast – my daughter’s favorite part to do. Cut orange into 2 rounds. Place a round on a peanut butter spread toast and top with the second round of toast.
It is a super simple idea that turns an ordinary peanut butter snack into something totally new. I wasn’t sure how the orange combination would work. I have always liked toast with peanut butter, so I knew I’d like that. One bite into the juicy orange with peanut butter and toast combination was all it took for my kids and I to have a new favorite snack! It’s really good! It is perfect for a quick lunch or after school snack!
The Lil Snappers website has a bunch of other really fun looking recipes that kids will love for breakfast, snack, dessert, lunch, and more. Check them out for creative and fun recipe ideas that will have your kids eating healthy and having fun at the same time. Most of the recipes are really easy to do which make them perfect for kids to help with. I have found that when my kids help prepare food, they will eat it!
[slickr-flickr tag= kidfruitsnacks]Whether enjoyed in a fun kid approved recipe or alone, Lil Snappers are the perfect kid size fruit for anytime!
Buy Lil Snappers
You can buy Lil Snappers currently in New Orleans, Louisiana, North Carolina, and in Jacksonville, Florida at Rouse’s, Publix, Ingles Super Markets, Harris Teeter Super Markets, Winn Dixie Stores, and C&S Wholesale Groceries. They are expanding their market and will be coming to a store near you soon. To get them here sooner, ask your local grocery store’s produce manager to start stocking them – I know I will!
I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Lil Snappers. I received product samples to facilitate my review as well as a promotional item as a thank-you for participating.
