How to Fuel Your Kids the Healthy Way

By making homemade versions of the packaged foods your kids crave, you can help them discover how real foods found at home can be fun and delicious. We’ve brought together four recipe suggestions to help supercharge snack time and reinvent the classics.

You probably have your breakfast and post-workout smoothie down to a science. But when it comes to fueling your kids on the days they’re super active, you might feel a little lost in your kitchen.

The great thing is you don’t need to overthink it. Children typically have boundless energy in the tank, and they’re likely not doing crazy-high-intensity activities for sustained periods. So their diet should function to support their growth and development overall, says Adam Feit, Performance Nutrition Coordinator at Precision Nutrition. Regardless of how active they are on any given day, that means prioritizing lean proteins, minimally processed carbs, healthy fats, vegetables, and lots of water—just like you should be doing for yourself.

Many foods designed to appeal to kids have loads of refined sugar and chemicals added to preserve freshness, says Feit. While a bag of chips or a cookie is completely fine now and then (that goes for you, too, mom and dad), you want your children to fill up on whole, nutritious foods as often as possible. One way to do that, instead of labeling things as good or bad (which could provoke the start of disordered thinking around food) is to re-create their favorites using ingredients you can control. “Not only can this help them think about food as a bigger concept than the packaged stuff they see on TV, but they’ll also have fun in the kitchen with you, which can encourage a positive relationship with food itself,” Feit adds.

Try these homemade eats, which are rich in healthy carbs to nourish their growing bodies. The point isn’t to deprive them of treats they love. It’s for your kids to see that you can build equally delicious, feel-good snacks and meals with real foods at home.

Flavored instant oatmeal might be convenient and tasty, but it almost always has a heavy dose of added sugar. Replace it with plain oats, then throw a serving of fresh berries or apple slices on top and a dash of cinnamon, suggests Feit. You can always mix in nut butter and oat milk for some more protein and flavor, or even a little honey or brown sugar if your kids find it bland without, but try to let the fruit do the sweet-talking, he says.

Okay, maybe don’t market them to your children this way. But skip the boxed mix and whip up a batter made with oats, cottage cheese, eggs, and cinnamon, says Feit, for a breakfast that’ll power them up with more than just simple carbs. Chocolate chips or blueberries optional.

Granola bars typically have a laundry list of ingredients and sugar sources. Instead, have your kids choose their favorite snacks, such as pretzels, to add to a blend of nuts and dried fruit, like cranberries. The more choice they have in it, the more fun they’ll likely have with it, says Feit.