Healthy Snacks

A Healthy Snack with Honey and Almond Butter

February 6, 2013 by Betty

After coming home from Sunday School one Sunday, my kids told us that John the Baptist ate grasshoppers dipped in raw honey. I then asked them if they would try it if I served up some grasshoppers. I got three different responses. Mei Mei said, “For real?” Buddy answered, “I would try it.” And Chico, being the wisest, shook his head and said no. It was interesting that all three of them had a different answer.

I thought I’ll just stick with something that everyone would enjoy. So in honor of John the Baptist, I offered my kiddos toasted multigrain English muffins smeared with almond butter and raw honey for breakfast. It was so good that they asked for seconds!

How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!

Psalm 119:103 (NIV)

On a side note, did you know that honey is double the sweetness of sugar? And nutrition wise, honey’s also superior to sugar. We hope you’ll enjoy this healthy little treat!

Note: My raw honey was solid even though I stored it in the cupboard: I warmed it up in a small pot using the lowest heat setting. You can also microwave it for a few seconds.

What are some healthy honey snack ideas do you have? Please share with us in the comments.

Roasting Your Own Pumpkin Seeds

November 2, 2012 by Betty

If your kids are anything like mine, they love seeds and nuts for snacks. So, when I told them that we would roast the pumpkin seeds from our pumpkin carving activity, they were all into it. On a side note, did you know that pumpkin seeds is a good source of protein, iron and vitamin K?

While you can truly roast your pumpkin seeds at 400 F, I prefer to slow cook mine at a lower temperature. Spice up your seeds with additional herbs and spices, such as garlic salt, melted butter, ground cinnamon, all spice to name a few or just stick with the basics, a dash of salt and a little oil if needed. And that’s just what we did.

Ingredients:

Pumpkin seeds, about 1 1/2 to 2 cups, cleaned and rinsed
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon of oil-Optional
Cookie sheet (I used my glass Pyrex)

Pumpkin seeds in my metal strainer.

Instructions:

1. Rinse pumpkin seeds until free of pulp and strings using a strainer.
2. Preheat over to 300 F
3. In a large bowl, add pumpkin seed and toss with salt and oil (optional). If you’re working with dry seeds, oil will help the salt and other spices to stick to your seeds. But if your seeds are still wet, you can even skip the oil. At this point, add additional spices and mix well.
4. Spread pumpkin seeds onto your cookie sheet evenly in one layer.
5. Bake in oven for about 30 min-45 min or until your pumpkin seeds are crisp.