Many of us choose to start the new year with the resolution to eat better. I have been working hard over the past year trying to lose weight and eat healthier. So this year my resolution was to make better choices for my family! Since I am the one who shops and cooks, I have to be more aware of what I am bringing home.
Like most kids, my boys love to snack. They have a drawer in the kitchen that they can go to when they need something after school or between meals. After seeing that the drawer was looking more like a dessert drawer rather than a snack drawer, I decided it was time for a makeover!
I pulled out the fruit snacks and replaced them with raisins. I made sure that they had several fruit options in the drawer. There’s always some type of fresh fruit, applesauce, and fruit cups available so they can choose based on their mood. I tossed the chips and replaced it with a tasty snack mix that I pre-packed into individual servings so they can grab and go!
The snack mix has been a huge hit and it was so easy to make. I can whip up a batch on Sunday night and they have enough to last them all week long. What’s nice is that I can change the mix up from week to week so that they don’t get bored.
It’s super easy to make your own snack mix. The first thing you want to start with is a base ingredient. I chose Van’s Gluten-Free Honey Crunch Cereal as the starting point for my mix. I chose it because it’s nutritious and also tasty…so my boys get the best of both worlds! I then started going through my pantry to add some different flavors and textures to the mix. I added some popcorn, almonds, pistachios, dried fruits and before long I had whipped up an incredible mix that got an instant seal of approval from my taste testers!
Since my boys often have buddies who come over, I don’t have to worry about any allergy issues. I built this one to be completely gluten-free. That’t the great thing about Van’s cereals you get great taste without worry. Their products are perfect for folks with food sensitivities. Van’s Cereals are made with simple, clean ingredients and are:
- Gluten Free
- Dairy Free
- Egg Free
- Corn Free
- Kosher
- No High Fructose Corn Syrup
- No Artificial Flavors or Preservatives
What’s great is that we have a big coupon in the new Be The Best You booklet that you can use to save next time you shop at Publix.
Grab your coupon and pick up a box at a nice discount. Of course the cereal is great with milk but it also makes a tasty snack mix! Try my recipe below and let me know what you think!
- 3 cups Van’s Gluten-Free Honey Crunch Cereal
- 1 1/2 cups popped popcorn
- 1/2 cup roasted pistachios
- 1/2 cup roasted almonds
- 1/2 cup dried apricots pieces
- 1/2 cup dried pineapple pieces
- 1/2 cup dried raisins or cranberries
- 6 ounces of gluten free yogurt covered pretzels.
- Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and serve.
This post is brought to you by the folks at Van’s. All comments and opinions are my own.
oNCE AGAIN, SOMEHOW, i AM NOT GETTING THE DAILY IHEARTPUBLIX EMAILS. pLEASE, I REALLY DEPEND ON THESE TO STRETCH MY RETIREMENT DOLLAR ANXIOUSLY WAITING YOUR RESPONSE