kindergarten snacks

Class Cookbook from A to Z

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front cover

Aaaah. The end of the school year. It’s the time of year when I start thinking of some little sirsee for my children’s teachers that will 1) remind the teacher of my child’s class in the years to come and 2) be something the teacher might enjoy using.

A few years ago, we created a class cookbook with photos from the school year. My son has aged out of this teacher gift, and my daughter is on the cusp, but if you have nursery school or kindergarten aged children, this is a fun end of year gift.

The year we gave this particular gift, the children were on a snack rotation (a little like Miss Priss’ snack schedule this year). The students had a letter of the week, and families started sending snacks that related to the letter of the week. By the end of the year, the kids had eaten a snack for each letter of the alphabet.

e and f pages

Parents sent me photos from events during the school year and any recipes they had; I compiled the photos and recipes into a Shutterfly photo book. We ordered copies for the teachers, and many of the families ordered copies as well.

I love this little book. I still use it when I need kid snack ideas (like the Worms in dirt or the Veggie dip). The nursery school teachers continue to use it as a resource for their classroom. The book has the class name on the front cover, a picture of the class and class year on the inside cover page, and a student list on the last page.

g page with photo

Here is what the children had for snack that year:

  • Apple sticks
  • Blueberry muffins
  • Cupcakes
  • Doughnuts
  • Elephant Ears
  • Finger sandwiches
  • Ghoulish Granola mix (served at Halloween)
  • mini Hot dogs in buns
  • Ice cream sandwiches
  • blueberry Jam
  • Key lime pie
  • Lemonade
  • Marshmallows
  • bird Nests
  • Oatmeal aggression cookies
  • Pizza
  • cheesy Quesadillas
  • Root beer floats
  • Sugar cookies
  • Tortilla wraps
  • Upside down cake
  • Veggie dip
  • Worms in dirt
  • chocolate X-plosion
  • orange Yogurt
  • Zucchini bread

I don’t know if all the snacks fall into the “healthy snack” category, but it is a great kid cookbook. I will mention that we did attach AmEx gift cards for the teachers to the cookbook, but I think they would have appreciated the little memory book anyway!

back cover

Kindergarten Snack, Again

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turkey wrap close

Miss Priss is slowly embracing TheRoomMom version of snack after she realized she wasn’t as hungry in the afternoon on our snack days. She requested turkey wraps for her class this rotation. Not only is it easy to make a basic wrap, but it can be a good school lunch option, and you can fill it with all kinds of meat, cheese, or veggies depending on the tastes of your child. I made extras tonight to take with me to school tomorrow to share with my co-teacher.

turkey wrap ingredients

Ingredients

  • large flour tortillas (I needed 2 packs of 10 tortillas)
  • 1 1/2 to 2 lbs. thinly sliced turkey
  • cream cheese, softened
  • shredded lettuce (optional)
  • grated carrots (optional)

assembling turkey wrap

Directions

  • Spread a thin layer of cream cheese on one side of a tortilla. Cover the entire surface.
  • Cover the cream cheese with a layer of turkey. I use 2-3 slices.
  • Near one edge of the tortilla, sprinkle a line of lettuce and grated carrot.
  • From the end with the lettuce and carrot, roll the tortilla.
  • Slice into 5 pieces. (I discard the ends– and by discard, I mean TheRoomDad eats them.)
  • Can be made the night before and refrigerated since they don’t get soggy!

turkey wraps sliced

For Adults

  • I like to spread the tortilla with Boursin or Alouette cheese and add additional thinly sliced veggies like red pepper.
  • Hummus makes a good spread too instead of the cream cheese.

I am also sending in bags of pretzels because I think this snack may be too “weird” for some kindergarteners. We did make half of the wraps with cream cheese and turkey only, so I am hoping all of the kids might give it a try. What are other good wrap combinations for children or adults?

turkey wraps tupperware

Pizza Bread

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slice pizza bread

It was our turn again in the kindergarten snack rotation. This time I talked Miss Priss into pizza bread. Our dear neighbor friend has a dear longtime friend who brings a batch of this stuff every time she visits. I love it, and it tastes great at room temperature. I thought it would be a good kindergarten snack that would appeal to all kinds of different eaters (that is code for picky).

If you missed the dill dip post, I will update you about our snack dilemmas. My daughter eats lunch at 10 am and has a snack each day at noon. Since the snack is at normal people lunchtime, I always feel obligated to send in something a little more substantial than a graham cracker when it is our turn to provide snack. My daughter disagrees. She wants me to send in a tiny bag of pretzels like all of the other kids. I don’t want to be like all of the other kids. Disregarding the damage I may be doing to my daughter’s school image, I moved ahead with the pizza bread.

ready dough

Ingredients

  • Ready-Dough*, thawed only– not raised (available in the grocery store freezer section) 
  • turkey pepperoni cut into slivers
  • shredded mozzarella or pizza cheese

* If you can’t locate Ready-Dough, use Pillsbury French Bread in the refrigerated section of the grocery store.

assembling pizza bread

Directions

  • Flatten the thawed Ready-Dough out into a rectangle on a cookie sheet sprayed with Pam. Try to press it out as close to the edges as possible without ripping holes in the dough. If using Pillsbury French Bread, unroll and press out the same way.
  • Sprinkle a generous amount of cheese down the center of the dough. Top with the slivered pepperoni.
  • Fold the sides of the dough into the center like you are folding a business letter. Pinch the ends together.
  • Flip the loaf, so it is seam side down on the cookie sheet and bake according to the package directions for pizza (400 degrees about 15 minutes).
  • Let cool slightly and slice. Serve warm or at room temperature.

folding pizza bread

Notes

  • If you are sending pizza bread to school for snack, make up the loaves, put on cookie sheets, cover with Saran wrap and refrigerate overnight. In the morning, wake up 20 minutes early and put loaves in the oven. Get in the shower while the bread is cooking. Pull out of the oven and let cool. Slice and arrange in a large tupperware. Get as close to room temperature as possible before putting the lid on the tupperware. Send a note to the teachers letting them know to keep snack at room temperature until serving and to NOT refrigerate.
  • If you are taking to a tailgate, follow the school snack serving directions above.
  • If you are taking to a Super Bowl party at a friend’s house, bake the bread at your house, let cool, and wrap completely in tin foil. Re-heat in the tin foil at the friend’s house and serve hot. Set out a dish of marinara sauce for dipping!

pizza bread slices

Star Snack

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Miss Priss earned kindergarten Star of the Week last week. Since all students receive this prestigious award at one point during the year, I am not so sure it is a terribly big honor, but she was excited. Requirements? Send in several pictures of your family (= work for me). Send in special show and tell (= monitoring from me). Send in special snack on Friday (= opportunity to get carried away for me).

If you read about the Dill Dip, you know that I take kindergarten snacks very seriously, and my daughter has a much better sense of what is appropriate. Nevertheless, she was Star of the Week, and I thought it deserved something special– Heath Bar Apple Dip with pretzels and apple slices. The first time I tasted this stuff, I practically fell down. Let me know if you think it is as delicious as my family does.

Ingredients

  • 1 8-oz block cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 c. sugar
  • 3/4 c. brown sugar
  • 1 t. vanilla
  • 1/2 bag Heath toffee bits (or crushed Skor bar)
  • Apple wedges (I like Granny Smith apples, peeled)
  • Snyder’s Dipping Stix or Snaps (optional)

Directions

  • Cream together cream cheese, sugars, and vanilla
  • Stir in Heath bits with a spoon
  • Serve with apple wedges and/or pretzels
  • Note: cut apples into pineapple juice to keep from turning brown