12 After-Camp Snacks Your Kids Can Make Themselves

As a parent, in the summertime, you have to be ready to receive the sweaty, famished monsters who come barreling through your door after a long day at camp. Being prepared means having a kitchen stocked for your kid's hunger needs. All that running around would leave any kid starved for a tasty snack. Instead of putting all the pressure on the parents, why not add one more activity to the day and let the kids join in on the snack-making fun?

It is never too soon to introduce your kids to cooking. Research shows that teaching kids to cook from a young age can positively affect their health when they are grown. Knowing how to prepare a snack means your children might reach for a few simple and healthy ingredients to make an after-camp treat rather than something pre-packaged and full of sugar. 

Click here for the 12 after camp snack recipes (slideshow).

On top of the health benefits, cooking is fun. The creative possibilities are endless, and barring a few obvious and easily avoidable hazards like open flames and sharp knives, cooking is safe for kids as long as they know the rules and respect the kitchen.

Did we mention getting creative?

Try trading peanut butter for the more nutritious almond or cashew butter, or add shredded coconut in place of sprinkles. Mix in toppings for a yogurt parfait and lose the ice cream. For an icy-cold snack, freeze fruit and vegetable juices into popsicles. Get creative with flavor combinations like sweet honey and salty popcorn. Classics aren't always a bad thing. I still enjoy "ants on a log" even though my camp-going days ended decades ago. 

Kids will love the activity and the tasty, homemade treats to enjoy when the cooking is done — and then there's the joy parents will get from seeing their children dig into a healthy after-camp treat with gusto!

These frozen strawberry cheesecake pops are a refreshing way to cool down after a long day in the sun. Plus, you can change up the fruit or add yogurt to create your own favorite flavor.

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Let your kids play with their food.  Part art project, part after-camp snack, these apple turtles will keep them entertained and full until dinner.
 

Angela Carlos is The Daily Meal's Cook Editor. Follow her on Twitter, and tweet @angelaccarlos your favorite kid-friendly snack recipes.