Schooldays, school days, dear old golden rule days.....

.......reading and writing and 'rithmetic, talk to the tune of the hickory stick.  It's that time of the year again when we send our children and grandchildren off to yet another year of preparation for their little futures!  Now I already know that Gabriel will spend most afternoons here with Steve and me while Stephanie works and I know he hits the front door complaining about being hungry. How easy it would be to keep a slew of cookies....either home baked or bought....but I don't know about your youngun's but Gabriel would be bouncing off the walls if I gave him a lot of sweets.  So I have been making a list of things that he might like but aren't wall bouncers!!!! He loves carrots and celery so that's a good thing to have on hand with some ranch dressing for dipping. Of course fresh fruits are good....only problem there is he wants his apples with caramel dip!!! So I started searching for snacks with less sugar content. My next favorite thing beside the Dollar Tree is Pinterest and there is a truck load of ideas.  Zuchinni chips, a cereal snack mix, Garlic Bagel Chips with a bacon cream cheese dip.....recipes will be added below.

Baked Zuchinni Chips

 

Ingredients

¼ cup dry whole wheat breadcrumbs

¼ cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

¼ teaspoon seasoned salt

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup unsweetened almond milk (you could also use skim milk)

2½ cups (1/4-inch-thick) slices zucchini

Cooking spray

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl stirring with a whisk.
3. Place milk in a shallow bowl. Dip zucchini slices in milk and dredge in breadcrumb mixture.
4. Place coated slices on an oven proof wire rack coated with cooking spray; place rack on a baking sheet.
5. Bake for 30 minutes or until browned and crisped.

Roasted Garlic Bagel Crisps with a Bacon Cheddar Cream Cheese Dip

 
 

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened to room temp
• 5 strips bacon, chopped
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
• ¼ cup light mayo
• ¼ teaspoon dill weed
• 1 package New York Style Roasted Garlic Bagel Crisps

     Mix first 5 ingredients and chill.

 Mini Muffin Corn Dogs

(I used Jiffy cornbread mix in a box....was delicious)

1/2 cup melted butter (or 1/4 cup butter + 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce)
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
8-10 all-beef hot dogs, cut into 1″ bites

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine butter and sugar in a bowl, and whisk to combine. Add eggs and whisk to incorporate. Add buttermilk and whisk to incorporate.

2. In a separate bowl, combine baking soda, cornmeal, flour, and salt, and stir to combine. Whisk into wet ingredients in two batches.

3. Spray a mini muffin tin with non-stick spray, and spoon 1 Tablespoon of batter into each mini muffin cup. Place one hot dog bite into the middle of each cup.

4. Bake for 8-12 minutes (oven temperatures vary), or until cornbread is golden brown. Cool in mini muffin tin for 5 minutes before serving. Store leftovers in the refrigerator, and re-heat for 20-30 seconds before serving.   Makes48.

After School Cereal Snack Mix

                                                                   

1 cup corn flakes cereal

3/4 cup oat bran "O"s cereal (like Cheerios)

1/2 cup almonds, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup Reese's Pieces

1/2 cup raisins

Place all of the ingredients into a bowl and mix together. Serve or store in Ziplock bags or an airtight container.

You can add or delete or change ingredients except for the cereals. Use your imagination!!!

I will be keeping fruit juices, Koolade etc to go with his snacks. And in the colder months he always want hot chocolate!!!! Ever try making hot chocolate with Nutella?  GOOD!!!!!

As for after school entertainment....I think his teacher will be providing that in the form of homework. I think we are very lucky that he's a good student and isn't far enough along in school to have developed a taste of disliking homework!!!!

Hope this post will come in handy for all of you. And these snacks are NOTjust for the younger set.....think I may have to do a few for this grandma!!!!!

Enjoy and God bless. And here's to an excellent school year for us all!

Rosemary