Packing lunch and snacks for my kids is never easy. I want them to eat a nutritious meal at school but there is always a conflict between what is healthy, and what is marketed as healthy. They love granola bars, fruit snacks, and anything with added sugar….but I can’t blame them. Over the summer I was on the search for healthy snacks, I was even willing to meal prep and make some healthy snacks from scratch the night before. My kids are not the biggest fans of eating vegetables or “low fat”/ “low sugar” type foods. So, I had to be creative to disguise healthy food while still making it edible.

I was successful on finding a few items at the store that my kids loved as well as finding a new passion for making homemade snacks! The stores I had the most luck at was Costco and Target . When the kids come home from practice, all they want is a smoothie. Secretly, I add spinach to the smoothie. It is tasteless and they can’t even tell. I got a bunch of recipes online and put them directly on my Penless idea board. I absolutely love the Penless idea board! It was a life saver over the summer. Since school just started, I find myself going on the Penless app almost everyday. Not only did the Penless idea board help me save the recipes I found, it saved me time in the mornings, it inspired me to cook, and I have more of a healthy lifestyle. To be honest, if it was not for Penless, I do not think I would have followed through and dedicated so much time into my new healthy lifestyle.

One of my favorite snack recipes that suits my cravings is apple, peanut butter slices.

• Take a medium sized apple and slice it into thin round circles
• Lather on some homemade nut butter (to avoid added sugar)
• Sprinkle on some sugar free dark chocolate chips to each slice
• Drizzle honey on top

The reason I love this snack is because it is easy, time efficient, fills me up, and it’s no bake. I make a lot of snacks that are no bake because it is simple to make when the kids are heading off to practice.

One of my favorite Lunches I make is chicken lettuce wraps and I prepare everything the night before.

• Iceberg lettuce
• Seasoned chicken
• Sauteed veggies

Lastly my favorite dinner I make is zoodles (zucchini noodles)

• Zucchini noodles
• Olive oil, garlic, basil

Looking forward to adding more healthy recipes to my Penless idea board!