Kids love to cook and they love to get sticky. Well, some kids. My son Cedar loves being tidy and wails against messiness – but that’s bizarre and a much longer story for another time. That said, if you’ve got one of those kids who doesn’t mind sticky fun, try out this recipe for tasty homemade organic fruit snacks on a lazy, rainy, weekend.

WHY MAKE HOMEMADE FRUIT SNACKS:

For health: Almost all store bought fruit snacks come with gross additives like high fructose corn syrup, fake chemical colors, and other icky stuff your kids don’t need. Homemade organic fruit snacks are chemical, pesticide, and preservative free. Plus, while fruit snacks aren’t exactly health-food, homemade fruit snacks have less sugar and are a healthier alternative to store bought.

For the planet: Store bought fruit snacks come in little plastic or foil wraps which are then packaged into bigger boxes. Such a waste! And don’t forget about all the manufacturing and transport energy used.

For fun and education: Cooking green with kids is the perfect intro to green. Green cooking is easy, fun, and you can work in topic discussions like creating less waste, health, organics, and more. These are also fun to make for a child’s birthday party activity.

INGREDIENTS FOR HOMEMADE ORGANIC FRUIT SNACKS:

• A pound of assorted dried fruit. Grab a reusable bag or container and hit your local co-op or the natural bulk food section at any grocery store. Look for unsweetened, organic, bulk dried fruit. Dried fruit we’ve tried at my house includes; blueberries, pineapple, papaya, apricots and more. we’ve never tried super crunchy dried fruit like bananas or strawberries – I’m not sure that would work. You can also build your own solar food dehydrator and make your own dried fruit.
• Organic orange juice. You can buy a tiny carton of organic or squeeze your own fresh. FYI: My son is allergic to oranges so we make our fruit snacks with mandarin or lemon juice which is a little more tart but it works.
• Citrus rind – about as much as you’d get from one medium to large sized fruit.
• Optional – Finely ground nuts of any flavor. We don’t like them with nuts at my house, but my pal’s household loves these fruit snacks with nuts. Experiment to see what your family enjoys.

MAKING YOUR HOMEMADE ORGANIC FRUIT SNACKS:

1. Grind up dried fruit in a blender on chop, then grind. A food processor might do the job better, but I refuse to buy an extra appliance for fruit snacks, so we use the blender.
2. Add the citrus rind and grind until nicely combined.
3. Slowly add the citrus juice. You want the mixture to be a sort of sticky mass that will hold together but you don’t want it watery.
4. Have your kids grab a nice spoonful of the sticky mixture. Roll with hands into small balls. Alternatively you can roll the mixture out with a rolling pin and cut into bite sized squares or other fun shapes with a cookie cutter.
5. If you made sticky ball shapes and are using nuts roll the balls in the nuts.
6. You can munch these right away or store them in an airtight container.

Safety Note: These are chewier than store bought fruit snacks and could pose a sticky choking hazard for little ones under the age of three to five years. Use your best judgment and your child’s chewing ability as a guide when it comes to offering sticky treats and never leave your tot alone with food.

[image via stock.xchng]

Post from: Blisstree

Homemade Organic Fruit Snacks