Healthy Eating: Week 5, Sunbutter (#52NewFoods) February 06 2012, 3 Comments

No bake, nut-free cookies that kids can cook! Paired with a sweet touch of honey and wholesome oats, these protein power bites are the new lunchbox regulars at our house.

“But the best ‘wich that I ever had was
A peanut butter sandwich made with jam
Yum yum yummy yum yum!”

Raffi’s wisdom runs deep, and never more than when it comes to peanut butter. A staple in most kids lunchboxes, that creamy creation is the go-to, normally no-fail solution for moms struggling to get their kids to eat lunch at school – me included! So when our school went nut-free, I had to find an equally unequivocal lunchtime companion. The recommendation from teachers and allergy-experienced parents: sunbutter.

Feature Recipe: No Bake Sunbutter Bites from The Scramble

Remember the joys of baking your very own cupcake creations under the heat of a lightbulb in the Easy Bake Oven? My love for baking started early, and though I still have a high-school-crush-style love of the sport, busy mom syndrome has set in and I don’t often have time for whipping up homemade creations. I’m always on the hunt for tasty, easy, healthy recipes my kids can cook, so when I stumbled on No Bake Peanut Butter cookies from The Scramble I jumped on it. Quick and easy to make, I decided to take these bewitching bake-free bites for a spin, using sunbutter instead of peanut butter to create a healthy, nut-free lunchtime snack.

Crunch a Color Kids Vote: 2 Thumbs Up! Best in class!

What we liked: These mini-morsels were so easy and fast, we decided to make two batches: one with sunbutter and the other with peanut butter. Unlike on a sandwich, it was tough to tell the difference between the peanut butter and the sunbutter bites in our blind taste test. Whether it was because of the hint of honey, or the wholesome crunchiness of oats, this recipe resulted in a healthy treat that will become a regular feature on our lunchtime and afterschool snack menu. Next time we’ll try adding raisins or cranberries to the mix! A nice added bonus -- go ahead and enjoy the batter.

Want a prize for trying something new? Tell me which new food you’d like your kids to try and enter to win a 3-month subscription to The Scramble. Life just got a little easier!

Next up: Curry

A cozy curry with piping hot vegetables and a side of Naan is a winter-time recipe I love. My kids normally shy away from this wonderful, Indian-inspired dish. But when they meet Slow Cooker Curry from The Family Dinner they may change their minds. Our next new food of the week: curry.

Craving more new recipes to try? Catch up on last week’s recipe: Spinach Cake Muffins.

About the author: Jennifer Tyler Lee is a mom of two children and the creator of Crunch a Color™ -- the award-winning game that makes healthy eating fun. Like most parents, she struggled to get her kids to eat balanced meals, so she decided to make it into a healthy eating game and she’s giving back to support Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution, FoodCorps, and Alice Water’s Edible Schoolyard. Watch her picky eaters tell the story of how they turned into healthy eaters playing the game. Follow @crunchacolor and #52NewFoods to tune into Crunch a Color's healthy eating adventure and Jennifer’s tips and kid-friendly, easy recipes.