5 Easy & Fun Christmas Snacks for Kids

Easy Christmas Snacks for Kids

Christmas is a magical time, especially for children. The season is filled with twinkling lights, festive music, and the exciting anticipation of Santa’s visit. A wonderful way to enhance this festive spirit is by creating special holiday-themed snacks. These easy-to-make treats not only bring joy to little ones but also offer a perfect opportunity to spend quality time together in the kitchen, making memories that will last a lifetime.

This guide is dedicated to parents looking for simple, fun, and delicious Christmas snacks that kids can help prepare. We’ll walk you through five delightful recipes that transform everyday ingredients into festive masterpieces. From adorable reindeer rice cakes to whimsical Grinch fruit kabobs, these snacks are designed to be as enjoyable to make as they are to eat. You’ll find step-by-step instructions, nutritional insights, and even product recommendations to make your holiday preparation as smooth as possible.

Gather your little elves, put on your favorite Christmas tunes, and get ready to create some kitchen magic. These snacks are perfect for holiday parties, school events, or simply as a special treat to enjoy while watching a classic Christmas movie. Let’s start crafting some delicious holiday memories!

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Reindeer Rice Cakes

These Reindeer Rice Cakes are a fantastic no-bake option that even the youngest children can help assemble. They are a delightful combination of crunchy, sweet, and salty, making them an instant hit. Using rice cakes as a base provides a light, crispy texture, while peanut butter adds a creamy, protein-rich layer. The pretzel “antlers” and chocolate chip “eyes” bring these adorable reindeer to life.

Beyond being fun, this snack offers some nutritional value. The whole-grain rice cakes provide a source of fiber, and the peanut butter delivers healthy fats and protein, which are essential for sustained energy. This means your kids get a treat that is both satisfying and helps keep them fueled for all their festive activities.

Ingredients

• Plain rice cakes
• Creamy peanut butter or a seed butter alternative
• Small pretzel twists or sticks
• Chocolate chips
• Red candies (like M&Ms or round sprinkles) for the nose

Instructions

1. Prepare Your Station: Lay out all your ingredients on a clean work surface. This makes it easy for little hands to grab what they need.
2. Spread the Base: Give each child a rice cake and a kid-safe knife or spatula. Have them spread a smooth, even layer of peanut butter over the top of the rice cake. This acts as the “glue” for the reindeer’s face.
3. Add the Antlers: Carefully break the pretzel twists in half to create the antler shapes. Press two pretzel pieces into the top of the peanut butter on each rice cake.
4. Create the Face: Place two chocolate chips on the peanut butter for the eyes.
5. Add the Red Nose: Finish your reindeer by placing one red candy in the center for the nose.
6. Serve and Enjoy: Your Reindeer Rice Cakes are ready to be enjoyed immediately!

Recommended Products from Amazon

• Rice Cakes: Quaker Lightly Salted Rice Cakes are a classic choice, offering a neutral, crispy base that works perfectly for this recipe.
• Pretzel Sticks: Snyder’s of Hanover Pretzel Sticks are sturdy and have the ideal shape for creating reindeer antlers.
• Chocolate Chips: Nestlé Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels are the perfect size for creating the reindeer’s eyes.

Snowman Skewers

Bring the winter wonderland indoors with these charming Snowman Skewers. This is another wonderfully simple snack that requires no cooking and is perfect for developing fine motor skills. By threading marshmallows, fruit, and other treats onto skewers, kids can create their own edible snowmen. The combination of soft marshmallows and fresh fruit provides a lovely contrast in textures and flavors.

This snack is a great way to encourage fruit consumption during a season often dominated by heavier treats. Bananas provide potassium, which is important for heart health and muscle function, while grapes and berries are packed with vitamins and antioxidants. The edible markers add a fun, creative touch without adding significant sugar.

Ingredients

• Large marshmallows
• Bananas, sliced into thick rounds
• Green grapes
• Strawberries, hulled
• Mini chocolate chips
• Pretzel sticks
• Wooden skewers
• Black edible marker

Instructions

1. Prepare the Fruit: Slice the bananas and wash the grapes and strawberries. If using strawberries for the hat, slice off the green top to create a flat base.
2. Assemble the Body: Thread three large marshmallows onto each skewer to form the snowman’s body.
3. Add a Hat: Top the marshmallow head with a piece of fruit. A strawberry “hat” looks particularly festive, or you can use a grape.
4. Draw the Face: Use the black edible marker to carefully draw eyes and a mouth on the top marshmallow.
5. Add Buttons and Arms: Gently press mini chocolate chips down the front of the snowman for buttons. Break pretzel sticks in half and insert them into the sides of the middle marshmallow for arms.
6. Serve Immediately: Assemble just before serving to keep the bananas from browning.

Recommended Products from Amazon

• Marshmallows: Kraft Jet-Puffed Marshmallows are soft, fluffy, and the ideal size for building your snowmen.
• Fruit Skewers: Anmarko 12-inch Bamboo Skewers are strong enough to hold the ingredients without bending.
• Edible Markers: Wilton FoodWriter Edible Color Markers come in a pack with a fine-tipped black marker perfect for drawing delicate facial features.

Christmas Tree Brownies

Transform a simple batch of brownies into a festive forest of Christmas trees. This recipe is slightly more involved, as it requires baking, but the decorating part is where the real fun begins for kids. Using a brownie mix simplifies the process, allowing you to focus on the creative aspect. The rich, chocolatey flavor of the brownies paired with sweet, colorful frosting is a classic combination that everyone loves.

While certainly an indulgent treat, making brownies from scratch or using a quality mix allows you to control the ingredients. You can opt for a mix with recognizable ingredients or even find gluten-free alternatives if needed. The real joy here is the creative expression and the delicious result of your teamwork.

Ingredients

• 1 box of your favorite brownie mix (plus ingredients listed on the box, like eggs and oil)
• Green frosting (store-bought or homemade)
• Assorted sprinkles (stars, rounds, and colored jimmies)
• Candy canes or pretzel sticks for the tree trunk

Instructions

1. Bake the Brownies: Prepare and bake the brownie mix according to the package directions in a rectangular pan. Let them cool completely. This is a crucial step, as warm brownies will be too crumbly to cut.
2. Cut the Trees: Once cooled, cut the slab of brownies into triangles. A simple way to do this is to cut the brownies into long rectangles, then cut each rectangle diagonally to create two triangles.
3. Create the Trunks: Carefully insert a piece of a candy cane or half a pretzel stick into the bottom of each brownie triangle to create the tree trunk.
4. Decorate: Let the decorating fun begin! Give each child a brownie tree and let them spread green frosting on top. Then, they can add sprinkles to represent ornaments and lights. A star sprinkle at the top is the perfect finishing touch.
5. Let it Set: Allow the frosting to set for a bit before serving.

Recommended Products from Amazon

• Brownie Mix: Ghirardelli Chocolate Supreme Premium Brownie Mix is known for its rich, decadent flavor and fudgy texture.
• Green Frosting: Pillsbury Creamy Supreme Key Lime Frosting offers a fun, vibrant green color perfect for Christmas trees.
• Sprinkles: The Wilton Holiday Sprinkles Assortment provides a festive variety of shapes and colors to decorate your trees.

Santa Hat Strawberries

These Santa Hat Strawberries are as adorable as they are healthy. With just three simple ingredients, you can create a snack that looks impressive and tastes delicious. The natural sweetness of the strawberries pairs beautifully with the light, creamy topping, making for a refreshing and guilt-free holiday treat.

Strawberries are an excellent source of Vitamin C, an antioxidant that supports the immune system—something everyone can use during the winter months. They are also rich in fiber and other beneficial plant compounds. Using real whipped cream or a coconut cream alternative keeps this snack light and delightful.

Ingredients

• Fresh strawberries
• Whipped cream (store-bought, homemade, or a dairy-free alternative)
• Mini chocolate chips (optional, for eyes)

Instructions

1. Prepare the Strawberries: Wash and thoroughly dry the strawberries. Slice the leafy green top off each strawberry to create a flat base so they can stand upright.
2. Create the Hat Brim: Slice the pointed tip off each strawberry, about one-quarter of the way down. This small piece will become the top of the hat.
3. Add the “Fur”: Pipe or spoon a dollop of whipped cream onto the cut surface of the larger strawberry piece. This forms the fluffy white trim of Santa’s hat.
4. Place the Hat Top: Gently place the small strawberry tip on top of the whipped cream.
5. Add the Pom-Pom: Add a tiny dot of whipped cream on the very tip of the strawberry to create the pom-pom for the hat.
6. Serve Immediately: These treats are best served fresh, as the whipped cream can soften over time.

A festive plate of Santa Hat Strawberries arranged neatly on a holiday-themed platter. The strawberries are bright red, with a dollop of fluffy white whipped cream creating the brim and pom-pom of the Santa hats. The hats are perfectly assembled, with the small strawberry tips on top. The background features subtle holiday decorations like twinkling lights, evergreen sprigs, or a cozy winter table setting, emphasizing the cheerful holiday vibe. The focus is on the strawberries, highlighting their vibrant color and the creamy texture of the whipped cream.

Recommended Products from Amazon

• Whipped Cream: Reddi-wip Original Whipped Topping makes it easy to pipe perfect dollops of cream.
• Mini Chocolate Chips: For an extra touch of cuteness, use Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Mini Chocolate Chips to create little eyes on the whipped cream brim.

Grinch Fruit Kabobs

Inspired by the beloved Dr. Seuss character, these Grinch Fruit Kabobs are a fun, healthy, and colorful addition to any holiday spread. They are incredibly easy to assemble and are a fantastic way to present fruit in a festive manner. The combination of green grapes, strawberries, and bananas creates a snack that is visually appealing and full of fresh flavor.

This is arguably the healthiest snack in our lineup. Grapes are hydrating and provide antioxidants, while strawberries are packed with Vitamin C. The banana slice adds potassium and a creamy texture. This is a treat you can feel great about serving, offering a nutritious alternative to sugary holiday snacks.

Ingredients

• Green grapes
• Strawberries
• Bananas, sliced into thick rounds
• Mini marshmallows
• Small skewers or large toothpicks

Instructions

1. Prepare Your Fruit: Wash the grapes and strawberries. Slice the green tops off the strawberries. Slice the banana into rounds.
2. Assemble the Kabob: On each skewer, thread the ingredients in the following order to create the Grinch’s head and hat:
   1. A green grape (the Grinch’s head).
   2. A slice of banana (the fuzzy white trim of the hat).
   3. A whole strawberry, pointed-side up (the red part of the hat).
   4. A mini marshmallow on the very tip (the pom-pom).
3. Serve Fresh: Assemble these kabobs just before serving to prevent the banana from browning and to ensure the fruit is at its freshest.

Recommended Products from Amazon

• Green Grapes: Look for firm, seedless green grapes for the best results.
• Mini Marshmallows: Kraft Jet-Puffed Miniature Marshmallows are the perfect size for the tiny pom-pom on the Grinch’s hat.
• Skewers: Vumdua 4.7-inch Cocktail Picks are a great size for these small kabobs.

Read More: Holiday Deviled Eggs: 3 Easy & Festive Recipes

Making Sweet Holiday Memories

Creating festive snacks with your children is about more than just the food. It’s about the laughter, the slightly messy fingers, and the pride on their faces when they show off their creations. These simple recipes provide the perfect framework for you to build cherished holiday traditions that your family will look forward to year after year.

We encourage you to embrace the imperfections and focus on the fun. Whether your reindeer looks a little lopsided or your snowman is missing an arm, what matters is the time spent together. So, pick a recipe, gather your ingredients, and get ready to make some delicious memories this Christmas season.