{Lunch Ideas}
Snowman Sandwich
Put your cookie cutter to good use and make these cute little snowman sandwiches from almostunschoolers.blogpost.com. You'll need whole grain bread, olives, carrots, pretzel sticks and apple slices -- and whatever you'd like to feature in the middle. Some healthier pairings include turkey and low fat cheese, tuna and celery with lettuce, egg salad, and smashed avocado and chicken.
Bagel Wreath
Deck their taste buds with a little lettuce, ham, olives and carrots, served up wreath style! Get the how-to over at Weelicious.com.
Reindeer Sandwich
And you thought the kids would never eat their crust! Check out these reindeer sandwiches from Cookie Cutter Lunch.
Whole Wheat Candy Cane Pizzas
Here's a festive twist on pizza that uses whole wheat flour and low fat mozzarella cheese. Use red sauce or red pepper slices to create the stripes! Get the recipe over at A Mind "Full" Mom.
{Snacktivities}
Our fun snacktivities give a whole new meaning to playing with your food.
Make Your Own Snow Ice Cream
This yummy, simple recipe from gimmesomeoven.com is something fun kids can make if there's fresh snow on the ground! Hand out our Make Your Own Snow Ice Cream printable and kids can continue the fun at home.
Frosty the Bagel
Have kids make their own Frosty the Bagel faces using whole grain bagel thins, cream cheese, and a variety of toppings like carrots, raisins, pretzels and blueberries. Get the how-to at Sidetracked Sarah.
{Healthy Finger Foods}
Christmas Tree Veggie Plate
Don't you just love when something that's super easy to make actually comes out looking super cute? For this Christmas tree veggie plate from SheKnows, arrange sugar snap peas, pretzel sticks and star-shaped slices of cheese to make your Christmas-tree-on-a-plate. Have the kids decorate their individual trees with "ornaments", like cherry tomato slices, blueberries, and chopped hard boiled eggs.
Santa's Belly
Maybe if Santa ate more low fat cheeses than he did cookies, his belly wouldn't jiggle like a bowl full of jelly! These hearty cheese snacks from cutefoodforkids.com are a snap to make -- all you need is protein-packed Babybel cheese (in the red packaging) and a few simple Santa belts made out of black and yellow construction paper.
String Cheese Snowmen
This is a relatively simple snowman snack you can make using low fat cheese sticks. Get the how-to over at TeacherLists.com.
Grinch Kabobs
If you're planning a Dr. Seuss' Grinch theme, these low-sugar Grinch Kabobs from nourishingminimalism.com are a must. (You can also substitute a small cube of white cheddar or mozzarella cheese for the mini marshmallow.)
Snowman Fruit Snack
This simple fruit dish from momendeavors.com can be done individually using clementines, or you can adapt as a main centerpiece dish to be shared -- simply use large oranges instead for the body. For a healthier version, substitute a slice of fruit, such as a prune, date or banana, for the snowman's cap.
Egg Snowmen
Kids will dig these little snowmen made of hard-boiled eggs, carrots and peppercorn! While these carefully crafted snowmen may look like an undertaking suitable only for the overly ambitious, rest assured they're actually quite simple to make, and only require a handful of ingredients. Get the recipe from roxyskitchen.com.
Real Fruit (or Veggie) Candy Canes
You'll never want to serve fruit salad in a bowl again. You can prepare these strawberry/banana canes ahead of time, or have kids make their own as fun activity. (Substitute cherry tomato slices and white cheddar cheese cubes to make "Pizza Canes"!). If you're really dexterous, poke holes through each piece using a skewer, then thread onto straws to hold the candy cane shape. Get the recipe over at nourishingminimalism.com.
Banana Snowmen
These banana snowmen from Pre-K Pages can be served as is (prepare ahead of time), or kids can assemble their own snowmen using slices of fruit, pretzel sticks and skewers.
Elf Wands {Frozen Grapes}
This snack might just take the cake (er, grapes?) for the most simple snack yet. Alternate threading green and red grapes onto a skewer, and then freeze assembled wands for a few hours.
{Munchies & Treats}
Tortilla Snowflakes
These tortilla snowflakes from Happy Hooligans are so simple to make -- and taste amazing! Add edible glitter to your cinnamon and sugar for that extra special sparkle.
White Chocolate Peppermint Popcorn
With its combination of white chocolate and candy cane dust, this treat from simplyscratch.com takes sweet and salty to a whole new level.
Snowy Fox Pumpkin Pie
This foxy pumpkin pie from Real Food Real Deals makes the perfect treat at Winter Woodland Animal themed class party. Now for that owl shaped companion...check out these Snowy Owl Shortbread Cookies over on Pinterest!
Baked Whole Wheat Winter Critter Chips
Use whole wheat tortillas to make these woodland creature shaped chips from primitiveandproper.com and serve with a healthy, kid-friendly dip, like hummus, creamy apple cinnamon dip, or a fruit salsa. But first, get your hands on these critter cookie cutters (owl, bird, fox, penguin, rabbit, deer and bear) from Crate & Barrel.
White Chocolate Polar Bear Pretzels
Kids will love these polar bear pops from hungryhappenings.com. And if working with fondant falls outside of your room parent repertoire, you can easily substitute candy eyes or mini chocolate chips for the eyes and nose, and white chocolate chips and black edible food marker for the ears. To get the "fuzzy" fur effect, try coating your chocolate dipped pops in white coconut!
Winter Wonderland Brownies
These brownies from 30poundsofapples.com are almost to pretty to eat...almost. Dusted with powdered sugar and dotted with miniature woodland animals and tree figurines, it's the perfect centerpiece treat for a Winter Wonderland class party!
Snowy Pine Cone Snacks
These Snowy Pine Cone Snacks from handmadecharlotte.com are so pretty -- plus, they're super easy to make and only require a few ingredients.
Marshmallow Snowman Treats
These glittery, gooey snowmen make a fun take-home treat for the kids! Get the how-to over at amandaparkerandfamily.blogspot.com.
Reindeer Food
Looking for something besides baby carrots for your reindeer food? Try our Reindeer Food Treats recipe made of dried fruit and crunchy cereal mix. Get the recipe.
Download these adorable "Reindeer Food" tags for your treat bags from amandaparkerandfamily.blogspot.com!
Snowman Popcorn Cups
These snowman popcorn cups from Creative Kid Snacks are everything we love: simple-to-make, inexpensive, festive, and healthy.
Reindeer Noses {and Free Printable Tags}
Here's a healthy take-home treat for the kids! Instead of using red and brown pretzel M&Ms, mix a red fruit or vegetable, like grape tomatoes or raspberries, with a brown dried fruit, like dates, prunes or raisins. Toss them in small mason jars or baggies. Then, glue on these adorable "Reindeer Noses" tags from BalancingHome.com, which you can download for free.
{Drinks}
Gingerbread Chocolate Milk
Gingerbread milk in a Rudolph cup makes for a sweet, festive drink. Get the simple recipe from thechirpingmoms.com.
Melted Snowman Water
Simple remove the water bottle labels and replace with "melted snowman" labels (which you can get on Etsy here) -- thanks to dixiedelights.blogspot.com for the idea!
Rudolph Water Bottles
No time to get custom printed holiday labels for your water bottles? No problem! Chances are, you've got an arsenal of extra googly eyes, pom poms and pipe cleaners to dress up your water bottles like these ones from Macaroni Kid.
