MAKING IT HEALTHY — From left, Jacelyn Hopwood, Kira Carol and Rory Craft packed a healthy lunch at the Jefferson County Farm Bureau promotion and education healthy eating stand at the Farmers Gateway Market. “What’s In Your Lunchbox?,” an American Farm Bureau children’s educational book, was read to the children before having them pack a healthy lunch. Jeanne Roberts and Jennifer Barnett packed the lunch materials in serving sizes and put them in plastic baggies. -- Esther McCoy

Goodness! School days are almost here, or maybe already in session for some students. Where did the summer go?

Anyhow, school calls  for a packed lunchbox for those who do not have a school cafeteria or would rather eat what mom provides.

The Jefferson County Farm Bureau promotion and education committee sponsored a healthy eating program at the Farmers Gateway Market and read “What’s In Your Lunchbox? and then had them pack a healthy lunch they could take away with them. And they chose all the right foods by themselves.

What they stressed as well was drinking plenty of water, as the body is made up mostly of water. Six glasses a day are needed to keep a body topped off, it was noted.

Many fruits and vegetables have loads of water, too. Think about the watermelon that is loaded with water, as well as cantaloupes and oranges. Cucumbers and celery are “water-full” as well.

A brochure provided courtesy of the American Farm Bureau Foundation for Agriculture listed 25 easy-to-make healthy snacks for kids. Here are a few of the suggestions:

¯ Peel a banana and dip it in yogurt. Roll in crushed cereal and freeze.

¯ Spread celery sticks with peanut butter or  low-fat cream cheese. Top with raisins. Pretend it is “ants on a log.”

¯ Mix together ready-to-eat cereal, dried fruit and nuts in a sandwich bag  for an on-the-go snack.

¯ Top low-fat vanilla yogurt with crunchy granola and sprinkle with blueberries.

¯ Microwave a small baked potato. Top with reduced-fat cheddar cheese and salsa.

¯ Make a snack kabob by putting cubes of low-fat cheese and grapes on pretzel sticks.

¯ Toast a whole grain waffle and top with low-fat yogurt and sliced peaches.

¯ Blend low-fat milk, frozen strawberries and a banana for 30 seconds for a delicious smoothie.

¯ Sprinkle grated Monterey Jack cheese over a corn tortilla, fold in half and microwave for 20 seconds. Top with salsa.

¯ Fill a waffle cone with cut-up fruit and top with low-fat vanilla yogurt.

¯ Sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese on hot popcorn.

¯ Top a banana with low-fat vanilla and strawberry frozen yogurt. Sprinkle with a favorite whole-grain cereal.

¯ Spread mustard on a flour tortilla. Top with a slice of turkey or ham, low-fat cheese and lettuce and roll up.

¯ Make a Rocky Road dessert by breaking  graham crackers into bite-size pieces. Add to low-fat chocolate pudding along with a few miniature marshmallows.

¯ Spread mustard on a slice of deli turkey. Wrap around a sesame breadstick.

¯ Layer vanilla yogurt and mandarin oranges or blueberries in a tall glass. Top with a sprinkle of granola.

¯ Spread peanut butter on apple slices.

¯ Mix peanut butter and cornflakes in a bowl. Shape into balls and roll in crushed graham crackers.

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The Kitchen Keepsakes Cookbook had recipes in a section called kid’s food. I borrowed some recipes from there for some things that kids might like. How about a stuffed apple? This gives them two fruits and a protein. Read how to do it and see what they think. This is just for one person.

Stuffed Apple

1 apple

1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter

1 tablespoon raisins

Wash well  and core an apple. Mix softened peanut butter with raisins and stuff the apple with the mixture. You can slice the apple and serve or eat as it is.

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If a child is not allergic to peanut butter, it seems to be a spread that is favored. Except for my grandchildren Jackson and Maggie. They don’t like anything that sticks to the roof of their mouth. This is a peanut butter spread with an extra bit of oomph.

Raisin Peanut Butter Spread

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup low-fat cream cheese, softened

1 tablespoon honey

1/4 cup raisins

1 tablespoon orange juice

With a fork, mash peanut butter and softened low-fat cream cheese together in a mixing bowl. Add honey, raisins and orange juice. Mix well. Spread on graham crackers, raisin bread, banana bread or whole wheat bread.

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When the school kids get home from school, they sometimes want something to tide them over until dinner. You could have some of these already made up and just pop one or two in microwave and heat them.

Tiny Pizzas

Package refrigerator biscuits

Jarred pizza sauce

Grated Mozzarella cheese

Favorite topping of either/or pepperoni, Italian sausage, hamburger, mushrooms, green peppers, pineapple or sliced olives

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and grease a cookie sheet. Roll out each biscuit on a floured surface to make a 4-inch circle. Place on the baking sheet. Spoon 1 1/2 tablespoons sauce onto each biscuit and spread to cover each one. Sprinkle with cheese and add one or many favorite toppings. Bake for 10 minutes.

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Youngsters will have fun with this low-fat and full-of-veggies chili baked in a biscuit cup and topped with cheese.

Kid’s Chili

1 pound ground white meat turkey

Small onion, chopped

1/2 cup chopped green pepper

1 tablespoon cut up fresh parsley

1 small carrot, grated fine

2 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

15-ounce can tomato sauce

10-ounce tube refrigerated biscuits

10 slices low-fat American cheese

Brown ground turkey and onion in a frying pan. Drain grease. Add seasonings and stir well. Blend in tomato sauce. Cook over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Roll out each biscuit on a lightly floured surface to make a 4-inch circle. Turn muffin tin upside down and grease the outside of each cup. Mold a biscuit circle over each cup. Bake at 400 degrees about 10 minutes. Remove biscuit cups immediately and turn right side up on a cookie sheet. Cut cheese slices into 3-inch circles. Add cheese trimmings to meat mixture, stirring until melted. Spoon chili into cups and top with cheese circles. Bake 3-5 minutes until cheese melts.

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Something my grandsons Matthew and Jackson go through during sports events are the packages of roasted pumpkin seeds. They also can be made when you clean out a pumpkin for Halloween. I was surprised when the recipe said not to wash the seeds but simply pull off the strands that attach them to the pumpkin.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

2 cups pumpkin seeds, removed of strands

1 1/2 tablespoons oil

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix all ingredients well in a bowl and spread over cookie sheet. Bake at 250 degrees for 45-60 minutes. Stir occasionally. Let cool completely and in individual plastic bags, the small snack size ones.

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Children like novelty food items. They also like eggs and toast. This one is called Bull’s Eye Eggs, and you won’t even have to butter the toast before serving.

Bull’s Eye Eggs

Cut out center of a slice of bread with a biscuit cutter. Butter bread on both sides lightly. Brown one side of bread in moderately hot skillet that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Turn over, then drop an egg in the center of the toast. Cook slowly until egg white is set and done to your child’s liking.

(McCoy can be contacted at emccoy@heraldsaronline.com.)