Healthy Valentine Snacks

Here are some healthy and fun treats to celebrate Valentine’s Day with the ones you love.  They make great treats to take to classrooms too, substitute sunflower butter for peanut butter in the crispy treats for a nut-free classroom.  My girls can’t get enough of these recipes. We plan to make them all again this coming week for our Valentine celebrations.  Oh, and I’m not even going to tell you how much of the fruit salsa I ate myself…let’s just say a lot.

PB&J Coconut Crispy Treats

Ingredients:

HeartBEET Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup Flour
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
3 Tbsp Honey
1/4 tsp Sea Salt
1/4 cup Beet Juice
1/4 cup chopped Raspberries
2 Tbsp Coconut Oil, melted
1 Tbsp Chia Seed

Preheat oven to 375 degrees (f). Whisk or sift flour and baking powder together. Whisk in the rest of the ingredients with a mixer or by hand until a bright pink dough is formed.  Roll out to about 1/2 inch thickness, using extra flour to prevent sticking. Cut out small heart shapes with cookie cutters. Bake on a parchment lined baking sheet for 10-15 minutes. Cookies should be firm but still chewy. Allow to cool for a few minutes before devouring. Store in an airtight container. Kid’s love the color, in fact grown-ups do as well.

Love Wands w/ Yogurt Dip

Ingredients:

Watermelon
1/4 cup Blueberries (frozen, thawed and drained)
1 cup Plain Greek Yogurt
1/4 tsp Nutmeg

Using a small or medium heart shaped cookie cutter cut shapes out of watermelon.  It will be easiest if you slice the watermelon about 1/2 inch thick before using the cookie cutter.  Stick the hearts on the ends of paper straws, popsicle sticks or skewers.  Puree the rest of the ingredients in a blender or food processor to make a creamy dip.  Kid’s love dipping these almost as much as eating them. ( ps. use the leftover watermelon for the fruit salsa recipe below)

Sweetheart Smoothies

Ingredients:

Cinnamon Tortilla Chips with Very-Berry Fruit Salsa

Ingredients:

Chips:

3-4 Tortillas (I used Whole Wheat for my girls and Gluten Free for myself)

1 tsp Honey

1 tsp Coconut Oil

1/4 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

Salsa:

1/2 cup Strawberries, diced

1/2 cup Watermelon, diced

1/4 cup Raspberries, quartered

1/4 cup Blueberries, halved or quartered

1 tsp Lemon Juice

1 tsp Honey

1/4 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

For the chips, preheat the oven to 350 degrees(f). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Cut the tortillas into small shapes with a cookie cutter (I used hearts) or to save time use a pizza wheel and cut into rectangles.  Spread the tortilla pieces on the baking sheet in a single layer.  Melt the coconut oil in a small glass dish whisk in the honey and spices.  Brush the oil mixture onto the tortilla pieces.  Bake in the oven for 5 minutes.  Flip the chips over using tongs or a fork, brush again with the oil mixture and bake for an additional 5 minutes.  Cool for a few minutes before serving.  For the salsa, mix the fruit together, string gently.  In a separate dish whisk together lemon juice, honey and spices.  Gently fold into the fruit.  Serve chips and salsa together.  Store leftover chips in an airtight container at room temperature and the salsa in an airtight container in the fridge.

To our readers: Happy Valentine’s Day.  Thank you for reading and for the comments and LOVE you share with me!