Healthy & Fun Cheese Snacks for Kids

Plain Cheese Snacks

• Plain cubes of cheese are easy finger food snacks for kids who are four years or older. They can play with the cubes, stacking and counting them before enjoying them. Cubes of cheese can be a choking hazard for kids younger than four, however, so slice up those cubes into pieces less than a half inch in size. You can also take individual slices of cheese and cut cute shapes out of them with a cookie cutter. Kids also love string cheese, which they can pull apart, twirl around their fingers and stretch apart before eating.

Spreadable Cheese Snacks

• Spreadable cheese, such as cream cheese, can be used like paint on bagels and English muffins. Give the kids plastic knives to spread the cream cheese, then use other healthy snacks such as raisins or olives to create bagel faces. You might also want to see if your kids like the taste of goat cheese. Kids can put spreadable cheese on top of apple slices or stuff it into bell peppers sliced to look like little boats. For children younger than four, globs of thick, spreadable cheese can pose a choking hazard, so be sure to cut up the snack into tiny pieces before they eat it.

Sweet Cheese Snacks

• Cottage cheese with puréed fruit toppings is a delicious and healthy snack for kids. You can make it fun by creating a little cottage cheese bar, allowing the kids to choose from a variety of puréed fruit options, such as strawberries, blueberries, pineapples and peaches. You can also include toppings like raisins, finely diced nuts and granola. Another idea is to mix plain cream cheese with pureed fruit for a sweet twist.

Melted Cheese Snacks

• Serve classic grilled cheese sandwiches in a kid-friendly way. You can prepare the sandwiches as usual, then cut out fun sandwich shapes with a cookie cutter. Keep things healthy by using whole grain bread, fat-free cheddar cheese and pressing the sandwiches on a panini maker to avoid slathering the bread with butter. If you don't have a panini press, you can use a little light canola oil in a pan, and press the sandwich down with a plate. Use small corn tortillas to make mini-quesadillas for your kids, using a non-stick cooking pan to avoid adding oil. You can sneak well-chopped veggies into the quesadillas, like spinach, as well as boneless, skinless chicken breast for a nutritious snack.