Kids are fussy as well as messy eaters, which means you, as a parent, need to plan out every food item for them carefully, from snacks to meals. So if you’re planning to have a movie night at home anytime soon, you should really start thinking about what snacks you’ll be preparing for them. Unless, of course, you want your rambunctious kids to kick up a fuss and ruin the whole movie experience.
But how to make delicious movie-time snacks for them, which are also very easy to make? Read along to learn recipes that are tasty, healthy, and easy in every way possible. There’s no way your kids won’t fall in love with them instantly!
1. Gourmet Popcorn
There are many ways you can spruce up your regular buttered popcorn but one of the best ways is by making it gourmet! There are a lot of gourmet popcorn recipes, both sweet and savory.
One of our favorites is buffalo popcorn. It’s an absolute delight that both kids and adults will love munching on! You can even adjust the spice level according to your kid’s taste.
Ingredients
- A bag of buttered popcorn kernels
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¼ cup of hot sauce
- 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
- Salt according to taste
- A pinch of cayenne pepper
Recipe
In a microwave-proof bowl, microwave buttered popcorn for as long as the popcorn packet recommends. In the meantime, you can prepare the buffalo sauce in which you need to later toss your popcorn in.
In a saucepan, boil the sugar and water on medium-high heat, swirling it occasionally, until the caramel becomes a nice amber color.
Remove it from the heat, and stir in butter, hot sauce, salt, and cayenne pepper. Be careful with this step, as it’ll boil vigorously.
Your buttered popcorn should be ready by now. Add the sauce to the popcorn, toss it, and microwave it in thirty-second intervals until dry. You should toss it in between the intervals. Let it cool, and enjoy!
2. Mac-n-cheese in a Mug
You can rarely find someone who doesn’t love mac-n-cheese, and kids are all here for it.
Big bowls may be too much for their little tummies, especially on movie night. That’s why this mac-n-cheese in a mug is the perfect recipe for them.
Ingredients
All measurements are according to one standard-sized mug. You can multiply the recipe as you need.
- ⅓ cup of elbow macaroni
- ¼ tablespoon butter
- ½ cup water
- A dash of onion powder
- A dash of paprika or cayenne pepper
- A pinch of salt
- ⅓ cup mild cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon toasted breadcrumbs
- A sprinkle of parmesan, optional
Recipe
In a mug, take elbow macaroni, butter, water, and all the seasonings, and microwave them for two minutes. After two minutes, take the mug out, give it all a good stir, and microwave it again for two minutes.
Give it another good stir. You should still have some water at the bottom, which is necessary.
Then, mix in the shredded cheddar and heavy cream, and microwave it for thirty seconds to a minute. Then, give it a good stir, and sprinkle it with toasted breadcrumbs and parmesan.
Your kids will love this easy mac-n-cheese recipe.
3. Crispy Popcorn Chicken
Crispy popcorn chicken is something almost every kid likes, and making them is super simple as well.
Doesn’t it sound appealing to just pop bite-size chicken pieces in your mouth while watching a movie? Here’s what you need to make this delicious item.
Ingredients
For marination:
- 1 kilogram of boneless chicken cut into bite-size pieces
- 3 cups buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons salt or as per your taste
- 2 teaspoons of crushed black pepper
For dredging:
- 3 cups of all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons salt or as per your taste
- 1 teaspoon of crushed black pepper
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1½ teaspoon red pepper powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
Recipe
Pour buttermilk into the bowl of your boneless chicken pieces that have been patted dry. Mix salt and black pepper in it thoroughly, cover it with a cling wrap and let it marinate for one to two hours in the fridge.
On a baking tray, take the AP flour and mix all the ingredients for dredging. Take a few pieces of the marinated chicken in this dredging mixture, coat them thoroughly with it, and arrange them side-by-side on a plate or another baking tray.
Once you’ve coated all the chicken, prepare for deep frying. In a deep saucepan, take enough oil to deep fry the chicken, and heat it until you start seeing bubbles on the edges.
Drop your chicken pieces one-by-one carefully and fry them over medium heat until they turn golden brown.
Take them out and lay them on a drying rack.
Sprinkle the chicken pieces with salt and serve them in popcorn packets with ranch and a mix of hot sauce and mayonnaise. Your kids will feel the movie theatre experience!
4. Roasted Veggies With Cream and Cheese Dip
Let’s be honest, most of the kids don’t even like having vegetables. But mothers always have to have a trick up their sleeves, right?
Roasted veggies with a cream and cheese dip are something that kids really love. Also, you can trick them into this nutritious treat while enjoying the movie!
Ingredients
For the roasted vegetable mix:
- 1 cup carrot fingers
- 1 cup potato wedges
- 2 cups bell peppers, red, green, and yellow, cut into half wedges
- 1 cup zucchini fingers
- 1 cup cauliflower florets
- 1 cup broccoli florets
- A brush of olive oil
- Salt to taste
Seasoning mix:
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon crushed black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- Salt to taste
For the dip:
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup shredded mild cheddar
- ¼ cup ricotta cheese
- Salt to taste
Recipe
Prepare all the veggies after cleaning them properly, and rub some oil and salt on them. Make sure all of the pieces are coated properly. Roast them in a lined and preheated air fryer, tossing them in between until they start giving off a sweet aroma.
Once done, take them out in a bowl and put all the seasoning spices in. Toss them to coat every piece well.
In a saucepan, pour the heavy cream and bring it to a simmer. Mix the two kinds of cheese and season them with salt according to your taste. Stir until all the cheese is melted. You can either pour the sauce into a squeezy bottle or serve it in a bowl.
And there you have it! A healthy snack and dip for your kids!
5. Chips Dips and Fries
Kids love fries and chips. And now, away from the traditional french fries and potato chips recipes, there are many other healthy options to snack on. A plus point: kids really love them!
You can make an assorted bowl of chips and fries to make your movie-night snacking interesting. Here’s how you can do it.
Ingredients
For the chips:
- Thinly sliced potatoes
- Thinly sliced sweet potatoes
- Thinly sliced carrots
- Sliced plantains
- Thinly sliced pumpkin
- Thinly sliced zucchini
- Kale
- Sliced button mushrooms
- Tortilla triangles
- Salt and pepper to sprinkle
For the fries:
- Potatoes (as sticks and spirals)
- Sweet potatoes (as sticks and spirals)
- Carrots
- Salt and pepper to sprinkle
For the dips:
- Sriracha
- Mayonnaise
- Tabasco sauce
- Cayenne pepper
- Finely chopped tomatoes
- Finely chopped onions
- Finely chopped chili
- Finely chopped cilantro
- Salt
- Lime or lemon
Recipe
To makes the chips, you have to deep fry each vegetable and the tortilla chips individually, as each has its own cooking time. In a saucepan, heat up the vegetable oil until you see bubbles on the edges. Fry as many veggies as you need for your desired amount of chips, take them out and lay them on a drying rack, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Repeat the process with the fries. A tip with the spirals: take each potato, skin-on or peeled off, on a soaked skewer, hold the knife slightly slanted, and start spiraling and moving up to create spirals. Space the spirals out and deep fry them.
To make the mayo dip, mix tabasco sauce and a pinch of cayenne in a tablespoon of mayonnaise and mix thoroughly. You can have sriracha dip on its own.
For the salsa, mix the finely chopped tomatoes, onions, chili, cilantro, salt, and lime or lemon thoroughly. This acts as a great dip for tortilla chips. Besides, some of these chips along with this salsa can be a great guilt-free midnight snacking idea for you as well!
6. Mini Pretzels With Chocolates
From kids to adults, this is something that everyone loves. And the best part is that this only needs three ingredients!
Ingredients
- Mini pretzels
- Chocolate chips or milk chocolate
- Sea salt
Recipe
Your first step is to set up a double boiler to melt your chocolate. You can either use chocolate chips or finely chop up two bars of milk chocolate.
Fill up a deep saucepan with water and place it on a stove. In the meantime, keep a parchment-lined tray ready. Place a glass bowl on top of the saucepan to create a double boiler. Now put all your chocolate chips or chopped chocolate in it.
With a silicone spatula, keep on stirring the chocolate constantly so that it starts melting, and keep on stirring until all the chocolate melts. Take it off the saucepan, and start dipping half of each pretzel into the melted chocolate.
Place the chocolate-coated mini pretzels lined up on the lined tray and sprinkle with some sea salt. Keep it in the fridge until the chocolate sets. And you have it! The easiest snack to give your kids during the movies! It can also make a great healthy snack for Halloween parties.
Conclusion
With picky eaters like kids, parents have to get creative to ensure their kids enjoy their meals and also get nutrition at the same time, especially during occasions like movie nights at home!
They can often be the perfect opportunities for you to sneak vegetables into your kids’ diet, especially considering how fussy kids can get when it comes to veggies!
With the recipes you just learned, you can give your kids something they’ll truly enjoy and make movie nights special for them as well as for you!
