Does anyone else have a picky eater for a toddler? It was all so much easier when he was younger and we had just introduced solids via Baby Led Weaning. He would eat pretty much anything we set in front of him, and loved it all! Now? Not so much. He’d eat raspberries and blackberries until the cows come home, but even that’s not a guarantee these days. If you asked him what his favorite foods are, he’d probably tell you “pizza, muffins, cookies, ice cream” – which is slightly hilarious, considering we never keep ice cream in the house and I can probably count the number of cookies we’ve given him on one hand (so I’m looking at you, Grammy, Pop Pop and Uncle….).
During one of our weekly trips to Target before flying out East last week, I was stocking up on healthy treats for my tiny tornado of a toddler to snack on on the plane and during our long drives to GG’s house. As I was filling my cart with our usual pouches, I saw a new addition in the aisle that caught my attention – Gerber®’s new Lil’ Beanies™ snacks.
With all the sweet and unhealthy treats I knew he gets when we go on trips, I try to keep our on-hand snacks as healthy as possible, so I always like to read the labels of whatever snacks we’re buying. I really liked that each serving of Gerber®Lil’ Beanies™ has 2 grams of protein and 1 gram of fiber, and has no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives! Lil’ Beanies™ are made with navy beans and naturally flavored, with no genetically engineered ingredients, so I can feel good about these clean and healthy snacks for my toddler!
We grabbed the two new Gerber® Lil’ Beanies™ flavors: Original and White Cheddar & Broccoli:
- The Lil’ Beanies™ Original flavor is really subtle, and has a very light, almost hummus-ish taste to it. I actually made a little toddler trail mix type snack with the Original flavor: mixing pretzels, Lil Beanies(TM) Original, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, and some dried cranberries and H gobbled it right up!
- The Lil’ Beanies™ White Cheddar & Broccoli flavor is probably H’s favorite on its own. It tastes just like a cream of broccoli soup, only in a yummy crispy little snack, and its delicious dipped in hummus as well.
One thing I personally really like about both flavors is that there isn’t any weird aftertaste (what, you don’t “sample” your toddler’s treats?), and they are both like healthier versions of a certain neon-orange cheese flavored crunchy puffy snack that I would rather H not eat. I also like that they are a baked snack, so they’re not greasy or messy, and Gerber® Lil’ Beanies™ provide 9% of H’s daily protein (2 grams), fiber, and 10% of H’s daily Vitamin E per serving. So, we both like how they taste, and I extra like how good it is for it’s nutritional value – that’s a #GerberWinWin.
Gerber® Lil’ Beanies™ are great for on-the-go snacks, but they’re also just a good option for me to keep in the house to let H snack on, in between meals. As I mentioned earlier, he’s definitely hard to please when it comes to the food department, so finding a healthy snack that is picky eater toddler approved is always a big victory in our house. Apparently, they’re so good, even his dinosaurs want in on the navy bean goodness!
Does this sound like a snack that even your picky eater would like? What are some of your favorite picky eater approved snacks for kids?
Thank you to Gerber for sponsoring today’s post and inspiring my little one to eat healthy, even on the go!
Wow, this is great, my daughter will love this!
I bet she will! I even liked the flavors 🙂
I'm about to confess… I give these to my 12 year old. He's what's called an "over taster", meaning he has a significant higher number taste buds than an average person and he picks up bitter notes in food that most people can't perceive. This causes a lot of food to be downright nasty to him. These are bland enough that he can eat them with no problem, and they have some nutrition to them, so I put them in a bowl so he doesn't know what he's eating.
The snack looks yummy and your son seems to enjoy it. I gave my kids Gerber when they were babies.
My grandson isn't old enough for these just yet but I'm so glad to know they are available. I definitely want him eating healthy foods and having a balanced diet.
These are great! My kids loved crunchy snacks when they were small. Now I love that there is a healthy alternative to chips and cheese puffs 🙂
Oh wow what some awesome sounding snacks – it looks as though they are most definitely being enjoyed! x
The toddlers in our church nursery love these puffs. When my teen helps in the nursery,I catch him sneaking some too.
Puffed snacks that are healthy? I'm all in, and I'm not gonna deny I might sneak one or two for myself.
These sound so nice, even I would like to try them!
I'm glad children enjoy them. They had better taste good, they look like little worms. Granted gummy and chocolate worms are delicious.
Nice to see Gerber's name in many new products lately! That Beanie snack might just work great with my bestie's toddler.
This is awesome! I wish they had this when my twins were younger, I'm sure thinking about what to give them as snacks would've been a lot easier.
I'm sure kids will love this snack especially the white cheddar and broccoli! It would have been nice to have this snack when my daughter was so much younger. I like that it doesn't have artificial flavors.
Its great that they are baked rather than fried. So much better for toddlers than the normal cheese puffs.
I am definitely going to get these for my nephew! Thank you for sharing.
This is great to have when you have a toddler wanting to snack! This is much more healthier then regular chips, crackers and other junk foods!
Love it that they are baked rather than fried. Healthier for toddlers than the normal snacks!
I think it is so great that they are making so many snack alternatives these days. Heck, these even sound tasty to me and so does that snack mix you made!
I saw a kid walking in the store the other day eating from a can of this. She looked like she really loved it!
My daughters use to eat something similar to these when they were little. They really loved them too. I bet these are great for toddlers!
This is nice, I like Gerber products. My son used to eat Gerber snacks and he really loves them.
My son loves Gerber when he was little. I remember the look in his face every time he eats them.
I have actually never heard of Gerber products! This must be a US thing I'm guessing?
Looks like a great snack for the kids. Glad you share this
LOL…I was that kid…..and I am still that adult…I felt so sorry for my poor mum..
These look like a great snack for children. I love that they're baked rather than fried xxx
So glad that my son wasn't a picky eater. However seeing that, I'm sure any kid would go and eat that.
we love these!!