Get Creative with After School Snacks

(Family Features) For teens and tweens, after school snacks can pose a bit of a problem. Many options are geared toward younger (and smaller) bellies, while others may pack too big a punch, affecting appetites for dinner. One deliciously satisfying solution? Snacks they can make themselves.

DIY after school snacks let kids push their creative limits. One way to get creative is using favorite breakfast cereals in familiar types of recipes for a whole new taste. For example, a lightly sweetened corn and oat cereal such as Honeycomb has a one-of-a-kind playful shape that makes it an instantly recognizable and flavorful addition to treats.

You can go simple with a snack mix such as this Monkey Munch, or even give muffins a playful and unique twist, as with these Cereal Muffins.

For these and more recipes ideal for cooks in training, visit www.postfoods.com.

Cereal Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup cold butter or margarine
• 3 1/3 cups Post Honeycomb Cereal, divided
• 1 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Grease 12-cup muffin tin.
2. Mix flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl; cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Mix 3 cups cereal and milk in medium bowl; let stand 3 minutes. Stir in egg. Add to flour mixture; stir just until moistened (batter will be lumpy).
4. Spoon evenly into muffin tin, filling each cup 2/3 full.
5. Mix remaining 1/3 cup cereal, 1 teaspoon sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle evenly over muffins.
6. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool.

Monkey Munch

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 4 squares semi-sweet chocolate
• 8 cups Post Honeycomb Cereal
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Preparation

1. Microwave peanut butter and chocolate in large microwaveable bowl on high 1 1/2 minutes. Stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is well blended.
2. Pour over cereal in large bowl; toss to evenly coat.
3. Place two large sheets of aluminum foil on counter, with long sides of foil slightly overlapping. Spread cereal mixture onto foil. Let stand 2 hours or until chocolate coating is set.
4. Place powdered sugar in fine mesh strainer. Shake strainer over cereal mixture to evenly coat cereal mixture with sugar. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature.
5. Tips: Cooled cereal can be placed in a large brown paper bag instead of on foil. Add powdered sugar to cereal mixture in bag; fold down top of bag to close and shake to coat cereal mixture evenly.

Sponsored by Post Foods