The Scoop on Sugar-Free Snacks

Sugar-Free Snacks

Sugar is sweet and yummy, and gives you a rush of energy when you need it, but eating too much of it can also give you a mouthful of cavities and make you obese. To help observe Diabetes Awareness Month in November, Kidzworld has come up with some alternatives to sugary foods that'll sastify your sweet tooth - but leave you without the achin' teeth!

Sugar-Free Snacks - Dried Cranberries

Dried fruits make excellent healthy snacks, but store-bought dried fruits are usually loaded with sugar, so try making your own at home. Here's what you'll need - one bag of fresh whole cranberries, one cup of artificial sweetner like Splenda or Equal (it tastes just like sugar!) and half a cup of water.

Directions:

Dissolve the artifical sweetener in water, pour it over the cranberries and cook it in a large pan on medium heat.

Cook the cranberries, stirring occasionally, until they start to pop (about four to five minutes).

Let the cranberries cool for 10 minutes, and then squish them down with the back of a large spoon.

Spread the cranberries on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.

Put it in the oven to "dehydrate" at 150 degrees Fahrenheit.

It may take up to eight hours to dry the cranberries, depending on whether you want them to be soft and chewy or on the crispier side.

Sugar-Free Snacks - Air-Popped Popcorn

Plain, air-popped popcorn is a whole-grain food that's a much better option than microwave popcorn. It's healthier (there's little or no sugar, fat, or sodium), but tastes pretty bland. To jazz it up, skip the salt and melted butter, and sprinkle some cinnamon over your popcorn instead. You can add some dried fruits and nuts to make it even tastier!

Sugar-Free Snacks - Homemade Cookies

Baking your own snacks is usually the healthiest way to go. Here's an easy recipe for sugar-free cookies to try! This recipe makes about five dozen cookies, so you can share 'em with your friends and classmates.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

3/4 cup butter

1 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

1 package of strawberry, raspberry or lime sugar-free Jello

Directions:

Mix flour and baking powder.

In another bowl, mix butter, sugar-free Jello, egg and vanilla.

Gradually add the flour mix to the Jello mix.

Cut out cool shapes with cookie cutters, or use a teaspoon to drop the cookie dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet.