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Invitation to Make: No Bake Energy Bites (Using Construction Vehicles!)

May 24, 2017 by Rosie 3 Comments

Does your child love to cook and be creative in the kitchen? Are you looking for a simple idea that they can make by themselves?

This is a super easy and fun idea – to set up an invitation to make no bake energy bites using construction vehicles!

Little M LOVES to make and bake in the kitchen. Putting all the ingredients in the bowl and stirring them in one by one is his favourite bit! He likes to talk through each step as he does it – perhaps he’ll have his own cooking channel one day!

I love to make things with him in the kitchen whenever I can, but it’s got to the point where he wants to ‘do cooking’ every day! Although I am so happy that he is enthusiastic about cooking, sometimes at 9am there are just other things that need to be done!

So I came up with this invitation to make no bake energy bites, using construction vehicles. It’s a great activity that he can do by himself, no baking needed, just mixing! The added element of the construction vehicles makes it fun too – and occupies him for a while, so I can put his sister down for a nap, or any of those other things we have to do as mamas.

Why not give it a try?

It literally takes seconds to set out all the ingredients – no weighing needed. Your child can then get on and scoop and mix to their heart’s content. The best thing is these energy bites are full of healthy stuff (apart from the chocolate chips!) and they taste amazing!!!

The energy bites are based on a recipe from Gimme Some Oven which we love! I have reduced the quantities to make it more manageable for a child to make and adapted it slightly. But the great thing is you can adapt this recipe yourself, however you would like. You can mix and match any of the ingredients.

Perhaps try almond butter instead of peanut butter, or replace some of the oats with some toasted coconut. You could replace the chocolate chips with raisins or chopped dates (especially if you don’t trust your child to be left alone with chocolate chips…) You can adapt this to be dairy free with dairy free chocolate chips. It’s also gluten free if you use gluten free oats. So long as the quantities of wet and dry ingredients are the same, you can’t really go wrong!

Little M loves to use construction vehicles – so we used these small construction vehicles for this project (affiliate link).

Give the vehicles a thorough wash, then disinfect and rinse again before using to dig food, especially if they have been played with before. If your vehicles are really dirty or muddy, I’d buy some new ones and keep them for indoor use. You can of course make this recipe without construction vehicles too!

Invitation to Make: No Bake Energy Bites (Using Construction Vehicles!)

You’ll need:

  • 3/4 cup rolled oats
  • 1/4 cup ground flax seed
  • 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup peanut butter (I used the no salt, no sugar variety)
  • 2 tablespoons of honey
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

You’ll also need:

  • A variety of small construction vehicles – thoroughly washed and disinfected
  • A baking tray (I used a foil cake tray)
  • A mixing bowl and spoon
  • A few small containers or lids

To set up:

1. Simply set out all of the ingredients on the tray. Try putting the wet ingredients in small containers or lids within the tray, to keep them separate. I left out the vanilla essence and added this for Little M when he was done mixing – it’s a bit more fiddly.

2. Place the tray on the work surface, along with the clean construction vehicles, mixing bowl and spoon. (If you are a very cool parent you could wash and disinfect a play shovel instead!)

3. Let your child get on with digging, shovelling and mixing!

4. Add the vanilla essence if you haven’t already!

5. When your child is done mixing you’ll need to put the mixture in the fridge for 10-20 minutes before rolling into ‘bite size’ balls. This hardens the mixture and makes it easier to roll. Little M is usually fairly desperate to eat an energy bite by this stage. We’ll usually roll up one as it is, then put the rest of the mixture in the fridge!

6. When the mixture has chilled, you or your child can roll them into around 1 inch balls (you can also make them bigger or smaller.) If the mixture is too dry, just add some more peanut butter or honey to help them stick.

Yum! Enjoy as an energy boosting snack, or with some fruit as a quick breakfast. Serve with the cleaned construction vehicles for extra fun!

Little M loved mixing up his energy bites! He excavated and shovelled the ingredients into the bowl and mixed away! I helped him to roll them into little ‘boulders.’ He ate a couple with his excavator (!) then we put the rest away for another day.

I hope your kids love this activity as much as we did! Do your kids love to make things in the kitchen? Will you give this a try?

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Filed Under: Crafts and Activities, Recipes

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Emma

    May 25, 2017 at 1:23 pm

    Oh this is such a clever idea and a great way to get them to eat a healthy snack!

    Reply
    • Rosie

      July 22, 2017 at 4:37 pm

      Thanks hun! Little M loves making them – and fairly healthy too, apart from the choc chips! x

      Reply
  2. Sam, Memories and Mayhem Blog

    June 5, 2017 at 3:09 pm

    This is a really cute idea and a great way for young children to have a go at ‘cooking’ all on their own xx #TheListLinky

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Rosie!

Lover of tea on the beach and avid recycler!

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Sweet and simple ideas to inspire kids. 👩‍🎨
Art | Crafts | Nature
Lover of tea on the beach and avid recycler! 🐚🐠🐳 ❤️

Rosie
Don’t you just love when a crafty project double Don’t you just love when a crafty project doubles as something useful??
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You can turn this easy Christmas tree stencil idea into simple gift wrap! 
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Get your children printing and decorating Christmas trees on a sheet of parcel paper. You’ll keep them busy and creative, then can wrap gifts for the grandparents or friends in the paper! 
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This year, more than ever, people will really appreciate the small, personal things that you do for them. Things that are made, thought about and given with love. ❤️ Have a think about how you can make someone feel special this year. The simple ideas are always the best!
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Are you planning to add a personal touch to gifts and cards this year? Have you made gift wrap with your children before?
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Joining in with @makemerryandcreate @littlelion_mom @playwithmamma and #makeyourchristmascrafts
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I took a bit of a social media break, as life took over. As it does from time to time. So taking the time to say hello to you all again.👋 

I’m Rosie and I love to share simple ideas to inspire kids to get arty, crafty and creative. 🎨 

I also 💚the outdoors and try to share this love of nature in many of my projects. 🌲 

This is me and my crew, back in October on my 40th birthday! A beautiful beachy day. 🏝 

Since then we’ve bought a house, moved and had one kiddo in isolation for 14 days 🤪- hence the radio silence. 

A break has helped me ditch the overwhelm and simplify my priorities. But now, I’m so ready to start getting creative again and bring on all the festive vibes! 🎄

When life gets overwhelming, don’t be afraid to step back and focus only on the things that are important. Take a breath, get outdoors and then reprioritise, one step at a time. ❤️

How are you doing with lockdowns, winter and festive preparation? What helps you step back and reprioritise?
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For me it’s been bike rides and making things together. 🖍 ✂️ 
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Funny how our minds gloss over the stresses of home school and lack of ‘me time’ 🤣
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I’ve not been on social media much lately - I’ve been making the most of the end of summer, adjusting to the ‘new normal’ and figuring out what is next for me now that my littlest has started school. 😊
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One thing I am doing is starting to sort through the pile of creations 🖼 (and clutter too!) in the house. It’s reminding me of all the lovely things we have done together (even when mum guilt sometimes tells me otherwise) and helping to clear my mind too. ❤️
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If you’re feeling a little lost at the moment I can recommend a good sort out as a starting point! @whatkatysaiduk is a wonderful inspiration on decluttering. 🥰
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Are your children back at school, or are you still in the thick of homeschool? 
Anyone else swamped with projects from this year?! I’d love any ideas on how you like to organise art work!
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We had a roarr-some time at @roarr_dinosauradventure in Norfolk last weekend.
With dinosaur trails, a splash zone, Jurassic putt and much more we all had an amazing family day. I was really impressed with the social distancing and safety measures in place too. Full review to follow soon!
Have you been on any fun family days out recently?
Is home school still happening in your family?! Af Is home school still happening in your family?! After 12 weeks of lockdown we’ve ditched ‘home school’ for ‘life school.’ So far the kids have made and decorated their own cakes, helped do laundry, vacuum and mop. 🧼 Plus lots of free play, projects and learning about topics they are interested in - mainly dinosaurs! 🦖 🦕 
I feel so much more relaxed for letting go of formal work! (Let’s face it there wasn’t much of it happening anyway...😬) But I was still pressuring myself mentally and it was starting to create power struggles (with my eldest very spirited child!) When you start doing things that you and the children are motivated to do it takes the pressure off everyone. And the miracle is that’s when the real learning happens! 🌟 
My son has even written about his fossil collection - a change from tearing my hair out to get him to write! The kids have played more independently too, as I’ve ‘left them to it’ more. Plus - the house is even starting to look just a little bit cleaner! 🧹

So if home school is just not happening anymore, I’d recommend doing an Elsa and just ‘Let it Goooo’. Swap it for ‘life school’ and I guarantee the kids will be learning equally valuable lessons. 💡Just do what works for your family. ❤️ Are you still home schooling? Do you feel like you’re trying to ‘do it all’? Or have you embraced a more flexible approach?

I’d love to hear any ideas you have that we could try? My kids love dinosaurs and creative things. Plus I’m trying to encourage independent playing and helping in the house, so all ideas welcome! 💡
Sleeping with her babies. 👶🏻👶🏾❤️
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I’ve always thought of myself as someone who embraces diversity. I’ve travelled, met and befriended people of all colours, nationalities and religions. As a teacher I’ve valued each child’s individuality, as well as seeing them all as equals. I try to encourage my children to be kind to all others.
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But I realise this is NOT enough. I need to do more. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the last week it’s that - we have to take ACTION against racism. It’s not enough to just ‘not be racist’, we have to be ANTI racist to make a change.
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So what action do I commit to do?
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•Listen - keep listening to black people’s stories and struggles.
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•Amplify - promote black voices, especially those in the fields of education and children.
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If you’re a mama or a teacher and wondering how you can take ACTION against racism, I’d really recommend taking a look at @readlikearockstar and @apron_education - they have some brilliant resources to share with your kids. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Children are the masters of their own creativity. 🖼 Given the time and space, children will think of ideas that will never fail to surprise you!
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Try putting some ideas for play and projects into a jar or box, ready for when inspiration is needed. 📦 You could include some of your ideas and some of your children's ideas. 👶 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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