20+ High Protein After School Snacks For Kids

These high protein after school snacks for kids are perfect for keeping kids full and satisfied until dinner time!

Hi friends!

Today we’re chatting high protein after school snacks for kids. I’ve written several snack posts over the years, including 10 Healthy After School Snacks, High Protein Kid Lunches, After School Healthy Snacks and Kid-Friendly Protein Energy Balls, but none that focus specifically on high protein after school snacks.

As parents, we know how critical the after school snack can be. It needs to be hearty enough to keep them from asking for a million more snacks and ruining their dinner! Pairing protein with carbs and fiber will help kids stay full and prevent constant snacking. This post has lots of good options that are good for active kiddos who are constantly on the move, playing sports etc.

And if you’re looking for high protein snacks for adults, check out:

• Healthy High Protein Snacks
• 30+ Easy Protein Snacks
• Cottage Cheese Protein Snacks
• At Work & After Work Snacks
• High Protein Vegan Snacks

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How much protein do kids need each day?

Protein needs vary by age but are typically 0.5g per pound body weight:

• 1-3 years: 13 grams of protein
• 4-8 years: 19 grams of protein
• 9-13 years: 34 grams of protein
• 14-18 years: 46 grams (girls) or 52 grams (boys)

Active kids may have slightly increased needs. Here’s a more detailed article about how much protein your child needs.

What is a high protein snack for kids?

For older kids, I tend to aim for 10+ grams of protein for a high protein snack. Remember that most kids are already getting enough protein throughout the day and not every snack needs to be high protein.

More important than total protein, I encourage you to aim for balanced snacks- snacks that have at least some protein and fiber, not just empty carbs. This will help kids feel full and satisfied longer.

Why are high protein snacks for kids important?

Not every snack needs to be high protein, however, many kids tend to eat better at snack time than meal time. If that’s the case, aiming for high protein snacks can be important and beneficial to help meet total daily needs.

For athletes, it’s important to ensure they’re getting enough protein to help with muscle repair and recovery.

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If you’re looking for real life examples about how I combine some of these ideas (like the photo above) and serve them to my kids, scroll down!

Here’s a list of some high protein after school snack ideas that will actually keep kids full until dinner:

After School Snacks with Eggs

• Egg wraps – These can be filled with cheese, pepperoni, turkey, avocado etc or just eaten plain. There is 6g of protein per egg and if you add a few slices of turkey (10g protein) and a slice of cheese (6g protein) you have a snack with 20+ grams of protein.
• Hard Boiled eggs – Super easy to make in big batches, especially in the Instant pot. Most kids will eat at least 2 hard boiled eggs which is 12g protein.
• Microwave egg sandwich – Easy enough that kids can make one themselves! The egg has 6g protein, two slices of bread gave give you 6-8g protein and a slice of cheese is 6g protein.
• Egg muffins – Fill them with chopped veggies, cheese, bacon, etc.

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After School Snacks with Dairy

• Yogurt bark – Let the kids choose their favorite mix-ins like fruit, mini chocolate chips, pumpkin seeds and more! Use Greek yogurt for more protein- most have at least 15g protein in a 3/4 cup serving. Cut the sugar by using half plain yogurt/half flavored. And mixing in pumpkin seeds adds even more protein.
• Yogurt parfait – Layer yogurt with fresh fruit and cereal for an easy snack that feels fancy. If you use Greek yogurt you’ll get 15g protein, and you can add more by choosing a higher protein cereal.
• Overnight oats – Another option that’s easy to customize and can be made ahead of time. 1/2 cup oats has approximately 5g protein, plus 3/4 cup milk has 6 grams. Adding chia seeds and a bit of Greek yogurt adds even more protein.
• Smoothies – Use your favorite frozen fruit and combine with milk or yogurt to add protein.
• Kefir – Lots of flavors to try. Mix half plain, half flavored to cut the sugar. An 8oz glass of Lifeway Kefir has 10g protein.

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*Photo credit: Hummusapien*

Kid-Friendly Snacks with Cottage Cheese

• Cottage cheese egg bites – Make them in mini muffin tins to make them more kid-friendly
• Cottage cheese pancakes – Make a double batch and freeze some! A serving should have about 15 grams of protein.
• Cottage cheese cookie dough bites – Easy to make and keep in the freezer. Each bite has approximately 3g of protein.
• Cottage Cheese Smoothie – A fun change from regular yogurt or milk in your smoothie. Adding 1/2 cup cottage cheese to a smoothie adds at least 12g protein.

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Kid-Friendly Snacks with Nuts & Seeds

• Energy balls – Form them into balls or press into a pan and cut into bars
• Trail mix – Grab some from the store or make your own with roasted edamame and roasted chickpeas for protein. 1/3 cup roasted edamame has 14g of protein.
• Steamed edamame – Quick to microwave and top with a little salt. Has 14g protein per serving.
• Frozen bananas – Top with peanut butter and hemp seeds and freeze! 2 Tbsp peanut butter adds 8g protein and 3 Tbsp hemp seeds adds another 10g to your batch of frozen bananas.

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*Photo credit: Yummy Toddler Food*

After School Snacks with Meat

• Chicken salad – Kids tend to like chicken better than tuna. Use canned chicken to make it easy. Serve with their favorite crackers. 3oz of canned chicken has 15g protein.
• Mini meatballs – Can be eaten cold or serve with some pasta! 6 small meatballs can add 13g protein.
• Half a sandwich – Whatever their favorite is
• Turkey cheese and apple rollups – Roll cheese and turkey around a cheese stick!
• Quesadilla – Add some beans or chicken for extra protein
• Cheese, crackers and jerky- Cut jerky and cheese into cubes and pair with crackers

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High Protein After School Snacks for Kids

I wanted to give you some actual visuals so you can get an idea how I serve these options to my kids as after school snacks. Here are some real-life examples. I tried to give you some rough estimations on protein content. Some will vary based on brands, ingredients used etc so it’s just to give you a general idea!

Most of these snacks examples contain more than enough protein for kids. These are snack examples for my older kids who are 9 &11 and are very active athletes.

Feel free to decrease portion sizes, which will decrease the grams of protein to closer to 10 grams if needed, depending on your child’s age and activity level.

High Protein Snacks For Kids with Eggs

• Turkey, Cheese & Avocado Egg Wrap + Clementine (10g protein in the turkey, 6g in the slice of cheese and 6g in the egg = 22g protein)
• Hard Boiled Eggs + Veggies + Kefir (12g protein from the eggs + 10g from the kefir = 22g protein)
• Sausage & Egg Cups + Frozen Bananas with peanut butter and hemp (12g protein from eggs + 6g from the sausage + 5g from the pb bananas = 23g protein)
• Microwave Egg Sandwich + Grapes (6g protein from the egg + 8 grams from the bread + 6 g from the cheese = 20g protein)

High Protein Dairy Snacks for Kids

• Yogurt Bark + Lentil Banana Muffin (Rough estimation – 15g from yogurt bark + 4g from muffin = 19g protein)
• Overnight Oats + Trail Mix (Approximately 15g protein in the overnight oats + 5g protein from the trailmix = 20g protein
• Yogurt parfait + Kodiak Cakes Pancakes (Approximately 15g protein from the yogurt + 10-15g protein from the pancakes = 25-30g protein)
• Smoothie + Aloha Bar mini (aff link) Protein will vary depending on your smoothie recipe but most will have 15-20g protein at least, plus 6g protein from the bar = at least 25g protein)
• Roasted Edamame & Roasted Chickpea Snack Mix + Cheese cubes & jerky (Approx 15g protein from the snack mix + 5g from the cheese + 10g from the beef stick =30g protein)

High Protein Meat Snacks For Kids

• Chicken Salad + Crackers (Approximately 15g protein in the chicken salad -more if you use Greek yogurt or cottage cheese instead of mayo- plus a few grams protein from the crackers depending what kind you have = approximately 20g protein)
• Protein Pasta + Meatballs (we like Simek’s) + Raisins (10g protein from the pasta + 15g protein from the meatballs = 25g protein)
• Turkey, cheese & apple roll-up + crackers (10g protein from the turkey + 6g from the cheese + 2-4g from the tortilla + up to 4g from the crackers depending on brand = 20ish grams protein)
• Chicken & Bean Quesadilla + Steamed Edamame (10-15g protein from the quesadila + 10+grams from the edamame = at least 20g protein)

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Enjoy!
–Lindsay–