APPLESAUCE POUCHES - EASY, DELICIOUS, NUTRITIOUS AND FUN!!!

I pack my son’s lunch every day before school and am constantly looking for new fun things that are good for him to put in his lunch so he doesn’t have to eat the same old fruit, same old chips, same old sandwich, same old dessert, etc. One day while on a grocery shopping excursion, I stumbled across applesauce pouches. Thinking my son, who is 15, would look at them in his lunchbox and think, “My mom has finally flipped her lid. She still thinks I am 3 years old and need an applesauce pouch!” and would shove it to the back of his lunchbox hiding it from his friends so as not to be embarrassed. BUT….when he got home that night HE actually asked ME where I got it from – and that it was the coolest and most delicious thing ever and everyone at his lunch table (a bunch of tough and rough high school boys) wanted to try it and wanted to know where he got it from! He asked me to always put them in his lunch instead of an apple or some other fruit. Astonished, I told him I found them at the grocery store and said that I would. The great thing is that in addition to the plain applesauce, there are many different fruit combinations offered by many different brands, i.e. Dole, Motts, Materne. I have found strawberry, mixed berry, applesauce cinnamon, peach and others. These little pouches are not only for the kids, though, I have always had to force myself to eat my daily serving of fruit, usually eating a banana or an apple, strawberries when in season or a handful of berries, but I have found that I even like these applesauce pouches. They are delicious AND nutritious….most being all natural and with no added sugar or high fructose corn syrup - just naturally good.

These little pouches are great to keep in your pantry for, not only lunch boxes, but day trips, hiking trips, sports games, long car rides, mid-morning and afternoon snacks, just about any time and anywhere. They are so easy to pack, easy to use and not messy – AT ALL! You cannot spill them because they do not have peel off lids and no need for a spoon, just squeeze the applesauce out right into your mouth and replace the little cap. On a hot day, put them in the freezer for an hour or two and you will have an icy-appley treat!

Following is a list of three different brands that I have tried and some of the pertinent information you Moms out there might want to know before you go out and purchase applesauce pouches. My list is limited to the three I have recently purchased but there are many other brands and fruit combinations available.

1. Dole Squish’Ems! - $2.48 – you will get four 3.2 oz. pouches that are 100 percent

Fruit – all natural – no sugar or corn syrup added – The mixed berry is 70 calories

Per serving – Product of Canada

2. Motts Snack and Go - $2.50 – you will get four 3.2 oz. pouches that are 100 percent

Fruit – all natural – no sugar or corn syrup added – The strawberry is only 40 calories

Per serving – Product of Canada

3. Materne Go Go Squeeze - $2.28 – you will get four 3.2 oz. pouches that are 100

Percent fruit – all natural – no sugar or corn syrup added – the peach is only 60

Calories per pouch – other flavors: apple-strawberry, apple-banana, apple-

Cinnamon, apple – Kosher certified – Product of France

I have also found that fast food restaurants are now serving these neat little pouches in kid’s meals or made available to purchase separately in place of fries – Chick-Fil-A for one! I hope you check these out and introduce them to your children and that they love them as much as we do.