Snacks and fruit drinks-All you need to Know!

Snacks and fruit drinks

Learning objectives

At the end of this article, pupils and readers should be able to:

1. Explain the meaning of snacks and fruit drinks;
2. Mention some common snacks in their locality;
3. State the difference between snacks and main meals
4. Prepare simple snacks and fruit drinks

Meaning and types of snacks and fruit drinks

Healthy snacks are one of the keys to diet success. Snacking can keep you full, balance blood sugar levels, provide energy between meals, and even boost overall nutrient intake. However, what you select to eat as your daily snack and the quanity you eat during each snacking session can make all the difference to your overall health.

Snacks are light refreshments eaten in between meals. They are usually small and should not be eaten too much at any given time. They help to replenish energy which gets low as a result of daily activities. They, more or less, keep us stable before the next meals of the day (breakfast, lunch and dinner) because we do not derive full nutritional benefits from them.

Popular snacks found all over Nigeria include: roasted groundnuts, plantain chips, popcorn, boiled or roast corn, puff puff, roast plantain, roast yam, chinchin, kokoro, adun, elekute, kwlikwuli. More recently, fast foods have added cakes, meat pie, sausage roll, scotch egg, meat on the stick, doughnut and biscuits to the list of readily available snacks.

Fruit drinks are drinks made from fruit extracts. They could be made with just one type of fruit or a combination of two or more fruit extracts. Fruit drinks can be made at home or bought from the market. The concentrated ones like orange squash should be diluted with clean, fresh cold water. When fruit drinks are made at home, it is necessary to make them with clean ingredients and sweeten them lightly with granulated sugar. These drinks taste better when served chilled, fruit drinks help to quench our thirst especially during hot days. They supply the body with some minerals.

Fruits made at home or bought from the supermarket include juice such as orange, pineapple, tomatoes, mango, guava, as well as drinks like ginger beer, punch etc.

Difference between snacks and main meals

Snacks are light foods, eaten in between meals, which one usually made with one to four ingredients; while a main meal, such as pounded yam with vegetable soup and chicken, contains many ingredients. The differences between snacks and main meals are:

Importance of Snacks and Drinks

When your stomach is almost empty between meals, snacks and fruits drinks could be taken. They are therefore referred to as fillers.

Snacks and fruit drinks, when taken, ensure that our stomachs are not empty. They keep us going until it is time to eat another main meal. Fruit drinks keep us cool in hot weather. They also help to replace water which the body loses from perspiration.

 preparation of fruit drinks

Fruits juice are 100 percent fruit extracts while fruit drinks have other items like sugar, water, salt added to them. The following are the ways of preparing simple fruits juice and drinks

1. Pineapple juice
2. Get a big ripe pineapple
3. Peel off the skin until only the core remain

• Press and drain off the juice

1. Put the juice in a refrigerator and serve chilled.
2. Pineapple drink
3. Get the pineapple peels from the one used for the pineapple juice
4. Get one cup of granulated sugar, one teaspoon of salt and 2.85 litres of fresh clean water

• Put all in a pot and boil 1 ½ hours

1. Cool and drain with a sieve
2. Store in bottles and put in a refrigerator. Serve chilled
3. Lemon drink
4. Wash and peel two large lemons
5. Extract juice from the lemon

• Add one cup of granulated sugar and 0.95 litres of boiled water

1. Mix thoroughly and chill

You can substitute lemon for any of the following to make their fruit drink: lime, mango, grape fruit, etc.

1. Orange juice
2. Get five large sizes of ripe juicy oranges
3. Peel off the skin and cut into two

• Squeeze out the juice using an orange squeezer (this also helps to serve the seed to serve the seed from the juice)

1. Put in a refrigerator and serve chilled

 preparation of snacks

Three snacks are listed below which pupils could experiment with. They are easy to make and pupils will enjoy making and eating them.

1. Yam balls
2. The first step is to boil yam
3. Mash the cooked yam until soft and fluffy

• Prepare pepper sauce with vegetable oil, ground tomato, onion, little red pepper and salt

1. Add the sauce to the mashed yam
2. Add cooked chopped meat or flaked fresh fish
3. Bind mixture with beaten egg

• Make into balls
• Coat each ball with the remaining beaten egg

1. Fry the balls in deep hot oil until golden brown. Serve with chilled fruit drink
2. Plantain chips
3. Get an almost ripe plantain
4. Cut into thin slices using a slizer or knife

• Add sugar and a little salt

1. Allow the sugar to soak into the plantain and sundry for a while
2. Fry in deep oil to golden brown
3. Allow to cool and serve with fruit drink or fruit juice
4. Sandwiches
5. Get some sliced bread, margarine, eggs, sardine and tomatoes
6. Wash the tomatoes and slice, boil the eggs and also slice

• Open the sardine and mix in the margarine

1. Spread the mixture on slice of bread, arrange the eggs and tomatoes on it and cover with other slice.
2. Trim the edges of and cut into two to form two triangles
3. Serve with any fruit juice or fruit drink of your choice

Evaluation questions

1. Explain the meaning of snacks and fruit drinks
2. Mention four foods eaten as snacks
3. State three differences between snacks and main meals
4. Mention the benefits of eating snacks
5. Name three fruits that can be used for fruit drinks

Take Home Message

Sometimes you just really need a snack.Having some healthy and nutritious options close by can help you avoid unhealthy and fattening alternatives.

Activities

1. Pupils are to participate in the preparation of fruit drinks
2. Pupils should participate in the preparation of snacks
3. Pupils are to sample prepared snacks and fruit drinks, comment on them and suggest some improvements that could be made to make them better.