Need a way to help your family eat more vegetables? These veggie cups are a fun option for kids and make getting your daily dose of vegetables easy!
Pack them with your favorite dipping sauce and watch them disappear from the fridge.
A little backstory on this snack recipe: at the age of 2, my daughter decided that all things veggies were no longer an option. No matter how hard I tried to make veggies appealing, she refused to eat them.
A few years later, these veggie cups made an appearance at a birthday party, and with some encouragement from her friend, Casey, she grabbed a veggie, took a bite, and liked ‘colorful’ foods again.
For a while, she called these snack cups “Casey’s cups” and asked for them frequently.
Veggie Snack Cups
Veggie cups are a great snack that’s fun and convenient to eat. You can prep them with an assortment of vegetables and stash them in the fridge for school lunches or veggie snacks to munch on while at the office.
If your kids (or you) aren’t a fan of raw vegetables, try giving them a quick steam in the microwave before assembling the cups. This works great with carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower and can even enhance their flavor with the dip.
What to Put in a Veggie Cup
Usually, I prep this snack with ranch dressing, baby carrots, and celery, but you can customize these veggie cups with any of your favorite dips and vegetables. Grab a few ideas in the list below:
- homemade ranch dressing
- homemade hummus
- red pepper hummus
- baby carrots
- celery sticks
- cherry/grape tomatoes
- broccoli
- sliced bell peppers
- sugar snap peas
- asparagus
Want more delicious recipes to include in your snack routine? Check out the Best Homemade Kids’ Snacks on the Planet.
It’s filled with creative and tasty snacks you’ll want to make again and again!
How to Assemble Veggie Cups
Here’s how to assemble your own veggie cups step-by-step:
- Add the dip
Add your choice of dip or sauce to the bottom of a 6 to 8-ounce storage cup; 2 tablespoons should do the trick. - Add the veggies
Place the veggies, standing up, into the dip. - Seal
Top with lid and seal. - Save for later
Once prepped, these veggie cups will stay good for up to 3 days.
You can also watch how to put these snack cups together in the video below:
More Ways to Get Kids to Eat Veggies
I have plenty of healthy meals ideas your picky eater will eat and ask you to make on repeat! Each recipe is a kid-favorite option recreated with better ingredients and hidden veggies to bump up the nutrition.
- Blueberry Smoothie – with invisible spinach!
- Hidden Veggie Pasta Sauce
- Zucchini Pizzas
- All Meat & Veggie Chili
- Broccoli Nuggets
Easy Veggie Cups with Ranch Dressing
Ingredients
- 4 ribs celery, sliced into sticks
- 4 ribs carrots, peeled and sliced into sticks
- ½ – 1 cup ranch dressing
Instructions
- Place 1-2 tablespoons of ranch dressing at the bottom of each cup, and fill each container with 1 cup of sliced veggies.
- Close the lid and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
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Beth says
My kids will dunk veggies in hummous and tzaticki (sp?).
In the summer we grill vegetables and participate in our community garden. Cherry tomatos and sugar snap peas right off plant are great.
Joan says
Can kids ever eat too many vegetables? My sure haven’t reached their stride in getting all that they need daily! I agree that if fresh vegetables need a little ranch or hummus to make them more attractive I am all for it and a little butter on the steamed vegetables still means they are getting the benefit of the vegetables! If I take the time to work them in, they try them and always get mixed results with my 4 kids. I always keep trying! Some day their palate will appreciate them!
summer says
My son is not a big fan of veggies, but can sometimes be persuaded by fresh squeezed lemon juice or cheese sauce on top. I thought he would love a “Hulk” green smoothie- but that didn’t fly!
Courtney says
I have one child who loves a salad. She prefers a salad over a lot of other good foods. The other is still pretty young, but we encourage them to eat some of everything on their plate. I did try to make broccoli more enticing by putting a cheese sauce on it and neither of my kids would touch it, but a few days later I made steamed broccoli and they ate it up. Who knows! Next week it will be reversed!
Jennifer N. says
Not too bad. My kids have a better time eating veggies if they are still raw. The problem can become trying to get them to eat roasted or steamed veggies.