Adorable fruit bug snacks are a fun and healthy snack for your next birthday party. Whether your kids loves insects, is having a Lion King birthday party, or you’re teaching a preschool lesson about bugs all five of these snack ideas are fun! Use one or all five of these ideas for kids including all kinds of cute ladybugs, beetles, caterpillars, butterflies and dragonflies!
5 Adorable Healthy Fruit Bug Snacks
We had literally so much fun making all these adorable fruit bug snacks! Didn’t they turn out simply adorable?
These insects are not a quick snack to make if you make all five, but if I’m be honest? Once my kid and I started making these fun bug snack ideas? We couldn’t stop! Her creativity ran wild coming up with ideas of what we should make next.
This isn’t the first time we’ve made fun bugs for a snack. If you’re looking for more fun snack ideas, check out my melon caterpillars, my five-minute spider snacks, classic chocolate dirt cups (with tons of variation ideas!)
This time we made five different kinds of bugs once we got rolling.
I’d suggest if you’re making these adorable bugs for a party? Pick your two favorites. They would be really adorable as a snack for a Lion King Party (Timon and Pumba’s Bugs. Slimy yet satisfying!) These healthy snacks are also fun for a bug or garden themed birthday party, or a preschool learning unit about bugs.
If you’re making these bugs with a kid for fun at home you can let them get creative! Use these ideas as a guide to make your own healthy bug snacks.
Caterpillars (Blueberry or Grapes)
Caterpillars are by far the easiest of these sweet bug snacks to make. Thread some blueberries or grapes on a kabob, add some chocolate dots for eyes and enjoy! This is a super easy bug to let little kids help to make for this healthy snack.
Apple Beetles
Apple beetles are adorable and add some nice wide beetles to your bugs. The apple beetles are a little easier to decorate because they have a wider wing. If you’re starting the decorating, practice your decorating hand with the apple beetles!
Melon Butterflies and Dragonflies
The melon butterflies and dragonflies are fairly easy to make, but a little harder to let the tiniest kids help. The mint and flower wings can be a little delicate.
Use a skewer to first poke a hole, then add your wings. After that use the blunt end of the skewer to poke your wings into the melon.
Strawberry Ladybugs
The strawberry ladybugs are one of my favorite healthy snacks to make! I’ve made these little strawberry bugs all on their own, and with the other skewers. Decorating these bugs is a little more challenging. USe the bigger strawberries to make it easier!
Strawberry Banana Beetles
These strawberry banana beetles was one of my my favorite flavor wise, but also one of the hardest bugs to make. It’s a little tougher to get the chocolate to stick. Also keeping bananas fresh looking is harder if you’re making a party tray. BUT these healthy little beetles taste delicious, so I couldn’t leave them out of the list!
Before You Start Making These Healthy Bug Fruit Kabobs
Before you start, assemble all of your fruit. It makes it much easier when you have everything in one place to work with and create.
I used mint (and edible flowers if they are available near you) for the wings but you can get creative!.
How To Melt Chocolate For Insect Snacks
We melted some chocolate to do the decorating using the microwave at 15-second intervals and adding coconut oil. Be sure to not allow any water into your chocolate at all or it will seize and get chunky.
Adding the coconut oil to the chocolate gives it a harder coating when it cools. It’s kind of the texture of that ice cream topping called magic shell after it is chilled.
Place your fruit bug kabobs on wax paper, I like laying it out on a cookie sheet. You’ll transfer them to the refrigerator or freezer to briefly chill when you have finished.
Tips For Decorating The Bug Snacks With The Melted Chocolate
Place the chocolate in a ziploc bag and snip the tiniest corner off, then start piping on your decorations. I recommend assembling your bugs and then doing all the chocolate piping eyes, wings and legs last if you can.
The legs are one of the hardest bits to decorate. I found that keeping the chocolate a little wider and short keeps the legs looking even.
If you are struggling with the bag of melted chocolate, another option is to use a toothpick. Dip the end of a toothpick in chocolate and use it to draw on your decorations. You’ll need to frequently redip your toothpick in chocolate but it works!
Making all five of these bugs in one setting is a lot of work, but a lot of fun too. If I was making these for a kids’ birthday party I would probably choose two to make and include the caterpillars because they are super simple. All of these insects come out adorable no matter what you choose!
How To Make Five Different Fruit Bug Snacks
Equipment
- Wooden Skewers- To hold your bugs together.
- Wax Paper- For under the bugs as you decorate with chocolate.
Ingredients
- Recommended Fruit:
- Blueberries or Grapes
- Strawberries
- Melon- Honeydew Melon Cantaloupe and/or Watermelon
- Banana
- Apple
- For Decorating And Dip:
- 1 Cup Chocolate Chips
- 2 Tablespoons Coconut Oil
- Mint Leaves
- Optional Yogurt for dipping (5.3 ounces works great)
- Optional Edible flowers- I've used Violas.
Instructions
- Cut the fruit and create your favorite bugs, using the instructions below! Serve with optional yogurt to dip.
- Caterpillars (recommended fruit- Blueberries or Grapes)
- Place grapes or blueberries on the skewers in groups of five.
- Use the melted chocolate from below to make eyes.
- Strawberry Ladybugs (recommended fruit- Strawberry and either grape or blueberry)
- Slice off the green top of a large strawberry. Cut the strawberry in half for the body and add the pieces to skewers.
- Add a grape or blueberry as the head to the skewer. Use the chocolate to place eyes on the head and spots on the body.
- To make the legs, place wax paper on a small plate and squeeze some chocolate onto the strawberry continuing off the berry and slightly onto the wax paper. Be sure to make a nice, thick layer and don’t make them too long. Short is easier to manage!
- Strawberry Banana Beetle (Recommended fruit- strawberry and banana)
- Remove the green top from a small strawberry. Slice the strawberry in half and add the pieces to a skewer. This strawberry is now the insect's head.
- Slice a piece of banana into rounds. Use the rounds as the round beetle body next to the strawberry head.
- Using your melted chocolate, decorate the banana into wings and add eyes.
- Butterflies and Dragonflies- Flying Insects (recommended fruit- melon, blueberries or grape)
- Slice melon into a thin rectangular shape for the body.
- For the head, use a grape, blueberry (or even melon cut in a small circle.)
- Use the blunt end of the skewer to pierce a hole in the side of the melon for the wings.
- Place the flower or mint in the hole, and use the sharp side to push in the wing and secure it into place.
- Apple Beetles
- Slice an apple into thin slice roughly a quarter-inch thick. Can use a side with or without apple peel.
Cut a small v shape out of the bottom center of the fruit. - Use a grape or blueberry for a head, and accent the body with chocolate wings and dots.
How To Melt The Chocolate For Decorating
- In a small microwave-friendly bowl add your chocolate and coconut oil.
- Melt the mixture in the microwave on medium power in 15-second intervals until melted.
- Stir between each interval to prevent the chocolate from getting too hot.
- Place the melted chocolate in a ziplock bag and cut a tiny piece off the corner. You will be using this to make the eyes, spots, wings and insect legs. Only snip off a tiny corner to keep it small, you can always snip a little more if you need to.
- Once you finish decorating all of your bug snacks, place them temporarily in the refrigerator (or freezer!) for ten minutes at least to harden the chocolate faster. Serve at your party or for a fun snack.
Notes
- Make one or all five of these different fruit insects! It's your party and it's super easy to stray from these directions and get creative with your bug and insect party snacks!
- If you find you are struggling to get thin enough lines of chocolate try dipping a toothpick in the chocolate. Then use the toothpick to draw the decorations with the chocolate, frequently redipping the toothpick in the chocolate as you draw. I've found this is sometimes easier than squeezing the chocolate from the bag.
Did You Make This?
I would love to see it! Share your thoughts with me in the comments below!
Did you make these healthy fruit bug snacks? Have a question before you get started? Leave me a comment below!
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