Because life’s too short to go without Dunkaroos for another decade.
During quarantine, my husband and I have been on a nostalgic food tour of snacks we obsessed over as kids.
Evie Carrick
Both of us were raised in houses ahead of their time food-wise. My mom ran an organic food co-op and we ate things like bulgur and tofu stir-fry in an era where my friends were eating SpaghettiOs and Hamburger Helper.
Luckily both of us had best friends (shoutout to Jaime and Matt!) who were raised in more ~normal~ ’90s houses, so our little salt- and sugar-deprived selves had an outlet whereby we could enjoy the wonders of Gushers and those iconic Ritz cracker packs with spreadable cheese.
As adults who still give into the wildly unhealthy whims of childhood, these are some of the kid foods we’ve been tracking down or recreating — all ranked from our least favorite to most favorite.
16.
Pigs In A Blanket
Evie Carrick
Hot dogs (or sausages) wrapped in Pillsbury puff pastry was the ultimate kids birthday party staple. For my adult taste test, I subbed out regular hot dogs for Lightlife Vegan Smart Dogs (I’m veg), but these were still decently tasty, if not predictable.
15.
Ants On A Log
Evie Carrick
When it comes to food, I’m a texture person; so I loved the crunch of the celery and gooeyness of the peanut butter. The ants? Cute, but I’m not a big fan of raisins. I ate this for breakfast for a kid-approved upgrade to apple and peanut butter.
5.
Stacked Oreos
Evie Carrick
I just had to include Oreos somewhere in this lineup; and while I’d argue that many adults do eat Oreos, how many of them make a kid-approved Oreo tower?? It’s the way to go. You can enjoy your one cookie with seven Double Stuf Oreos’ worth of filling.
4.
Bagel Bites
Evie Carrick
Doll-sized bagels crowned with pizza toppings, Bagel Bites are the illegitimate snack child of a pizza and a bagel. I remember hearing about these at school and trying to make them using whole wheat English muffins, spaghetti sauce, and cheese. The imitation was nothing special (and way too healthy), but the real deal was everything. The cuteness of a mini bagel pizza, the crunch of a toasted bagel, and the gooeyness of the cheese. It all still holds up.
3.
Worms In Dirt
Evie Carrick
This was the first kid concoction my husband and I made and it might’ve been the best. I even made it a second time! (Keep in mind, I’m a total sugar fiend.) I love all the ingredients and I love the visual — a dollop of chocolate pudding with crushed Oreos on top and gummy worms slithering throughout. It’s perfect.
2.
Chicken Nuggets
Evie Carrick
I’m vegetarian so I recreated this using plant-based nuggets. This was SO GOOD. I bought two types of veggie nuggets for a true taste test (Quorn is the easy winner IMO!) and made them three times over the last month, and TBH, have no regrets.
Did I miss any? What childhood foods do you still swear by? Tell me in the comments!
