Pregnancy and postpartum are a rollercoaster ride of hormones, emotions, and sleep deprivation. This can lead many pregnant and postpartum women to crave something sweet and sugary. While it is perfectly natural to crave and eat sweet snacks and desserts, it is more beneficial to eat balanced meals and snacks that can nourish your body and satisfy those cravings in the long run. In this post, you will find some recipes for low-sugar sweet snacks for pregnancy and postpartum that are Whole Foods-based and so good that you will be making them on rotation.
But first, let us understand why new moms crave sugar and sugary sweet treats.
There can be three reasons for this,
- Sleep deprivation
- Hormones
- Postpartum fatigue
New mothers are often going through a surge of hormones to help breastfeed, which coupled with sleep deprivation kicks up the hunger hormone, ghrelin, which in turn amps up the body’s demand for more energy. When not eating balanced meals rich in protein and fat it is easy at this time to fall for the sugar trap and consume more and more sweet treats.
10 LOW-SUGAR SWEET SNACKS FOR PREGNANCY AND POSTPARTUM
Chocolate chia pudding
Make this easy chocolate chia pudding when craving a sweet dessert after meals. Chia seeds are a good source of healthy fats, and this pudding’s creamy chocolatey flavor hits the spot for a satisfying post-meal sweet treat.
Chocolate Chia Pudding
Ingredients
- 150 ml almond milk/coconut milk
- 5 tbsps chia seeds
- 1-2 tbsp honey
- 2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a blender and blend on a low setting until all the chia seeds are nearly invisible.
- Pour into tiny shot glasses.
- Set in the fridge for 2-4 hours.
- Serve with toppings of your choice. You can use chopped strawberries or blueberries, toasted almond flakes, desiccated coconut or raw cacao nibs.
Mango popsicle
This popsicle recipe for a healthy sweet snack postpartum meets all the requirements when you crave something cold and sweet. The Greek yogurt in the recipe adds that extra bit of protein and healthy fats.
Homemade Mango Popsicles For Toddlers And Kids
Ingredients
- Yogurt layer
- 1/3 cup greek yogurt
- 1 tsp honey
- Mango layer
- 3 mangoes chopped
- 10-12 almonds soaked
- 1 tsp honey
- water as needed
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl mix the honey and greek yogurt.
- Add 1-2 spoonfuls of the greek yogurt to the popsicle moulds. Freeze for 30 minutes.
- In a mixer make a mango pulp with mango, almonds, honey and a little water. Keep consistency thick, don’t add a lot of water.
- After 30 minutes, remove the moulds and add the mango layer.
- Freeze for 6-8 hours.
- To remove from moulds, keep moulds under running tap water for 2 mins each side, then loosen and pull to remove.
Chocolate peanut butter smoothie
A chocolate smoothie is my go-to during the busy week. The best part about smoothies as a sweet snack is that everyone in the family can enjoy them together.
Chocolate peanut butter banana smoothie for toddlers
Equipment
- Blender
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk
- 1 banana
- 1 tbsp unsweetened peanut butter
- 1/2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp flaxseed powder
- 1/2 tbsp honey
Instructions
- All all the ingredients to a blender.
- Blend until desired consistency.
- Serve chilled.
Granola bar
These granola bars are made using lots of nuts and seeds to pack in healthy fats and protein that is much needed by new mothers to sustain themselves during those long nights breastfeeding.
Easy Granola Bar Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup dates
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
- 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1/3 cup almond butter
- 1/4 cup grated coconut
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl.
- Grease your baking dish with some cooking oil. Tightly stuff the mixture in the baking dish.
- Bake at 180°C/300°F for 30 minutes until the top layer is crispy. Keep an eye on the baking process to make sure the granola mixture burns.
- After baking, cool down and cut into bars.
Notes
Strawberry smoothie bowl
A quick and easy smoothie bowl recipe that satisfies the sweet tooth and packs in a lot of nutrition in one bowl.
Strawberry Smoothie Bowl
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup strawberries
- 2 frozen bananas
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 tsp maple syrup
Instructions
- Blitz in a mixer grinder and serve.
- Toppings added are chopped strawberry, chia seeds, pistachio powder
Notes
Oat cranberry bites
Energy balls are easy to prepare and store on the weekends before the start of another busy week and come in handy for those midnight cravings or as a post-lunch sweet treat.
Cinnamon Cranberry Oat Bites
Ingredients
- 1 cup Oats
- 3 tbsp Peanut butter
- 1 tbsp Flaxseed powder
- 1 tsp Cinnamon powder
- 1 tbsp Maple syrup
- 1/4 cup Dried cranberries
Instructions
- Keep the dried cranberries aside for adding in the last step.
- Combine the remaining ingredients in a mixer.
- Now add the cranberries to the mix and make tiny bite-sized balls.
- Leave in the fridge for 20 minutes to help them set into shape. Then transfer to an airtight container and store.
- Stores well in the fridge for 7 days.
Yogurt bark
I love making big batches of yogurt bark and having them on hand in the freezer. Some of my favorite yogurt bark flavors are peanut butter chocolate, peanut butter berry yogurt bark, and strawberry pistachio yogurt bark. Give these recipes a try, you will love them.
Strawberry Frozen Yogurt Bark For Kids
Ingredients
- 1 cup greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup strawberry puree
- 1 tbsp honey
- handful chocolate chips
- handful chopped strawberries
- handful roasted pistachios
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl mix the greek yogurt, strawberry puree and honey.
- Spread on a thin baking sheet.
- Add toppings of your choice. I used chocolate chips, roasted pistachio pieces and chopped strawberries.
- Freeze for 4-5 hours.
- Cut and enjoy.
Notes
Peanut ladoo
Another quick and easy sweet snack recipe that can be prepared ahead of time for a protein-rich snack any time of the day. Get my ebook with quick and easy snack recipes that you can batch-prep here.
Peanut Ladoo
Ingredients
- 1 cup roasted peanuts
- 1/3 cup jaggery powder
- 3 cardamom pods
- sesame seeds (for coating)
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients in a highspeed blender.
- Spread some coconut oil on your hand. Now roll into small balls.
- For coating, roll the ladoos in toasted sesame seeds.
Notes
Fruit salad
They say fruit is nature’s candy, and why not get some of your favorite fruits cleaned, chopped, and portioned out as a quick snack for pregnancy and postpartum?
Chocolate-covered berries and nuts
If you are especially craving chocolate this pregnancy or postpartum, give chocolate-coated nuts and frozen fruit a try. Some great combinations are chocolate-covered strawberries, chocolate-covered almonds, dates, and walnut clusters. These are batch-prep friendly and so tasty that the health benefits are just a bonus.
Hope these low-sugar sweet snack ideas come in handy to you during your pregnancy and postpartum.
Related reading
Quick breastfeeding-friendly snacks for new moms
Best foods for breastfeeding mothers
Best foods for a quick postpartum recovery
Comment below and let me know which snacks are your favorite.
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Good and easy recipes. Thanks Easy Mommy life.
Amazing and tasty recipe.