The midterm is nearly here and when the novelty of Halloween has eventually eased, there will still be a few days left to keep the kids occupied.

Irish Country Living has teamed up with food stylist and cookbook author Sharon Hearne Smith and www.ilovecooking.ie, Ireland’s leading recipe website and video production company, with Healthier Treats for Kids.

This series is all about getting kids into the kitchen and swapping ingredients for healthier alternatives.

Since becoming a mum to Pearl and Poppy, Sharon has become really passionate about encouraging other parents to create healthy, wholesome food for children, while www.ilovecooking.ie was set up to provide tried-and-tested recipes that are easy to follow.

Log onto www.farmersjournal.ie to see the preparation in live action.

Raspberry and Coconut Eggs

Makes 12 (or 24 mini eggs)

I like to offer my little girls, Poppy (two) and her big sis Pearl (six) healthier goodies as treats. These are refined-sugar-free and packed with good-for-you ingredients. If making 24 mini eggs, you will need a little extra coconut to coat. Besides melting the coconut oil, there is no cooking involved, making this an ideal and fun recipe to get kids involved in helping.

1tbsp coconut oil

25g dried apricots

175g fresh raspberries

75g rolled oats

25g ground almonds

50g desiccated coconut

  • 1 Line a tray with parchment paper and set aside.
  • 2 Melt the coconut oil in a small pan on the hob or bowl in the microwave and set aside.
  • 3 Place the apricots in a mini blender and blitz to a puree. Add 125g of the raspberries and blend again until smooth. Spoon this into a medium bowl and add the coconut oil, oats, ground almonds and half of the desiccated coconut. Mix everything together until well combined. Add the remaining 50g of raspberries and fold them through gently to lightly crush and combine.
  • 4 Using damp hands, form into 12 egg shapes (about 30g each), arranging them on the prepared tray as you go. Scatter the remaining 25g of desiccated coconut in a shallow dish and roll the eggs through one by one to evenly coat. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or until set.
  • 5 These will keep for up to two days layered between pieces of parchment paper in an airtight container in the fridge. They also freeze well.

    • Tip: use other fruits – like strawberries, kiwis and mango – instead of raspberries, (mashing the remaining 50g with a fork before stirring through the mixture).