This "germ" (cracker sandwich) is fun and easy to make - even for 3 year olds. The recipe also allows for each child to create a unique treat, using his or her own imagination. It makes one "germ."

Ingredients:
2 round crackers
1 tablespoon peanut butter
5 to 10 small pretzel sticks
2 raisins or olive slices

Directions:
1. Wash your hands.

2. Spread peanut butter on one cracker and use the other to make a sandwich.

3. Insert pretzel sticks for arms, legs, "feelers" or the like.

4. With a dab of filling, set raisin or olive eyes on the top cracker.

Per serving: 11g carbohydrate; 1g dietary fiber; 5g protein; 10g fat (2g saturated); 0mg cholesterol; 220mg; 150 calories,

Helpful Hints:
Depending on each child´s age and tastes, other "germ" fillings could include cream cheese or pimiento-cheese spread. Leg options could be thin slices of carrot or celery. Other dried fruits could become eyes or "germ" decorations.

Safety Tip:
Up to about 3 years old, children can be at particular risk of choking on some foods, including peanut butter. Ways to introduce it into a child's diet more safely include spreading it thinly on something else that the child already can eat safely (bread or fruit pieces, for example) and/or thinning the peanut butter by mixing it with mashed banana, apple sauce or yogurt.

Before allowing children to share treats with friends, remember that one of the most common food allergies in children is peanuts. To avoid an allergic reaction, those friends need to know when a snack contains peanut butter. Even a touch or tiny bite of a food allergen can be harmful.

About this article: Kids a Cookin' is an educational program produced by Kansas State University Research and Extension's Family Nutrition Program and funded by USDA's Food Stamp Program through a contract with Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS). More information, more recipes and cooking tips, and a link to a Spanish version are available on the Kids a Cookin' Web site: www.kidsacookin.ksu.edu.

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