What on earth do teenagers eat after school?

[IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads]

15 yo ds, tall and skinny but filling out.
He'll come in from school and eat whole packets of biscuits - albeit his preference is for cheese biscuits - and pot noodles, slabs of cheese. Whatever cake and sweet biscuits he can lay his hands on. Needs cajoling into eating an apple. Very unadventurous with other fruit. Ok with veg as part of a meal. Won't touch soup or yoghurt. He wants to be a biomedical scientist or biochemist, so I thought I'd get him onboard with the whole healthy eating/body as a machine thing - but when discussed what he'd like/think is a sensible snack food he says "dunno".

DD(12) - canes pot noodles, and also has a very sweet tooth - unfortunately she has to walk past a sweet shop on her way home from school. I think she may have stopped growing, and is stacking on weight, which ee need to get under control. She's also not mad on fruit.

I find my DC's eating habits quite alarming! I'm veggie and wholefoody (was largely brought up that way). DH is medically advised not to eat raw fruit or veg - and the dc model him! They were weaned on humus and lentil bake, but are never happier than when they have a plate of roast meat and something involving pastry and custard for pudding!

There is a wider issue to resolve about how we eat as a family, but for now I'm thinking about after school. What can I give/leave the dc to eat after school that's a happy medium between healthy and tasty? I'm prepared to bake. They both have lunch at 12 noon, and we don't really have our evening meal until 6.30-7pm, so they need something.

Yes.really. He normally gets it himself. If he wants a treat he'll add a carrot.

He's always preferred vegetables or fruit to anything else. As a toddler he'd rather have a carrot than chocolate.
If I hadn't seen him come out of me I'd wonder where he came from. The rest of us would rather have sweet junk food as a snack. I think he eats more fruit and veg in a day than dd2 normally has in a week.

I make up wraps with roast veg, harissa and feta, wrap them in grease proof and freeze them. I make dozens st a time. Sometimes using leftover meat too. 2 fit in a plastic takeaway tub for microwaving and DD at least gets some veg and protein.
The older ones (all grown and flown) used to go through boxes of eggs and packets of bacon. At one point I thought we were feeding the whole school year but it was just our teens!

When I was at boarding school we had a stodgy 2 course lunch then tea at 4pm with cake and then 2 course stodgy supper at 6.30. So I'm not surprised when my teenage DCs come home at 3 after a measly packed lunch (their fault) and are starving! Its par for the course.

Mine just raid the fridge. If there are snacks like sausage rolls theyll eat those, but otherwise will make stuff. Today DS 15 had 2 slices of bread with pate, then DD made porridge so he decided to have that too. Still ate pork chops with spuds, veg and gravy at 6.30!

Other times they eat junk like crisps or biscuits, although I do try to limit that. Never fruit....😥!

I shouldn't worry about your DS if he's slim and still growing. DD maybe needs less now, so perhaps time for a gentle chat? I got quite podgy on the stodge at 16 but left school and came home and the weight just fell off naturally. But if I'd stayed at school 2 more years I expect I'd have put on more weight, teenagers do have huge appetites....

My FS sometimes has a chicken breast. I always cook an extra one because I know he likes a cold one the next day to snack on. Another favourite is a couple of peperami sticks. Also a chunk of cheese with an apple. A couple of satsumas or a banana.

I agree with the point about them asserting their authority.

Lots of teens refuse food if you push it too much or make a fuss. Sounds mad but it works best if they “find” the healthy bowls of food in the fridge and it’s their idea to heat up a portion.

Same here...I give them 2 meals after school basically. One when they walk in the door (something like omelette & jacket spud) and then another meal 6 ish. Basing this on the fact they pretty much starve all day at school on a hastily eaten packed lunch which they often tell me they had only 10 mins & nowhere to sit!

I saw a similar thread on here a while ago and a PP suggested roasting a whole chicken on a Sunday (or whatever day is best for your family), then the teens can snack on chicken during the week after school. They can have it with cheese and crackers, put it in a sandwich, etc