These 90s Snacks are Making Healthy & Delicious Comebacks
Enjoy these tasty blasts from the past in a brand new way!
Ah, the 90s. The decade of gauchos and grunge, Leonardo Di Caprio and Nickelodeon-themed hotels. No matter which hairstyle you rocked or which character of Friends you loved, one thing is for certain: the 90s was a true golden age for food, especially food for kids.
Snacks in the 90s were characterized by three things: Color, sugar, and gimmicky brand names. It was a marvelous time to be a kid in a grocery store back then; Would you convince your mom to buy the vibrantly-hued Gushers, which would be stuck in your teeth for hours, or the basically-cookies cereal Oreo-Os? With so many sugary sweet snacks to choose from, it’s no wonder we had so much energy!
Since many of our favorite snacks have since been discontinued in the United States, featured below are healthy, DIY, and adult-themed versions of 90s favorites that the kid in you will love!
Dunkaroos
Photo Credit: Buzzfeed
There’s something strangely genius about Dunkaroos–maybe it’s how you can choose between a plain graham cookie or one covered in Funfetti frosting, or maybe it’s the actual act of dunking your cookie into that sugar-sweet vat of frosting deliciousness; whatever it is, Dunkaroos captivated–ahem, captivate–90s kids all over the world. Why was the mascot a kangaroo? We don’t know, but we have a feeling the snack wouldn’t have been as fun to eat if it wasn’t!
Dunkaroos are hard to find online, but thankfully Tasty has you covered with this DIY Dunkaroos recipe from heaven. It’s basically a sugar cookie and frosting recipe, but who cares? Now you can relive your childhood anytime you want, as long as you have some graham flour, butter, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Or you can just head on over to Walmart, who, according to Brand Eating, began selling their own freshly-baked version last year.
Pizza Bagel Bites
Photo Credit: Abbey’s Kitchen
Was there anything better than coming home after a long day of being a kid and seeing a plate of these bad boys on the kitchen table? They were cheesy, chewy, and scalding hot, clearly the qualities of a superior snack.
The only thing better is this updated, keto-friendly version from Abbey’s Kitchen that even your most health-conscious of friends can enjoy. These low-carb and gluten-free pizza bagels are made with almond flour, cream cheese, and a whole lot of mozzarella, not to mention tiny little pepperoni chunks. For a vegan and allergy-free version, check out Strength & Sunshine’s recipe, which are kid-friendly and easy to make. All you need for this recipe are gluten-free mini bagels, vegan/soy free mozzarella shreds, and regular pizza sauce, and you’re on your way to a simply delicious mini-pizza experience.
Go-Gurt
Photo Credit: Live Simply
Okay, so maybe Go-Gurt is still sold in grocery stores, but they were still a staple of our lunchbox rotation every week at school. There was something about the plastic neon-green tubing that made eating yogurt out of a regular cup seem hopelessly out of date. Also, was there a more refreshing summer treat than a frozen strawberry banana Go-Gurt? We think not!
Still, you may feel a little funny slurping a neon-green Go-Gurt at your desk, so Live Simply has an awesome recipe for Yogurt Sticks for you to try. Not only are they just as fun to eat (this blogger recommends using reusable plastic tubes,) but they’re made with completely natural ingredients like strawberries, whole-milk yogurt, honey, and even grass-fed gelatin for “an extra nutrient punch.” This is the nutrient and vitamin-rich yogurt snack you need in your everyday adult life, and you can even add extra probiotics, syrups, and vitamins for maximum benefits. Maybe the kid in you still yearns for that colorful packaging and slightly-processed flavor, but your inner grown-up will thank you for this organic snack!
Fruit By The Foot/Fruit Roll-Ups
Photo Credit: Broke and Cooking
Is it just us, or are we only now realizing how strange Fruit By The Foot is? Like, what even is it? Is it made with real fruit? What makes it so stretchy? If you drop it, will it bounce like Flubber?? We don’t know, but here’s a recipe from Broke and Cooking for a slightly less ~suspect~ version. Made with organic ripe strawberries (or any other berry,) organic honey/agave nectar, and a squeeze of lemon, these fruit roll-ups are a lot different than what you had as a kid, but they’re just as fruity, and probably more digestible!
The trick to making these as stretchy and chewy as regular fruit roll-ups lies in your oven’s dehydrator. Yes, you can do that with your oven! You just have to turn your oven’s temperature to its lowest setting, pour your fruit/honey/lemon puree onto a plastic-wrapped cookie sheet, and bake until the fruit roll-up isn’t tacky to the touch. Once baked, cut into strips and voila! You got yourself a Flubber-like blast from the past! In addition, MyRecipes has a recipe for “fruit leather,” which doesn’t sound very appetizing but is absolutely the healthy, sweet, and fruity cousin of the more-vivacious Fruit Roll-Up. Both recipes ensure a snack that is similar in taste and texture to Fruit Roll-Ups, just without the vague ingredients!
Fruitopia
Photo Credit: The Coca Cola Company
Why was fruit the basis of so many snacks in the 90s? Whatever the reason, we’re not complaining–drinks like Fruitopia made us feel cool and healthy, which is saying something, considering the amount of sugar we consumed in a day. Plus, it was way cooler to pull out of your lunchbox than a regular ol’ carton of milk. In a surprisingly impassioned article from Atlas Obscura, Fruitopia, which was discontinued in the early 2000s, is described as being “a bit like youth itself–there one day, gone the next, leaving behind only a sweet, faintly sickly aftertaste.” One sip of the vaguely fruity sugar water, and you’re wandering down nostalgia lane, thinking about gak and wondering whatever happened to Laurie Beth Denberg.
If you’re looking for a little kick in the nostalgia, good luck finding Fruitopia online, even in the form of DIY recipes. It seems to have vanished since it was discontinued by Coca-Cola. Still, a rumor persists that a select few McDonalds still offers the Strawberry Passion Awareness flavor of the drink, and it’s even featured on their website. The website Reductress even played homage to the 90s favorite with “5 Summer Cocktails That Are Almost As Good As Fruitopia,” which certainly adds a little something-something (I.E. alcohol) that the original Fruitopia drink was obviously missing. The Kiwi Mai Tai recipe is apparently so similar to the Fruitopia flavor Kiwiberry Ruckus, it’s uncanny–which is about the closest we’re gonna get to the real thing, at least until Coca-Cola brings Fruitopia back to life!
Surge
Photo Credit: Amazon
We can’t talk about iconic drinks of the 90s without mentioning Surge, the “hardcore” alternative to the ~groovy~ Fruitopia. While Fruitopia was fruity sugar water, Surge was, well, the opposite, we guess? Actually, it’s kind of hard to pinpoint what exactly Surge even was–it was citrus-y, like 7 Up, and fizzy like a soda, but it also contained enough caffeine to qualify as an energy drink. Whatever it was, it was popular enough that an online petition called “Save Surge” eventually succeeded in bringing the soda/energy drink back into our lives via Amazon.
For a less caffeinated version of Surge, check out The Daily Meal! Their three-ingredient recipe is so easy to make and is the perfect treat for your kids to stir together on a hot summer day. All you need is a pack of lemon-lime Kool-Aid mix, Mandarin orange-flavored Seltzer water, and one cup of sugar to feel like a kid again. The Daily Meal also recommends using fresh fruit mixed with seltzer water for an even healthier alternative for both your kids and for your inner kid to enjoy!
Which 90s favorite are you the most excited to try out at home? Let us know in the comments!
