In college, I loved marinated mushrooms from Costco. I ate them everyday for many, many days. And then one day, I couldn't look at them anymore. I still can't eat those things, the thought of it makes me want to gag. For the most part, I'm a fad/routine eater. I will buy the same thing over and over again and eat the same thing over and over again until I'm absolutely sick of it. Then I move on to something else. I wish I had more variety in my eating habits!
The same thing happens for lunch with the kids - I'm always looking for ideas. Kara is the most picky eater and throws her food on the floor. Nick isn't too far behind but at Kara's age, he was eating ANYTHING! Today I made tofu dippers as a dinner plan with nacho mmmm sauce from Peas and Thank You. Neither of them would take a bite. Maybe they are just too young for crazy food like this? I didn't even think it was crazy, but maybe it is. What ended up happening - grilled cheeses. So frustrating! Usually I don't provide another option but I felt like maybe I was offering something out of their league.
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| Tofu dippers with Nacho MMM sauce (right) |
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| half attacked sandwich, 1/2 the chickpeas on the floor... |
I need some ideas for kid's dinners. I feel like even mac + cheese has to be rich and creamy like at a restaurant for them to even want it. I'm very frustrated! They are 1 and 2 and I think I want them to eat like non-picky eaters. Good luck to me :)
We definitely eat the same breakfasts and lunches mon-fri. I try to keep dinners interesting. My kids eat what I cook, fish, mushrooms, beans. My son loves mushrooms. Both my kids like beans so I do lots of bean chili, rice and beans, and pasta with chickpeas. They also like roasted vegetables zucchini, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, etc... We do oatmeal with fruit for breakfast and yogurt for lunch.
ReplyDeleteI am SO like you. I think I ate the same breakfast for over 10 years...really. With the kids, we set the rule that they will eat what we are eating, and that means at least ONE thing green. Carrots count, even dipped in ranch dressing. No criticism please. Our daughter would prefer to be a vegetarian, so we try to honor her preferences when we can...noodles with no meat sauce. The hard part with kids your age is that they do not know what they want, and sometimes saying no to just about anything is the highlight of their day, so it might have nothing to do with the actual food. Good luck....picky eating is just a part of this phase of life. But, you can start to introduce some guidelines. If they are really hungry, they will eat.
ReplyDeleteMy guy is 13 months old and I recently found out he will eat ANYTHING in the form of a quesidilla (sp?) so I stuff in veggies and a tad bit of cheese in a wheat tortilla that I warm in the oven for a couple minutes and he'll eat avacado, beets, peas, carrots, spinach... all kinds of stuff hidden in there. So even though I tend to make the same thing I stuff it with new things everyday. It must have worked because he started eating those things plain now too. He also loves red beans and rice (a complete protein). I wanted to try the tofu dippers when I saw them but haven't yet.
ReplyDeleteToddlers are a tough sell on food. Period. I don't think I know a single family with kids under 5 that can boast that their kids are great eaters, so know that you're not alone and that your kids are just like everyone else's!
ReplyDeleteSorry, I have no proven "tricks" -- we're in the same boat!
Smoothies (sneaking in greens)? Pumpkin things?
ReplyDeleteI have a MAJOR creature of habit with my eats. I have 2-3 breakfasts, lunches and dinners that I eat over and over and over again. Sometimes I'll get bored and mix things up, but mostly I like the routine. I don't have a lot of time for shopping or food prep or cooking, so having the same things makes the whole process easier!
ReplyDeletei have no idea! i'm sure that all kids go through this. but it almost seems harder now with all the (unhealthy) options out there. i think you are doing a great job preparing meals for your kids.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever been on 100 Days of Real Food?
ReplyDeleteThis blogger has children a little older than yours, but she's working on feeding them healthy foods (nothing refined), she actually did a little post on picky eaters. It might help http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2011/09/09/real-food-tips-12-ways-to-deal-with-a-picky-eater/
Of course she also has tones of recipes.
You have to get creative! I put carrot or squash babyfood in macaroni and cheese. I've also cut up "yellow cucumbers" (aka yellow squash) and they gobble them up dipped in ranch. However I can get something nutritious into their bellies ;) lol
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