By Jade Greene
I am the mom of a 4 year old and a 7 year old. When they were babies, they would eat anything I put in front of them – I thought my kids were special and we would be spared from picky eating. Yeesh, was I wrong. Cue to a few years later and my kids became classic carb-loving stereotypes. Not every meal is perfect but I have found some ways that have helped round out our diets. I hope they can help your families too!
Adjust Expectations
Change is slow. Adjust your attitude and do not expect instant change or success.
Tip From Stephanie at Rolling Hills Farm
In her June 14 newsletter, Stephanie writes: I recently started reading a book titled “French Kids Eat Everything”. I would say it’s one of the top 2 parenting books I have read so far. The gist is very simple and very beautiful. Eat at a beautifully laid table, kids eat what parents eat, minimal snacking, parents are in charge of food education, you have to try everything, eat slowly and joyfully. In the course of a week it’s completely changed how our daughter eats and made mealtime change from a hard situation to a really fun situation. Nellie’s trying all sorts of new things and welcoming the change with pure happiness (plus she loves blowing the candles out after dinner and helping set the table).
Involve Kids In Cooking, Shopping and Meal Prep
A huge thing that has helped our household is involving the kids in every step of the meal. The food doesn’t magically appear at the table – they know exactly where it comes from and the effort it takes to make it.
Ingredients: My kids come with me to the farmers market and grocery store. They help pick out the vegetables. We are members of a local CSA, they volunteer at the farm and know the names of their farmers. They understand the ingredients and where food comes from. We also discuss food companies and their practices of advertising.
Our little garden is always a hit: They will eat anything that we grow ourselves, including chives straight from the plant (hey, don’t yuck their yum) and of course cherry tomatoes! We also love to forage, they are always willing to try something cooked from our foraging trips.
Involve kids in cooking: Try to let your anxieties go and let your kids get involved. In an age appropriate manner, any child can help with cooking! If baking, the child can measure, dump and mix. They can chop (think soft foods for younger kids like fruit or tofu) and crack eggs. Older kids can help stir pots and drop in spices. My kids love to set the table and put out decorations like candles or flowers. Kids can also help wash dishes!
Another idea to involve kids with meal prep: My kids do not set the menu but given choices, they can pick out meals. They love picking “Taco Tuesdays” or “Quiche Thursday.”
Let Kids Experiment
Food should be fun! My kids like to come up with recipes and food combinations. Sometimes the experiments are flops but they are always willing to try new things when they concoct it themselves. One of my kid’s favorite recipe inventions: Cheesy Hummus Crackers (spread hummus on a slice of cheese, put crackers on the hummus, cut the cheese in between the crackers, enjoy!).
Offer Kids What You Eat and a Safe Food
Instead of making kid-friendly meals and also a grown-up friendly meal, set the menu around things everyone can enjoy. Offer the kids the same food the adults are eating but make sure to always give a safe food – like fruit or cottage cheese so they can still eat plenty of something you know they like. This may need to be a gradual process if your kid is not used to “adult” food, always offer a side of whatever you are eating.
I find that adding pasta to a dish is a good way to get my kids to eat it – chili with elbows, broccoli soup with farfalle pasta, homemade tomato soup with tortellini.
No Judgements, No Pressure
This is a tough one, especially because of the way many of us were raised (“you must have five bites” or “no dessert unless you finish your plate”). Try not to put any pressure or encouragement on what your child puts in their mouth. Try not to judge (positive or negative) how much or what they eat (that goes for “good job you ate your broccoli”).
Offer Dessert With the Meal
Instead of making dessert the goal at the end of the meal, serve it up with the rest of the meal. Dessert will not be put on a pedestal or a reward for eating. This also helps your child portion out how much and when they want to eat.
Teach Kids Nutrition
In an age appropriate way, teach children the importance of nutrition. Understanding the value of eating certain foods and how it helps their bodies is empowering and fun. A great resource for this is Kids Eat in Color.
No Phones & Make it Fun
Put your phone in another room – even a phone face-down on the table signals you are not fully present and will probably check it without realizing it. Make the meal about family time and connection. We love to tell jokes and play games at the table like 20 questions or categories. It keeps the kids engaged, sitting and munching.
Some of my kids favorite meals (yes I asked them):
- Homemade pizza with kale
- Broccoli Soup
- Veggie burgers
- Grilled cheese with tomato
Trust me, my kids aren’t perfect eaters and they are still plenty picky but I like to think they are open-minded about food. Food struggles are less of an issue once I implemented the above tips.
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