ANOTHER food suggestion thread

numbersgirl08 · July 2014

I feel like I'm in a food rut with N but I'm not sure what to do about it. (This is brought up by one of the judging posts that mentioned a LO that had never seen a plum and I thought to myself, N has never seen a plum...)

We pretty much rotate combinations of the following for lunch, snacks, and breakfast: grapes, strawberries, blueberries, cherries, bananas, red/green peppers, deli turkey meat, deli chicken meat, scrambled eggs, string cheese, oatmeal, greek yogurt, avocado, olives, black beans, frozen corn, frozen green beans.

I try to make sure she gets a good amount of healthy fats, protein, and carbs (veggies and fruit). I know she's eating healthy but I feel like she's not getting enough of a variety.

The problem is that MH and I are picky (and I have an insane list of food allergies which includes most fruit) and eat the same things over and over, and I don't even know how to prepare other things. So outside of the list I put above, if we buy it, she'll be the only one eating it. Also, the nanny prepares her snacks and lunches, so it has to be pretty easy to put together. I'm not going to ask her to make a gourmet meal.

So, please, suggestions. What fruits/veggies are easy and your kiddos like the most? How do you prepare them? What are your go to lunch meals and snacks? What important key foods am I missing that I should be giving her?

WasNotWas · July 2014

Just looking at your list and comparing it to ours, asparagus, sweet potatoes, apples, melon (watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew), oranges, tomatoes, spinach, fish (tuna and salmon mostly), pasta, hummus, nut butter, tortillas/pita chips. I do a lot of "tots" - zucchini tots, spinach tots (both are more like mini quiches), I do meatballs a lot and even meatloaf mini-cupcakes (with mashed potatoes on top).

Check out this blog: (she packs lunches for her preschooler and school-aged kids) https://greenlitebites.com/misc-posts/preschool-lunches/

momofcatan · July 2014

Here are what DD is into these days (or was into before we entered a new level of picky-ness):

Sweet Potato - I cut it into small cubes, toss with olive oil and bake in the toaster oven (or real oven), I make a big batch and she will eat it straight from the fridge.
Frozen peas, I boil up a small pot that will be her "side dish" for a couple of meals
Cucumber into sticks
edmame - boiled from frozen
chickpeas, I buy canned because that's what DH likes
clementine, I cut each slice in half
peaches, cut into slices, but she would probably love to bite into it herself
pear, same as above
apple sauce
yogurt
Pasta with tomato sauce and melted cheese
peanut butter, cream cheese, or chumus sandwiches

A lot of the things on this list are bought specifically for DD. I'm still learning how to tell is a pear is ripe enough

numbersgirl08 · July 2014

@WasNotWas - where do you get these tots you speak of? Are they something pre-prepared, pre-packaged? And the meatloaf mini-cupcakes - do you make them or are they something pre-prepared?

Looking for easy

Lots of good ideas, thanks guys! And a lot of it has been reminders of things we've done in the past that I've just forgotten about.

WasNotWas · July 2014

numbersgirl08 said:

@WasNotWas - where do you get these tots you speak of? Are they something pre-prepared, pre-packaged? And the meatloaf mini-cupcakes - do you make them or are they something pre-prepared?

Looking for easy

Lots of good ideas, thanks guys! And a lot of it has been reminders of things we've done in the past that I've just forgotten about.

I make and freeze them, they are easy (shred zucchini with like a potato peeler, cheddar cheese, bread crumbs, and egg in a mini muffin tin at 350 for 20 min) but they do require some work. The meatloaf cupcakes are ground beef, tomato paste, favorite beef seasonings packed into a mini muffin tin at 350 for 30-45 min. I don't do a ton of pre-packaged only because when I work from home I turn into the kitchen tornado and eat anything I can find that is already made

momofcatan · July 2014

If she likes eggs a friend of mine baked omelets in a mini muffin tin (a la pinterest) with cheese, peppers, spinach. Her toddler likes them, my DD won't touch eggs. DD is a big mago fan. I buy it frozen, it is my backup if we run out of fresh fruit.

ASmallWonder · July 2014

Fruits in our house are blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and peaches mostly. He'll eat corn, peas, zucchini, edamame, tomatoes, broccoli and sometimes avocado. Oh and squash (I roast it with a little pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon and even Aiden eats it because he think it's pie filling lol) I just made him lentils last weekend and put olive oil, tomatoes and feta in with them and he gobbled that up and then this week I made him tofu that I dipped in egg and then in panko with a bunch of seasoning and sauteed in olive oil.

momofcatan · July 2014

Sympkin said:

(Sidenote: It is equal parts fascinating and frustrating to watch a kid to go from willing to eat anything to slowly removing items that are just apparently no longer acceptable for no discernible reason.)

Preach!

Also I don't think there could ever be too many "what's your kid eating these days" threads. I also often feel like I'm forgetting to even offer her things.

BC&LM · July 2014

For fruits we buy whatever is fresh, organic, and looks good. His favorites are probably strawberries, bananas, plums, peaches, and pears, but we have also done blueberries, mangos, kiwi, apricots, pluots, apples, cantaloupe/melons, cherries, and nectarines, and some others I probably forgot. We also tried oranges and pineapples once, but he wasn't feeling them and we haven't tried them since. Almost all fruits we serve raw except apples, which he needs steamed to soften. We also put them on his sandwiches sometimes (specifically bananas and strawberries.)

For veggies, our most common ones are probably green peppers, onions, eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash, butternut squash, green beans, asparagus, and broccoli. We also sometimes do carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, peas, and some other stuff I am probably forgetting. (Oh and tomatoes and avocado, but those are technically fruits.)

LO is a bit pickier about veggies than fruit. Sometimes he will eat plain steamed veggies but sometimes he turns his nose at them. As a result we often use them as ingredients in larger meals:

-Peppers and onions in chicken cacciatore
-Veggies on a soft shell taco (cut up in pieces for him to eat)
-Veggies as a topping on a whole wheat pizza muffin (usually asparagus or green beans, put under the cheese so they won't fall off)
-These awesomely delicious Eggplant Parmesan sticks: https://weelicious.com/2010/08/10/eggplant-parmesan-sticks/
-Veggies tossed in tomato sauce, usually served with pasta
-Veggies on his grilled cheese sandwich
-Veggie quesadillas
-Veggie-filled raviolis

You also asked about lunches. We are big on sandwiches for lunch because they are convenient:
PB&J sandwich, turkey sandwich with mustard, cream cheese & banana sandwich, cream cheese & strawberry sandwich, PB & banana sandwich, hummus & cheese sandwich, and turkey, hummus, & tomato sandwich. We usually serve a fruit, cheese, or veggie on the side with lunch.

For snacks, he mostly eats the fruits listed above or cheese, but sometimes he has Cheerios, 1/2 English muffin with cream cheese or peanut butter, Ella's Kitchen bars, or animal crackers.

Hope this wasn't tl;dr!

megandchase · July 2014

Cheese and veggie quesadillas, grilled cheese, cream cheese and banana sandwich, turkey hotdog, mini pizza on an English muffin. Veggies: frozen peas, edamame, sweet potato, cauliflower and broccoli are all easy to steam in the microwave. Fruit: peaches, pears, nectarine, grapes, bananas, apple sauce, strawberries, and cantaloupe mainly.

CoffeeBeanFiend91 · July 2014

Look up bento box ideas! Even if you're not doing adorable things with them they're usually super nutritious and well rounded. Plus easy to portion.

dmlk413 · July 2014

My kid is super picky and will only eat puréed fruit so no help there but grilled cheese, waffles and quesadillas are big hits. She also really loves nutrigrain type cereal bars.

PinkPuffyHeart2 · July 2014

I'm probably the worst person ever to tell anyone what to feed their child because I suck at nutrition... But here's what we do.

Breakfast: eggs, Bfast sausage, toast with PB, blueberry waffles, pancakes, banana and pb mixed together, or Cheerios with fruit. I put frozen fruit (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries) in my pancakes or banana slices. Hash browns when I'm feeling extra motivated. Oatmeal.

Lunch: grilled cheese & tomato soup, Mac n cheese, organic hot dogs, apple slices, grapes, watermelon, cheese stick, tuna, crackers, yogurt

Dinner: chicken in any flavor, beef stew with rice, tuna, salmon, pork ribs, pork shoulder, tacos, corn, mashed potatoes, egg fried rice with mixed veggies, pizza, green beans, cooked carrots with butter and brown sugar, white chicken chili, red beef chili, burgers, spaghetti and meatballs, ranch chicken with peppers onion and bacon over pasta, French fries, baked sweet potatoes, ... I can't think of any more.

Snacks: crackers, fruit, pretzels, granola bar

I also let her eat ice cream, Popsicles, chips, and cookies if I am eating them too.

And lastly, this makes me feel better about what my child eats so I keep it handy on my phone.

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ANOTHER food suggestion thread

Re: ANOTHER food suggestion thread

#Bodymber14 #Bodygate #itsMillerTime

Bradley 05-04-11 & Tyler 06-18-13

#Bodymber14 #Bodygate #itsMillerTime

Bradley 05-04-11 & Tyler 06-18-13

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