Veggies

jhunter77 · September 2014

Hello All,

Does anyone have recommendations on getting some vegetables into our little one? He is 13 months old and is finally beginning to enjoy fruit; however will not touch veggies. Any yummy recipes out there?

BeachBum678 · September 2014

DD isn't a big veggie eater either. I serve her lots of foods with vegetables mixed in: sweet potato pancakes, toast with Trader Joe's pumpkin butter, beef and spinach meatballs, etc.

Also, how are you preparing the veggies? Play around with some spices and seasonings, see what your DS likes. Josephine hates plain steamed broccoli, for example, but she likes it stir-fried with garlic. I've found some fun ideas for toddler food on Pinterest and Weelicious, a blog about baby and kid meals.

Good luck!

ASmallWonder · September 2014

What veggies are you serving and how? I had to really branch out and do different things with my oldest. Turns out, they both LOVE roasted squash (which I hate lol) and the little guy likes edamame. Dip is something a lot of parents like to avoid but you have to way the pros and cons. Some ketchup, BBQ or cheese sauce to get veggies into them may be worth it. I also like baking veggies into muffins for them but at the end of the day, I have no issues with veggie pouches. I know he knows how to eat and I know I'm not giving up on "real food" but it's a good supplement for those days when I just feel like his nutrition lacked some balance.

Crequito · September 2014

I get ravioli with spinach or other veggies in them. DD is not big on any vegetables except sweet potato so getting her to anything else plain never works. And she hates sauces - tomato, bbq, ketchup, all of it except cheese sauce. She loves fruit and meat. She pretty much prefers eggs and chicken or turkey to everything else in the world. I'll also mix spinach into her eggs sometimes. We keep offering her anything that DH and I are eating (brussel sprouts, asparagus, broccoli, so on) and sometimes she tries and sometimes she adamantly says no.

mb314 · September 2014

I steam spinach in the microwave and then melt cheese over it, and DS has loved it since he was young. I'm sure it's all about the cheese, but he asks for more each time I make it. It's also a quick veggie to make.

I've also blended spinach and broccoli into the mac-n-cheese sauce , and that works well for DS.

My go-to quick veggie is peas - easy to make, eat, etc.

cyprissa · September 2014

My kids both LOVE pesto so I put it on a lot of different veggies like peas, carrots and green beans. Also, my kids don't love plain steamed veggies but if I stir fry things with garlic and soy sauce or include them in a sauce with pasta, they will eat them. My older one is also obsessed with salad dressing (poppy seed or ceasar (weird, I know)) and I let him dip.

amief · September 2014

I make spinach pancakes (check out weelicious); pumpkin muffins; mix pulsed veggies into pasta sauce; brocolli puree in apple sauce; pumpkin in oatmeal or mixed with yogurt; DS loves hummus so he'll dip just about anything in that; shredded carrots or zucchini in meatloaf or meatballs; chop and saute and add inside quesadillas; green smoothies

DawnJM25 · September 2014

DS is picky and doesn't always touch veggies. I keep offering them and I try to offer them in different ways. My chicken pot pie recipe calls for a bag of frozen peas and carrots, and that always goes over well. Roasted or frozen broccoli is usually a hit, as well as raw carrot sticks. They are maybe too crunchy for DS but he seems to like them, and DD eats them. DS also LOVES pizza, so I try to sneak peppers, tomatoes, and broccoli on homemade pizzas.

jhunter77 · September 2014

Thank you so much for all of your recommendations! We will definitely try some of these ideas!

BelhurstBride · September 2014

Make sure you're offering a variety of vegetables prepared in a variety of ways- roasted, steamed, poached with different seasonings or sauces. He might just not like how you're offering them. For example, DD1 will only broccoli raw or if I roast it with lemon.

The problem with hiding veggies is that you're not teaching them to eat veggies. He needs to see vegetables in their real state.

https://itsnotaboutnutrition.squarespace.com/home/2014/6/3/3-ways-to-get-your-kids-to-eat-more-fruits-vegetables.html

https://itsnotaboutnutrition.squarespace.com/home/2014/5/21/how-do-i-introduce-baby-food-think-variety.html

https://itsnotaboutnutrition.squarespace.com/home/2013/6/27/baby-steps-the-key-to-feeding-success.html

https://itsnotaboutnutrition.squarespace.com/home/2014/5/16/stress-taste-not-health-when-talking-to-toddlers-about-food.html

beejayzgirl · September 2014

I will add steamed, mashed frozen broccoli, carrots and cauliflower into meatball mix, cheese quesadillas with salsa and recently had success adding the same mashed frozen veggie mix to homemade "hot pockets" - two crescent rolls pinched together, add ham, cheese and veggies, roll and bake.

shipsshoessealingwax · September 2014

Luckily DS is a veggie fan, but some of his favorites are:

Whole, warm black beans
Baked or mashed sweet potato
Steamed broccoli / cauliflower
Semi-frozen Peas
Steamed peas
Steamed diced carrots
Corn (on or off the cob)
Steamed yellow squash / zucchini
Butternut squash soup
Raw bell pepper w/ hummus
Chili w/ black, kidney & pinto beans
Veggie pouches

We also dice up bell peppers, onions, or other veggies & add them to any dish we make. Makes it more tasty for everyone!

DawnJM25 · September 2014

A PP made a good point, that hiding veggies doesn't really teach kids to eat them. They can get nutrition that way, but I would still offer veggies in real form.

ARJ6511 · October 2014

DD is OBSESSED with guacamole and Trader Joe's spinach and kale dip. She goes through two containers of the spinach dip a week. I give that to her daily and feel better because I know she is getting spinach, kale, and red pepper in the dip. I also try to hide veggies in tomato sauce.

GillianB32 · October 2014

mb314 said:

I steam spinach in the microwave and then melt cheese over it, and DS has loved it since he was young. I'm sure it's all about the cheese, but he asks for more each time I make it. It's also a quick veggie to make.

I've also blended spinach and broccoli into the mac-n-cheese sauce , and that works well for DS.

My go-to quick veggie is peas - easy to make, eat, etc.

Fantastic idea! Can't wait to try today

Generally speaking - I find that kids tend to want to eat whatever they see on my plate. Since I eat a LOT of vegetables it's never been a problem for us

Want a personalized experience?

Veggies

Re: Veggies

Choose Another Board

Search Boards