Apr 28 2009
‘Tricking’ Kids Into Eating Their Veggies
You’ve decided that investing in your health is a great idea and cooked up some new healthier meals for your family. Chances are you’ll get that infamous look of horror on your children’s faces. You know the one that clearly states that they think you must have lost your mind, if you really expect them to eat any vegetables other than peas and corn. Who are you kidding?
Don’t dismay — there are some tried and tested secret weapons for getting kids to eat veggies. With Lyvon Davis, investing in health can be simple — and fun! By simply adding these nutritious wonder foods to family favorite recipes like spaghetti, mashed potatoes, and hamburgers.
‘Hiding’ Vegetables in Common Places
You do need to be downright sneaky; as many a five year old will find the bits of mushrooms or zucchini that you didn’t chop quite small enough. This will give you a chanced to practice your chopping and mincing skills; else your cover will be blown!
Investing in your health when you have fussy vegetable hating kids to feed does require a little extra skillful planning.
Vegetable Sneaking Tips
• Use a blender to liquefy any cooked vegetables that you wish to add to your recipe, and they will never know that they are eating broccoli or pumpkin.
• Try to match the colors of the vegetables to the dish you are cooking. There is no point adding green spinach and broccoli to a white sauced pasta dish, is there? Instead add it to a spaghetti or taco dish as it will be disguised by the tomato paste and meat.
Vegetable Art
Another way to get kids to at least try vegetables is to serve them as part of a creative food masterpiece. For example carrots for the mouth, beans as spiky hair and zucchini slices for eyes. There is no guarantee that they will eat it, but they may surprise you.
If you are particularly worried about a picky and fussy eater, don’t be too alarmed because research shows that most children get all of the vitamins, minerals, amino and fatty acids as well as calories that they require on a daily basis.
Continue investing in your health and that of your family’s also by serving some vegetables that your children always turn their nose up at. Why? They may just decide to give them a try.
The idea is to not to react and by not compensating with other food choices it’s up to them whether they eat them or not. If you simply stop serving them, you’re really just encouraging them to never try it.
Peer Pressure
Many a parent has been pleasantly surprised that when little Jonny’s friend came for dinner; he not only ate his broccoli, cauliflower and pumpkin; but happily had seconds. Better still to their amazement their own child did the same thing!
By serving the vegetables despite your child not eating them, they still have the opportunity to try them and to hopefully decide that they actually taste pretty good. If the broccoli isn’t a big hit, one of the others just may be! Never use food as a reward for good behavior but rather offer something more tangible like having a friend over for dinner; especially that little one that loves eating veggies!