picky kids

you may need to sneak in veggies first. here's an option - you can't even see the veggies!

http://www.creativefamilycooking.blogspot.com/2012/03/mac-n-cheese-hidden-vegetables.html

i have picky kids too....lately been making smoothies and hiding veggies in it....the one my kids love is a strawberry spinach smoothie...just put a like a cup of strawberries, 2 cups spinach, and a cup of vanilla yogurt and blend....turns green, but you can't taste spinach! or do a banana one with cooked carrots (banana will mask taste of many veggies) or frozen peas...My son now says... "I won't eat veggies, but i will drink them" :laugh:

I don't have kids but my sister has been working with her picky eaters for a while and tells me all about it lol. She says education about food has a lot to do with whether or not a kid (or adult even!) is willing to try it. And even if they don't like it very much, if they like it a little it helps them be more willing to eat it because they know about how good it is for you. Also, leading by example and encouraging curiosity works really well. She says she teaches almost by talking to herself until her kids ask questions. She'll say things like (at the grocery store) "I'm getting kale this week. Kale is good because...." and her kids will sometimes ask why does it look like that or it feels funny or whatever and she uses that to build on the information. Her daughter used to refuse vegetables unless they came out of a can. That is until she started using this method and being more visible to her kids when she eats the good stuff.

Another method she uses is to make them take "No Thank You" bites. They can't leave the table until they try one bite. Then after the bite they say no thank you and then they have to tell her what it was they didn't like about it. Flavor, texture, looks...ect. Most of those factors can be changed. Her oldest daughter hated rice until she started cooking/flavoring it differently. Now she loves rice because she got enough info to know that it was mostly a flavor problem.

Anyway, good luck! I hope I don't have picky eaters. My sis has way more patience than I do. ~_^

Bump!

I would invlove the children in the cooking process. My twins have been cooking since 18 months using a Learning Tower. My youngest has just started cooking at 20 months. I never hide the vegetables I am using and they know their smoothis have spinach, kale, or other greens. They know their mac and cheese has butternut squash. Also we don't keep processed foods in our house. I don't buy it so it's not an option.

We did a whole month on Green Light, Yellow Light, and Red Light foods .http://www.twostepsbehindsixlittlehands.blogspot.com/search/label/Nutrition We discussed how eat group makes our bodies feel and why it's important to nourish our bodies with healthy food. We talked about how Red Light foods taste good and are a treat, but they won't give us energy and keep us healthy to do the things we love.

So far I have one awesome eater (favorite foods are sushi and bell peppers) and two good eaters.

Often if the kids help prepare the meal, they will at least try to eat it. No guarantee they will like it, but at least they will try it.

Also, if kids are hungry enough, they will eat. Try eliminating any unhealthy snacks. Also, Instead of instant mac & cheese, make your own mac & cheese casserole, substituting half the white noodles for half wheat, and add a can of tuna into it.