ISO: ISO Healthier kid friendly dinner meals

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mariadnoca

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I watch my nextdoor neighbor's 5yro twins often and they pretty much eat kid food: chicken nuggets and buttered pasta are the two faves. She wants to get them eating better, so ordered from a place called Blue Apron (see link) they send you all the ingredients with recipes for a meal. Well, I knew I was in trouble when she asked me to prepare one of these. It had fresh Tzatziki (it's not Ranch!) and everything, so of course to them it was the worst thing they ever saw, never mind taste (it actually was good). However, she's a fairly newbie cook when it comes to actually making real food, and I don't have much experience with kid menus, so I was hoping you might share some kid friendly dinner recipes (I think the Greek food was jumping too far into the unfamiliar for them.)

Just looking for some nice weeknight type dinners that get the kids eating better and stuff the whole family can eat (FYI, mom can't eat potatoes)

Also, I don't think we've ever done a kid friendly thread have we?

https://www.blueapron.com/

 
Growing up, our kids loved tacos. I used lean Sirloin, with lots of fresh garlic

home made tomato sauce, and a little red salsa added to the meat. Then we put tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, lettuce and cheese into the taco and topped with our favorite taco sauce. I fried the corn tortillas quickly in oil to get them pliable, and draied well paper towels.

I fixed a lot of simple meals for them, but yummy and full of flavor. Try baked sweet potatoes, with organic butter, salt and pepper, roast chicken, and broccoli. Our children ate what we ate and never knew anything about so called kid food. Too bad they were introduced to it. Fresh fruits will be here soon, make fresh fruit skewers, add a marshmellow or two and grill over your gas stove quickly. Make fruit pops for them using fruit juices mixed with a good yogurt....great for summer breakfasts, dipped in home made granola.

Check Cafe Sucre Farine, she has wonderful healthy dishes and lots of grandkids who visit and they all love her food. Her recipe for Best Granola is out standing.

I used to also make breakfast muffins, with shredded carrots and pineapple and keep them frozen in the freezer, along with home made pancakes loaded with fresh blueberries. Lunches can be easy if you use a great bread, either home made or store bought, with leftover roast chicken, lettuce and tomatoes added. Or roast beef. Make home made veggie soups and pop quart size containers in the freezer for easy lunches. Kids love Pasta e Fagioli and Minestrone.

 
Sounds like mom has a very limited palate too. Maybe they could have international night sometimes?

 
Since we are privileged to watch our DD and DSIL feeding their 16 month old a lot

of things, it is better to introduce "tastes" when they are young. There isn't anything "wrong" with chicken fingers, but tell Mom to make them herself--flour chicken tenders and bake in the oven. Mac and cheese (make it yourself) is healthy as is pasta on its own. Add some peas or green beans or frozen corn. Kids do not tend to like things all mixed up (unless they have been brought up with that). And kids often do not particularly like meat sometimes--DGD doesn't but LOVES salmon.
They could try a mild fish--cod, haddock.
Meatloaf? Add some finely chopped celery, zukes, carrots to it for extra veggie. Fruit. Make it fun and make fruit kabobs, even adding a maraschino cherry as a treat.
If they already are on the sweet tooth cake and cookie wagon, it can be difficult to do the fruit thing.
Hummus? Yogurt?
As for Greek too much, DGD had Indian paneer Friday night eating with us. the sauce was mild (for us!!).
Our other DGDs ate a LOT of just plain frozen veggies with whatever meat/fish was being offered.

 
A tip for success: depending on how savvy the kids are, have THEM suggest foods...

...they would like to try. Then, make it fun for them to pick a recipe and help shop for it, and eventually help prepare it.

The trick is to keep it simple, but to have them take ownership of it. They are much more likely to try it, eat it and enjoy it if they have something to do with the process in general.

For example, I made simple egg drop soup for my family when the boys were growing up. My youngest asked me for the recipe "so I can have it when I'm big". (Such a charmer, that kid!). I wasn't going to pass up a chance to get him involved so I told him I didn't really have a recipe written down, but did it "from memory". I asked him to help me make it, and to write his own recipe as we went along.

Attached, please find his hand-written recipe. He was 7 at the time.

Kids LOVE kitchen projects, and when the food they pick out and help to prepare hits the table, they BEAM with pride! All-in-all, a pretty good experience for everyone!

Michael

http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b476/CornerstoneAlliance/Kids%20Recipe/Egg%20Drop%20Soup%20Bryeson04032016_zpsbrxpifwj.jpg

 
She said they use to eat better, then she starting working, now they won't eat what they use to.

For example, they use to eat brown rice and now won't. They do eat lots of fruit, only drink water or milk, and are ok with plain steamed broccoli/cauliflower and everything she buys is organic. She's just trying to widen the horizon to more grown-up food.

 
Cathy Z's Laarb is a hit.... Have the kids add the spices / flavorings to the ground meat

I use ground chicken, but the idea that has worked well here is that they make the dish.

We tend to make it as a Laarb salad vs. wrapping it in lettuce.

We love Cathy's Laarb!! : )

 
Give her the recipe for the Five Ingredient chicken on this site. Delicious, a little sweet,

but with some other spiciness. Might introduce them to it--serve with rice.

 
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