You want your child to eat healthy foods like fruits and vegetables. But your child has other ideas. Cookies! Candy! Macaroni and cheese!
It’s natural. According to a 2016 study, children are born preferring sweet tastes—and they like higher levels of sweets than adults do. This is an evolutionary trick that helped keep them safe hundreds of years ago. After all, things that taste bitter can be poisonous.
In today’s world, though, this evolutionary characteristic can make it tough to get kids to eat nutritious foods. To a kid’s palate, green beans, salad, spinach, and peas can taste bitter too, so they’ll naturally want to avoid them.
You can stop the dinner-table battles by getting a little more creative with the food you’re offering. Try these ideas to make healthy foods more attractive for your sweet-loving little ones!
Roll It Up
Everything’s more fun when it comes in a rolled-up shape. You can create endless combinations that hide fruits and veggies inside fun, bite-sized pieces. Roll-ups are simple to prepare, too, making it easier on you.
Try these roll-up ideas over at YummyToddlerFood.com. All you need is a tortilla, something sticky to hold it together (hummus, nut or seed butter, cream cheese), a protein-rich filling (sliced meat, chicken or tuna salad, cheese), and your healthy stuff (thinly sliced fruits and veggies). Pack it all in, roll it up, cut it into smaller pieces, and watch them scarf them down without complaint!
Dip It!
Admit it—even you love your food just a little bit more when you can dip it! Your dip doesn’t have to be unhealthy or fattening, though. You can use yogurt, pureed fruit, apple and nut butters, salsa, hummus, or guacamole. Then grab some sliced fruits and veggies, whole wheat crackers, or tortillas, and dunk away.
Here’s one possibility: In a small bowl, combine one cup of plain Greek yogurt, 3 tablespoons of peanut butter, and 1-2 tablespoons of honey. Set aside. Then cut 2-3 apples into wedges. Stick a toothpick in each one, then dip one end of the wedge into your yogurt and peanut butter.
Rename It
Ask yourself: which sounds better to a kid—a yogurt parfait or a “sundae?”
The power of suggestion can be strong. Think about how you can rename the food you’re serving. One idea is to change your fruit slices to “donuts.”
Slice your fruit in half and remove the pits. (Plums, peaches, and nectarines all work well.) Then slice again horizontally to make ½-inch thick rounds that will be your “donuts.”
Punch a hole through the center of the rounds then let your kids decorate them with yogurt, nut butter, cream cheese, or another healthy topping for the “frosting.” Finally, top with raisins, nuts, seeds, or granola.
Build It!
Kids love to do construction activities with their hands. Though you may not want them “playing with their food” normally, encouraging a little constructive play can be a good way to get them to eat healthily.
Here are some ideas:
- Fruit flowers: Ask them to use cut-up fruits to create flowers on their plates. Include veggies for the green stems and leaves. Nut butters, cream cheese, and hummus all make great “glue.”
- Sweet pizzas: Let your kids build their own pizzas by using graham crackers as the crust. Then set out yogurt, fruit, cheese, and perhaps even a few chocolate chips. They’ll enjoy getting creative while eating a healthy snack.
- Popcorn art: Air pop some popcorn, then use pretzel sticks and whole-wheat crackers along with nut butters, raisins, or any other finger foods to have your kids create some edible scenes. Possibilities include stick trees or people, animals, houses, and more.
Make It Fancy
Presentation is all, as most chefs and hostesses know. Instead of just cutting an apple or orange in half and serving it, consider the following creative presentations:
- Cut the fruit into interesting shapes
- Combine various pieces of fruit to create a face on the plate
- Try putting the fruit on a kabob stick. Line up various cut-up pieces, or let your kids do the work themselves to create a fruit “wand.”
- Cut up some fruit into Greek yogurt, then top with nuts and raisins
If you’re short on time and want to take something healthy but fancy to a kid’s event—like a birthday party—consider these fun fruit baskets. The “Rainbow and Butterflies Bouquet” can make any home party extra special.
Bake It
Most kids will turn up their noses at mashed turnips or roasted beets. You can change their minds by disguising them as chips! Slice them up thinly. Any root veggie works well. (Think sweet potatoes, turnips, rutabaga, red and gold beets, potatoes, and parsnips.)
Then toss the slices with some olive oil and sea salt. Arrange on an oiled cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until crispy. Top with a little parmesan cheese if you like. Pull them out at snack time and watch them disappear.
