Raise your hand if you currently struggle or have ever struggled with feeding your toddler! Now I believe that everyone has their hand up, and if you don’t, I bow down to you. I have tried every trick in the book to get my toddler to eat nutritious foods and, over the last year, I have narrowed it down to five tricks that have worked best in our house. These are not scientific tips written by a nutrition expert, just ideas from a frustrated mother who has needed to get crafty in order to get her child to eat something other than bagged chicken shaped like dinosaurs.
Use fruit and veggie cutters and picks
I had an epiphany one day as I was assessing my child’s eating habits. Food needs to be fun! That is why dino-nuggets have become so popular. On Amazon I was able to find small aluminum cutters for fruits and veggies! They came in a variety of shapes and are super easy to clean when you’re done. Along with the cutters came some food picks shaped like animals. Did you know that chicken tasted better off of the feet of a giraffe versus a fork? Neither did I, but the toddler believes it does so I am not arguing!
Hiding foods in other recipes
Once upon a time I read that you should not hide fruits and veggies in other recipes because it creates a distrust between the child and food. Well if I left my trust in the hands of my child to eat what she wanted, her diet would consist of gummie snacks and veggie straws. My favorite way to get extra veggies into her diet is through taco meat. I cook the ground meat as I would normally. Then I cook part of the bag of mixed frozen veggies, put it in the food processor, then add it to the meat! She has yet to notice the difference. Muffins, sauces, and ground meat are some of the easiest ways to hide extra fruits and veggies.
Letting them help cook
Few things make me cringe as much as watching a toddler hulk smash an egg on the counter then squeezing it in her little baby fist as it explodes open. But involving her in cooking has given her the courage to try more foods than she would have otherwise. We had the conversation about tasting our food before we eat it to make sure it is right. One day, she WILLING stuck her finger in the pesto and tasted it! I thought the green color was going to be a hard pass for sure but she loved it!
Changing the names of foods
If I ask my child to eat a carrot, I might as well ask her to eat her toenails: that is how dramatic of a reaction I get. I can ask that same, spirited child to eat an “Olaf nose” and it’s the greatest thing she has ever tasted. Meatballs are “moon muffins” (thank you for that idea, Lauren) and broccoli is “baby trees”. You get the idea!
Allow for grazing of nutritional foods
This one is my least effective tips but when it works, I am over the moon! We eat snack at 9am and 2pm every day. If she wants a snack outside of that, it is either fruit or veggies. I leave these snack options on her snack table even when she walks away! Recently, I steamed two heads of broccoli for snack. I reheat as needed and leave it on her snack table in reach. Initially, she said “no” and walked away but much to my surprise 10 minutes later as she was running by, she stopped and popped a floret in her mouth without missing a beat!
I hope you are able to find some solutions to get your picky your eater to eat some nutritious foods! As a departing gift I am adding my go to healthy muffin recipe. I have yet to have any kickback on these from my little one and they are so easy on the stomach that they are actually what I eat before I go running!
Apple Cinnamon Muffins
1 c. dried dates, chopped
½ c. hot water
1 large apple, peeled and diced
¾ c. unsweetened almond milk
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
2 ½ c. old fashioned oats
- Place dates into a blender and pour hot water over dates. Allow to sit for 5 minutes until softened then blend
- Add diced apples and milk, then puree until smooth
- Add all remaining ingredients and blend until oats are ground
- Bake at 350*F for 10-12 minutes for mini muffins or 30-35 minutes for regular sized muffins
**Toothpick should come out clean when done**
