Yes – your mother was right – you DO need to eat your vegetables and fruit to be healthy – and so do your kids! Vegetables and fruit are chock-full of important nutrients such as vitamins A, C and folate. These healthy carbs also provide energy for your growing child and fibre to keep their digestive systems regular as clockwork.
Getting your child to eat the recommended 5 or more servings of vegetables and fruit each day can be a challenge. Even your pickiest eater can manage to meet their daily quota with some clever meal strategies on your part. Here are some simple and delicious ways to cleverly get some extra servings of vegetables and fruit into your child’s day!
Clever vegetable and fruit tips for picky eaters:
• grate carrots and zucchini and add to salads, pasta sauce, pita or wrapped sandwiches
• add a handful of peas or carrot coins to chicken noodle soup
• make homemade pureed broccoli, carrot or squash soup
• spread a bagel with cheese or peanut butter and add sliced red or green apples
• make a smoothie with fresh or frozen berries, a half a cup of orange or grape juice and a half a cup of vanilla yogurt
• serve sliced red, yellow or orange peppers, raw carrots, raw broccoli or cauliflower with a low fat salad dressing as a snack before supper
• cut up cubes of green and orange melon and keep in re-sealable containers to grab and go
• make home fries with sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes for a blast of beta-carotene
• keep single-serve fruit snacks on hand such as unsweetened applesauce, canned peaches or pears, mandarin oranges, and pineapple bits.
• add 100% fruit snacks to lunch boxes
• make a cake with mashed bananas, pineapple, grated zucchini or carrots
• offer 100% fruit juice (not fruit drinks or cocktails) and limit to 125 – 250 mL (1/2 – 1 cup) per day
Bev Callaghan and Lynn Roblin are both registered Dietitians and busy Moms (between them they have 7 children ranging in age from 11-19) They have co-authored Suppertime Survival (2005), a best-selling cookbook that contains information of healthy eating as well as over 70 family friendly complete supper meals! For more information and some sample recipes visit suppertimesurvival.com.