Kids in the Kitchen

At about 2 years of age, kids might become finicky eaters. They begin to smell everything before they will eat it. Kids change from a baby that you can cuddle and provide them all their nutrients in a bottle to little independent people who want to choose what they eat. Now is the time to come up with some creative solutions to get little ones to eat foods that are nutritious for them. The positive side of this age group is that they will copy what they see. When you are cutting up veggies, give them a bite. Give the child a plastic knife and paper plate so they can pretend to cut up veggies next to you. When you take a bite of the carrot or other veggie, the toddler will mimic your actions. Depending on their age, they can combine ingredients and stir them using a blender or wooden spatula or anything else you can think of that would be age appropriate. Come up with ways that they can help you prepare a meal. They can pull lettuce apart for salads, and add olives and cherry tomatoes. You will see the joy in their faces when the family enjoys one of their creations. The vital thing is little ones will usually eat what they help make. Get the children involved in the kitchen when it is time to prepare a meal for the family. You can make the children responsible for making the salad. Children can help you wash vegetables. They can also count out the number and types of vegetables that you will use in the salad. Have the kids make a salad bar for the family. Put out some lettuce, some sliced or chopped tomato, slices of cucumber, shredded carrot, slices of red and yellow peppers, small broccoli flowerets and other nutritious ingredients. Have the kids choose their favorite salad dressings. Make it a fun event as you prepare healthy selections for your family. Don’t forget the croutons and shredded cheese. Keep these simple but nutritional treats handy. They can help you shop for groceries and help you prepare snacks that are nutritious for them. Some simple healthy treats to prepare in your kitchen with children include: *Vegetable sticks with a small container of salad dressing for dipping Offer them some raw vegetables with some ranch dressing to dip them in? Many kids who don’t care much for cooked vegetables will eat them up if they can dip them. *Fresh fruit cut into bite sized pieces may be more appealing to a small child *Pretzels are fun snacks and easy for kids to use *Celery sticks filled with cream cheese or peanut butter and raisins provide healthy nutrition *Fruit yogurt provides calcium *Pudding cups are a quick snack that children can easily navigate *Crackers--plain or with peanut butter or cheese *Cheese sticks are full or protein *Graham crackers a quick snack that can be combined with pudding cups *Dried fruit – a quick way to get 2 servings of fruits *Fruit leather – nutritious snack *Nuts * Tortilla chips with a small jar of salsa