January 23, 2020

Kid-Friendly Vegan Dinner Ideas

If you’re child is a picky eater, this post is for you! First of all, you’re not alone. Lots and lots and lots of parents have children are or all of sudden become picky eaters for a number of reasons. Some children are naturally more sensitive to taste, smell and texture. Other children develop picky eating habits by modeling their parents’ fussy eating habits. Picky eating habits are more likely to develop when parents punish, bribe or reward their children’s eating behaviors. The goal for feeding a picky eater should be to try new foods and to keep food from starting a battle.

I know that a lot of this is easier that than done. Especially if you follow a plant-based diet being open towards eating lots of fresh produce and trying the occasional new super food is literally what you nourish on.

Here is my parenting life hack list of making kid-friendly dinner:

Make your food look exciting. There is an abundance of instagram accounts out there with the only purpose of making eye candy like platters. Check out #foodartkids or https://www.superhealthykids.com/parenting/food-art-made-easy/
Make veggies look like fries, dip sticks and serve a dipping sauce such as my Macadamia Hummus with them.
Serve it on a dish that is not a plate. I really don’t understand the logic behind it but it works surprisingly well. A a taco in a mini casserole dish, soup from a wine glass, salad in a jar … options are endless – you just got to browse your cupboard.
Hide the infamous ingredients. Broccoli is not a big hit in our house. However, if it’s disguised a little less brocoli-y like in a sauce or a stew, the little one asks for more.
Stews and sauces also have the big advantage that going fishing for unwanted ingredients is a lot more difficult even for the tiniest of fingers.
Offer savoury energy balls during the day or as a dessert. Energy balls are a great possibility to sneak some protein into your kids’ diet.
Involve your kid in the food prep process of whatever you want to cook. Even kids as young as 18 months can chop, peel and so on. They’ll be excited about eating something THEY made and not worry about all the things they don’t want to eat.