meal ideas

We could have fed two more children with the food my girls wasted today at lunch. I tried some new stuff and Lauren showed me she didn't like it by tossing it on the floor and Emma cried. Yikes. Now that they are off bottles and formula their appetites are bigger but I'm running out of variety.

So I'm looking for advice on other stuff to try. So far my girls will eat: pancakes, waffles, toast, almost any fruit, frozen peas, yogurt, cheese, grilled cheese, mac and cheese, crackers, Cheerios, puffs. They ate chicken once and seemed to like it but haven't touched it since.

Things I have tried and they didn't like: deli turkey, quesadilla, green beans, breakfast cereal bars, pasta, rice, and I'm sure there are others I'm not thinking of.

So what do you feed your kids for lunch and dinner? Breakfast and snacks are not an issue at all, we have lots of options.
THANKS!!

 

I'm going to be stealing some of your stuff and adding a few for you...

- We've made a chicken casserole which was basically chicken, carrots, leeks/onions, potatoes. Put it in a blender to a textured consistency (it's basically a blended chicken pot pie without the crust)
- Sweet potatoes mashed
- Roast in a crockpot shreds up really well
- Carrots steamed really good are a great finger food

I'll try to think of other stuff for you. I'm glad you asked this though because we are in the same boat! Shannon

 

my mom told me about the times she used to spend practically all day making all of this ground up grain stuff that was supposed to be nutritous and great and I just spit ti right out with a 'bbbllaappfffthth!'.

We do what we can do...and then they'll change thier minds! :lol:

 

We are still introducing finger foods but I thought I would add one more to your list because we tried them today and they really loved them: Chick Peas! I drained the can, rinsed the chick peas numerous times with water to wash off all the salt and then took some and took the skin off and then sliced them in half. Our girls really enjoyed them and they are quite healthy!

Have you tried any pasta dishes apart from mac & cheese? Perhaps rotini with cottage cheese or a pesto sauce? Oops just noticed that you said they didn't like pasta.

Good luck!!!

 

THE SECRET IS TO BE CONSISTANT..

I FEED THEM 5 VEGIES AND 5 MEATS..

THEN THE OCCASONAL PASTA..

BREAKFAST IS FRUIT.. OR YOGART.. (BREAD PRODUCTS 1X PER WK)

LUNCH AND DINNER ARE PEAS, BROCCOLI, CORN, CARROTS, GREEN BEANS
AND MEAT CKEN, SALMON, TUNA, CRAB, SHRIMP, MEATBALLS.. TURKEY(ON OCCASON)


I DO A VEGIE/MEAT 2X PER DAY LUNCH AND DINNER..

FRUIT FOR SNACK CRACKERS ONLY WHEN WE GO OUT..


PEAS, CORN, BROCCOLI( YOURS ARE TO YOUNG) ARE FROZEN AND EASY TO COOK
GREEN BEANS, DICED CARROTS ARE GERBER GRAD GLASS JARS..

I BUY PRECOOKED SALAD CKEN, TURKEY MEET BALLS - SHRIMP -WARM AND SERVE - BIG BAGS AT SAMS CLUB
MOM EATS SALMON- PRECOOKED.. JUST SERVE
I FIX TUNA CANNED -

I ALSO DO VEGIE SOUP.. AND ADD VEGIES
CKEN POT PIES - ADD VEGIES
BROCCOLI N CHEESE.. JUST ONE DISH ADD EXTRA BROCCOLI AND PRECOOKED CKEN

MY GOAL IS TO EITHR FEED THEM VEGIES OR A PRE COOKED MEAL.. AND KEEP IT HEALTHY..


MINE HAVE BEEN EATING LIKE THIS FOR OVER A YEAR.. AND KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT.. I ALWAY SAY CHOOSE A VEGTABLE..

MY SON SAYS MACCARONI N CHEESE.. MOMMY REPLIES.. MACCA NONI IS NOT A VEG ABLE..


THEY EAT REALLY WELL.. BECAUSE THEY CHOOSE WHAT THEY EAT..

WHEN I COOK - WE DO MEAT LOAF, SPAGETTI, TUNA CASTEROLE, HOT DOGS, HAMBURGER..
BUT THE ONLY THING THE KIDS REALLY LIKE IS (MEAT BOTH)
THE OTHER DISHES ARE BYWEEKLY..

I HOPE THIS HELPS YOU..

PS.. I USED CREAM CHEESE TO GET THE KIDS TO EAT PEAS PM ME IF YOU WANT TO KNOW HOW

 

Another simple one to add is avocado - my babies LOVE it...just chopped up on their trays.

 

yeah, i agree with pp- avocado is supposed to be one of the best foods to give babies- good, healthy fats, nutrients, etc. plus it is soft and easy to eat. We eat some almost every day. i sometimes mix it with cottage cheese or cut up/mooshed Tofu (a good source of protein). I hav also given small cubes (pea size) of tofu with wheatgerm on it. DD likes it fine, we have to sneak it into DS's food though- he is not a texture lover! We also cooked and pureed lentils (went over so-so) and black beans (liked them!) I try to mix tahini in with their yogurt or cereal every other day or so too (also a good fat- ground seed)
i always feel like i am feeding the SAME stuff over and over thoguh! i want to try more "normal" food soon- pasta, etc.

 

QUOTE(TeeandGee @ Aug 15 2007, 02:07 PM) [snapback]369328[/snapback]
We are still introducing finger foods but I thought I would add one more to your list because we tried them today and they really loved them: Chick Peas! I drained the can, rinsed the chick peas numerous times with water to wash off all the salt and then took some and took the skin off and then sliced them in half. Our girls really enjoyed them and they are quite healthy!

OOOoooooooooh! I have a can of these in the cabinet! I'm going to give them some for lunch tomorrow. Thanks!

 

Thanks so much for all your suggestions! Avacado is another one that I have tried and they didn't like. I knew there would be more on that list I just couldn't think of them. Not that I'm giving up on these foods, I will try them again down the road. But I do have some more ideas now - thanks!!

 

Well, I think you have 2 choice here: you could just keep serving them what you know they will eat until they get sick of it and are begging you for something new to eat OR...you could do what I started doing (which was a suggestion from a girlfriend of mine): If I make something for them (especially if it's something that I know they have eaten before and liked) then that's it. That's what's for lunch (or bfast or dinner). Take it or leave it. If they choose not to eat it then oh well, they'll eat at their next meal. They won't die from missing one meal. I know it sounds hard core but I too was sooooooo sick of wasting food and spending the time to prepare meals for them for them to not eat it. I was running around like a mad person preparing something else for them and then they wouldn't want that so I'd try something else and I was going BONKERS!!! Now, I take them out of the chair if they don't want to eat anything. Sometimes they will cry and I will put them back in the chair and they will start to eat it. Other times I will take them out of the chair and they will go play. I know certain foods that they just won't eat so I won't force foods they don't like on them. For example, Lorien just doesn't like plain cheese. She'll eat it in a grilled cheese but I can not just give her a slice of cheese. Arwen will eat as much cheese as I give her but she doesn't care for strawberries or blueberries but Lorien will down those like there is no tomorrow. I also have a couple of staples for them that are no fails (which was a suggestion from someone here). For example, if Lorien just won't eat what I have made then I can give her some grapes and crackers and I KNOW she will eat those. But for now, I am trying to stick to the "this what's for lunch, take it or leave it" mode. It has made me a bit more sane about meal times which I used to COMPLETELY dread but it's getting better.

 

QUOTE(MichelleL @ Aug 16 2007, 12:22 AM) [snapback]369573[/snapback]
Thanks so much for all your suggestions! Avacado is another one that I have tried and they didn't like. I knew there would be more on that list I just couldn't think of them. Not that I'm giving up on these foods, I will try them again down the road. But I do have some more ideas now - thanks!!



Sometimes you have to try things quite a few times before they eat them. My DD loved avacado and DS hated it, now it's the other way around. Sometimes their tastes change too and things they tried a while ago are worth another shot. Good luck, I know it really is hard varying their menu.

PS - nobody says they can't have 'breakfast foods' for dinner, we do it all the time