Kids and veggies. Can they mix?

[MamaSheep]

The other day I cut some radishes to look like those red and white mushrooms in Mario games and my daughter thought they were THE best thing to munch on EVER. What other fun things can I do with vegetables to make my children think they're getting a treat?

[Mrs Mungo]

My kids eat veggies really well, so, I don't have a lot of tricks. They like ants on a log-celery with peanut butter and raisins, and I make a "veggie sushi" snack-I cut the crust off a piece of bread, roll it out, smooth cream cheese on it, put thin slices of carrot, celery and cucumber in the middle, roll it up and slice it like sushi.

[SquirrellyMama]

My kids eat veggies really well, so, I don't have a lot of tricks. They like ants on a log-celery with peanut butter and raisins, and I make a "veggie sushi" snack-I cut the crust off a piece of bread, roll it out, smooth cream cheese on it, put thin slices of carrot, celery and cucumber in the middle, roll it up and slice it like sushi.

 

I love the veggie sushi idea. I'm going to try that. Does it work with whole wheat bread?

 

My kids started loving brussell sprouts one day when they called them cookies. They were the ones that came up with it. It's all in the name.

[Jennifer in MI]

My kids eat veggies really well, so, I don't have a lot of tricks. They like ants on a log-celery with peanut butter and raisins, and I make a "veggie sushi" snack-I cut the crust off a piece of bread, roll it out, smooth cream cheese on it, put thin slices of carrot, celery and cucumber in the middle, roll it up and slice it like sushi.

 

Yummy! I love the sushi idea! I'm going to steal it.

 

I've found if I cut up veggies and put them out before a meal, they will be eaten. If the kids are hungry enough - they'll eat just about anything!! I try to cut a variety before lunch and dinner - carrots, celery, radishes, peppers, etc.

 

I also put veggies in EVERYTHING!! If I'm making lentils, I throw in LOTS of spinach and carrots. I cut up peppers and artichoke hearts and throw them in things - taco meat, for example. They don't add a lot of taste, but they get lots of veggies that way.

 

I also make a salad for dinner every night. 3/4 kids eat one nearly every night. I also steam a veggie - very boring, but the kids all eat broccoli and green beans, so those are what gets made most often.

[MamaSheep]

My kids eat veggies really well, so, I don't have a lot of tricks. They like ants on a log-celery with peanut butter and raisins, and I make a "veggie sushi" snack-I cut the crust off a piece of bread, roll it out, smooth cream cheese on it, put thin slices of carrot, celery and cucumber in the middle, roll it up and slice it like sushi.

 

That sounds like fun. :) I like the veggie sushi idea especially.

 

My kids actually eat veggies pretty well too. I'm asking mostly because in the near future we're getting a new foster/adopt child who has a bit of a weight problem. From the background info I've been given I'm guessing she has not been exposed much to the concept of snacking on veggies and other healthy treats, and is used to getting a lot of sugary, salty junk to eat. This is going to be a hard change for her as it is, from one foster home to another, but diet is going to be something we'll need to focus on a bit for the sake of her health. I hate to nag kids about what they're eating, and I hate to count calories. I don't want to become the evil food police, I'd much rather just find a fun way to make a smoothish adjustment to more nutritious, lower calorie food in reasonable proportions. I got to thinking that making some of these changes might go better if I can come up with some more fun and entertaining ways to serve veggies as snacks or meals.

[AnnetteB]

Mine love to dip carrots, celery, cauliflower, cucumber sticks, and even rolled lettuce in hummus that they make themselves :)

[Denisemomof4]

I make a TON of marinaded salads and my kids just GOBBLE them up. I have one kid that hates zucchini so I grate it in VERY, VERY thin - he doesn't even know it's there. I can throw in ANYTHING and once it marinades, you really can't make out what's in there. I've used raw purple cabbage and kale, both which have a pretty strong taste when raw, and the kids don't notice. I add TONS of raw garlic and onion, and the marinade is always water, olive oil, basil, apple cider vinegar, stevia. I do it to taste. It's like a 3 bean salad marinade with basil and i use stevia instead of sugar.

 

I also grate up veggies and hide them in just about anything: chili, spaghetti sauce, pesto, etc.

 

My kids LOVE veggies and dips.

 

sometimes I make a huge pot of roasted veggies as a side dish or add ot pasta/rice.

[Audrey]

The other day I cut some radishes to look like those red and white mushrooms in Mario games and my daughter thought they were THE best thing to munch on EVER. What other fun things can I do with vegetables to make my children think they're getting a treat?

 

 

My kid will eat pretty much any vegetable raw, but only a few cooked. So, for every meal there is bowl of cut up raw veggies, and I add lots of different raw veggies to lettuce for salads to go with supper.

[cougarmom4]

With most dinners around here, I put out a plate with fresh veggies & fruits...a variety--maybe carrots, green peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, pears, strawberries, and grapes. Mine would always eat the fruits, but I'd often have to say, "Try at least two kinds of vegetables." I have a daughter that absolutely hates tomatoes, and while the rest of us love them, I usually try to make sure there are other options so she can happily comply. I don't even have to make the request anymore, but now my kids want to know how many they can have...because if someone gets even one more, it's not fair, of course.

 

Dips help, too. Mine like to dip carrots, cucumbers & pickles into tuna salad. Apples & pears into peanut butter. Yogurt. Ranch. For some reason it makes it fun.

 

If it's for a younger child, mine always loved the Number Game. We'd have a number of the day and they'd get that many of each fruit/veggie. (I'd sometimes cut into smaller pieces if the number was 10 or something!). And my kids' favorite was the 1-10 lunch...ten goldfish, 9 banana slices, 8 grapes, 7 pretzel sticks, 6 carrots, etc...to 1 cookie. Sometimes we'd eat them in count-down order. Also...color lunches...red would include red apple slices, bagel w/red pizza sauce, red peppers, red goldfish, etc. Ah, I think it's all in the presentation. :-)

 

Oh, also, I know there are cookbooks out there with recipes you can 'hide' your vegetables in kid-friendly meals. While it looks like a lot of work to me, if I had one who wouldn't eat any veggies, I'd probably be willing to do it...I'm sure it would work! (Sneaky Chef or Deceptively Delicious, or something like that).

[MamaSheep]

Taking notes....thanks!

 

My dh and ds really don't like any kind of salad with a mayo-like dressing, and none of my family but me eat anything with a strongly flavored marinade. Any ideas about mild flavored non-mayo-ish marinades, dressings, dips etc.?

[Rose in BC]

I feel so deceptive every day when I'm blending up a smoothie for my kiddies. I use blueberries to mask the colour, a banana for sweetener, o.j. for the liquid and a bit of plain yogurt (or some variation of those ingredients). When I say I add spinach I mean 2 or 3 generous handfuls. They have never noticed.

 

It's my sneaky, secret and I'm not sure when or if I'll ever tell them (although I don't know why they're not suspicious 'cause I'm always shooing them out of the kitchen when I'm making smoothies).