Saturday, December 27, 2008

The Importance of Adding Variety when Making Food

By KC Kudra

Feeding small children can be a real chore and it is even harder when they are fussy eaters. It is very important to make sure small children get adequate nutrition. Fortunately, there are ways of making them eat even if they don't want to. It is a good idea to have a selection of favorites to fall back on, including hotdogs, pizza, homemade chicken noodle soup, crockpot chicken noodle soup, and lasagna.

Even though it may be a chore, when you are preparing dinner, prepare several different dishes so your child has choice of what he or she wants. You could try asking them what they are in the mood for on occasion to get a guaranteed winner night with no fitting over them eating anything let alone enough.

Encourage your child to take a no thank you bite of each of the dishes that you prepare. This way he or she will at least taste the food before disliking it. Nine out of ten times, he or she will like the dish and possibly ask for more.

Another good way to convince your children to eat is to give their food the names of their favorite fictional or cartoon characters. Bart Simpson Stew or Special Spiderman Salad will bring a smile to your child's face and encourage him to eat the meal. Children identify with shows they like and if they think they are eating cartoon foods, they will be happy to finish the meal.

It is a good idea to make colorful dishes. You could use red, green, and yellow peppers and call the dish Christmas casserole for example. Corn, broccoli, carrots, and tomatoes all add color.

Children are very particular and even though they are little, they know what they like. If something does not look appetizing to them, you will have very little chance of getting them to eat it. They do not understand that it is good for them; they depend on you for that.

If you enjoy cooking, you can let your child help you with meal preparation. If they feel like part of the cooking process, they will be happier to eat the results. Children would prefer homemade chicken noodle soup to "the stuff in the white and red can."

If you know your child does not like a particular ingredient, you can grind it in the food processor while they are not looking. They won't be able to taste it in the finished meal.

When you are feeding your child, sometimes you will need to use alternative ingredients or different methods. The main thing to remember is that when dealing with kids, you do need a certain amount of flexibility. The chicken noodle soup your child would never eat before can become his favorite if you let him help you prepare it and give it a cartoon name.

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