Kids and Veggies … It’s hard enough trying to eat a balanced diet as an adult but making sure your kids eat well can feel like an uphill battle sometimes. Whether you have a fussy two year old or an active 10 year old, it helps to know some tricks and tips for meal times, especially those pesky lunch boxes. Here are four tried and tested, mum-approved ways to ensure your tiny humans are happy and healthy.
The Veggies Stealth Method
One of the most effective ways to up the veggie count in meals is to hide veggies where your little one won’t find them. And it’s much easier than you think, for example, shredded carrots, spinach and thinly sliced zucchini can all be added to spaghetti bolognaise and most oven bakes, healthy brownies can be made using sweet potatoes, avocado, dates and carobs, and pasta meals can include plant-protein dried pasta (found in supermarket pasta aisles). For lunch boxes, avocado can also be used in savoury sandwiches instead of butter, and veggie bakes (made with cheese and eggs) can hide all number of vegetables and still taste ‘delicious’.
Add Some Fun
Vegetables can seem boring to children, especially when compared to the fast food and unhealthy snack options available in the shops. So, help bring a little excitement to lunchtimes by offering up healthier versions of the food your kids crave. Instead of potato chips, add a packet of the delicious X50 Mushroom Chips. These are perfect on their own or can be paired with guacamole or hummus. For younger kids, try using novelty forks or cutting veggies up into fun shapes and placing them in an empty ice cube tray; toddlers especially love having a full tray to pick and choose from.
Snacks Swaps
Lunchbox and after school snacks are a great way of boosting the veggie content of your child’s diet. To encourage healthy snacking, make sure a variety of great options, such as cheese, crackers, carrots, dips and heathy chips are all available in the fridge. (Where possible hide any unhealthy options.) For lunchboxes, opt for boxes of raisins, fresh fruit and instead of potato chips, add in a packet of X50 Broccoli Chips, which come in a range of tasty flavours. Not only do these veggie chips offer the “crunch” that kids love, but they’re also a mega nutrient hit.
Think outside the box
If you have fussy easters at your home, it can be tempting provide the same foods, you know they love, over and over again. However, that’s not necessarily the best approach – not only will this not expand and develop their tastebuds, but they might also get bored of these foods. Instead, think a little outside the box and create food combinations (and fun ways to eat them) we love. Apple slices taste great dipped in 100% peanut butter, veggie-loaded pasta sauce can be eaten hot on toast with cheese (or on top of baked sweet potatoes), fruit smoothies make great healthy ice cream when frozen, and crowd favourite X50 Cauliflower Chips (in any flavour) go perfectly with guacamole or any kind of healthy dip you like.
Lead by Example
Lastly, it goes without saying that kids look to the adults in their life for guidance (though your teenager might not want to admit it). So if you are munching on healthy food and snacks as well, you’ll be setting the perfect example for them. Seeing you enjoy the same food as them and choosing healthy chips and snacks over fast food will allow them to see health food in a new and exciting way. Warning: The X50 range of veggie chips taste so good anyway, you might end up not wanting to share them.
