View Full Version : Recipes for fussy kids
Domestic Goddess
02-03-05, 06:56 PM
I am on a crusade to stop my children from eating junk. However, it's a bit daunting when I try something new only to be faced with a "Yuk" or a Little Britain stylee "I don't like it"! Can anyone share a tried and tested recipe for feeding fussy kids? Their ages are 7, 10 & 39!!! :hihi:
now that i'm working 3 weekday evenings a week, and there is a 40 minute window where hubs comes in, i rush upstairs to get ready then run out the door, i'm relying on cooking a bit earlier in the day then throwing stuff in the oven!
stuff tried, liked and asked for before include cottage pie, i use the packet stuff to flavour it with, i also add a little tomato puree, worcestershire sauce and pepper, layer the meat in the dish, add a layer of peas and sweetcorn and then put the potato on the top.. there is never any of that left!
i also do a hotpot, which is basically minced beef, onion, brown that off, add a tin of chopped tomatoes, a beef oxo and a veggie oxo, tomato puree, black and white pepper. lightly boil some unpeeled sliced potatoes, and layer up in a dish.. potatoes first, then the meat, then a layer of veggies, peas and carrots or the like, then top with potatoes and shove in the oven until crispy - i usually drizzle with a little oil to make this happen! :)
macaroni cheese is a favourite, although not as healthy as it should be i guess! i make a white sauce from scratch while the macaroni is cooling.. a knob of butter, melted then add flour until it forms a ball, then slowly add milk until it's a good consistency, season with a little mustard and pepper and add lots of grated cheese, mix it all up then chuck in a dish to put in the oven, when i used to eat this i used to put tomatoes with a little black pepper on the top too :)
another one i do is sausage casserole, cut sausages into 4, fry off until cooked, and in a big pot, cook off some carrots, diced potatoes and onion, when it's all starting to cook nicely, then throw it all in together, with a little chilli powder, seasonings, a couple of tins of chopped tomatoes, and serve with rice.
i'm looking for some more recipes like the above too, so will be watching this thread!!
another thing to consider is a slow cooker, best thing i ever bought is that!! i just take out eg chicken from the freezer, chuck it straight in the oven to brown off, meanwhile i'll have a casserole packet mix with the required water in the slow cooker and throw in some frozen veggies and onions, when the chicken is brown i'll throw it in there and serve later on with roast or mashed potatoes and more veggies :)
Hi DG :)
I have a terrible fussy eater at home and he only wants to eat all the junk in the world...but alas for him, I refuse to fall for it! :rolleyes:
I have totally banned flavoured crisps only ready salted and salt and vinegar are allowed now and very infrequently...have you see the artificial sweeteners in all the flavoured crisps ingredient lists? :o
The only 'fizzy' that I am prepared to buy is Sprite for the same reasons - less additives and no artificial sweeteners. And that's only allowed on 'special' meal occasions such as Sunday dinner, people coming round :) .
For us it's mainly fruit juice (watered down a bit to lessen the sugar intensity) and plain water. The boys all seem to be happy with that although they do try it on for cola from time to time :rolleyes: . Hot chocolate (made with milk, not that instant stuff) is the current fad here though! :lol:
If I am stuck for time, I make a sandwich (wholemeal bread - white bread is no more for us either and we don't miss it!) with perhaps cheese or a decent ham in it, then slice up some apples, get a handful of grapes, couple of cherry tomatoes, slices of cucumber and put that on the plate with it...also cubes of cheese and pineapple go down well too :thumbs: . It looks really colourful and interesting for the kids, is a sneaky way of getting in the '5-a-day'and (best of all) it masks the 'boring-ness' of the sandwich and it all gets munched up :thumbs: .
A big hit is Tuna, sweetcorn and pasta. There's loads of ways to do this, but I mix the tuna and sweetcorn with some mayo and then serve it on top of whatever pasta shapes I have. Some might like to mix the pasta in completely - it's whatever you fancy :thumbs: .
Toad in the hole is a recent mega-hit for us too...used a 'packet' batter mix for speed and great results with some decent quality sausages and it was brill - very filling on a cold day serve with peas, and gravy :) .
Soups can be another sneaky way of putting veggies in unnoticed - you can't really go wrong - any veggies are great and red lentils seem to be good.
Spag Bol - another favorite. brown off mince of choice (turkey mince works well as a healthier option) with onion then use tinned tomatoes rather then the ready made pasta sauces (full of sugar - you'd be shocked), bay leaf, seasoning, tomato puree and you have a tasty, simple bolognese sauce. Sprinkle with cheese on top too :) .
Casseroles and stews seem to go down well too. I wonder if it's because the meat is very soft that way? But anyway, load in the carrots & onions, even mushrooms - another good way of getting veggies in :) .
Tasty snack that is a universal hit with kids: houmous and french stick bread - always woolfed down :thumbs: . Better than crisps!
:)
Annabel
03-03-05, 10:52 AM
:D Hi DG, have you been watching 'Jamie's school Dinners'...i think the main message out of it is...stop giving them junk...no dairylea dunkers, no turkey twizzlers, no chicken nuggets...jamie stayed with a family in durham this week, i think there were 7 kids, all eating junk because it was quick for the mum to cook...he made her change their diet to all fresh ingredients ,the parents saw an immediate improvement...the kids werent so hyper and the whole family were happier all round
i am very very anti 'minced fish' or 'chopped and shaped meat' - as far as i am concerned that stuff is disgusting rubbish food...if i do give my daughter fish fingers or nuggets they are always made from fillet.
Incidentally it is so easy to make your own nuggets...just chop up a chicken breast into chunky pieces, t*ss them in seasoned flour, then shallow fry off...very nice!
i agree with mazza as well, never be without tuna in the cupboard...tuna mixed with cannelini beans is lovely, if you use the tuna in sunflower oil all you need do is drizzle a bit of balsamic vinegar or lemon over them and its done. then you can tell your kids the cannelini beans are what they make baked beans from, in fact you can make your own baked beans by making up a tomato sauce with a tin of tomatoes, dash of puree, onions and a few herbs. add to beans and its done!
to avoid chips, you can do baked potatoes instead, then the sky is the limit as far as fillings are concerned - tuna and sweetcorn, chicken and bacon, coleslaw, cheese, baked beans, chili con carne etc etc..they are so lovely and filling, especially at this time of year.
if kids are given fresh , good food, they will eat it, even though they might resist at first. it is a question of perseverance. the other day i made chickpea and spinach stew...daughter said 'yuk' straight away...but she ended up eating it!!! :hihi: :hihi:
I personally am a great believer in kids eating whatever adults eat, thats not to say my daughter doesnt get nuggets and chips now and then, but most of the time, she has to eat what we eat and thats that! :rolleyes:
the other tip i would give is, get your kids to cook with you, they are at an age when they should enjoy that, I know my eight year old does!!! :thumbs:
I have a really fussy eater, nearly 12, female and now a vegetarian.
Two youngest can also give me problems.
But, the home made pizza is a hit with ours, they love it. You can buy the little bases, I made a tomato sauce, just onions, tin toms and some puree, little sugar and cook it till thick. Cool, spread on bases. Add whatever toppings you like. Sprinkle with mozarella or grated cheddar, yum.
Ours all like tuna and sweetcorn pasta bake. Two tins tuna, tin sweetcorn, or cooked from frozen, mix in a dish. Make a basic white sauce and put in loads of grated cheese, to melt. Cook pasta. Add pasta to tuna and corn, mix together with sauce. Top off with cheese and bake until crispy, lovely with some salad.
Ours love cottage pie too. Spag bol and I make another lot with veggie mince.
The firm favourite is the good old roast dinner, chicken, or sausages, or even mince, gravy, yorkshires, roast potatoes, parsnips and lots of veg and they eat it, though not the veggie. She will have veg and the gravy!!!!!!!!!!! Veg gravy that is.
And yorkshires.
Another one, is omlettes, ours have just gone mad for omlettes.
My little one loves poached eggs on toast.
Corned Beef Hash? Cook up some onions, mix with tin corned beef, put in dish. Mash up loads of potatoes and cook in oven like a bake, I then poach or fry some eggs and serve up with 1 or 2 eggs, our lot love it!!!!! It may not be the original dish either but it works for me.
I asked my children to write a list of things they liked and things they were prepared to try (ridiculous I know, as when I was a kid, we had what we got!), but anyway, they all wrote these lists and loved doing it.
We then worked through them and came to a range of dishes that I could cook that they would all eat, basically, making life a bit easier for me.
It has worked and we have the list on the fridge so they can all see what they have tried etc. It does get a bit boring, but they don't seem to mind!
I got fed up of cooking 3 and 4 different meals per day, I longed to cook one meal for everyone and this is what I do!
sunny
PS: I love the sound of troika's hotpot :thumbs: I'll be giving that a go definitely :) .
Forgot to say, that the fussy eater, 12 yr old, only drinks water or nesquik choc milkshake or hot chocolate.
No fizzy drinks, ever.
Both my girls hate fizzy drinks.
The boys, 14 and 7, however, love them. I do not buy them, Fresh juice, milk, shakes, or water is on offer, that's it!
We have crisps but 1 packet per day.
No sweets, probably some week-ends. I buy bars of chocolate for them.
We told our youngest buy, 7, that James Bond eats carrots and that's why he's so good at what he does! Result? He eats carrots all the time, even raw, ha ha ha!
sunny