HOW TO EAT HEALTHY AS FAMILY

EATING WELL AND BEING AN EXAMPLE IN THE KITCHEN CAN BE TRICKY WHEN YOUR KIDS ARE YOUNG

Are you tired of cooking 3 meals for each dinner, 5 times a week? 

I believe that family cooking doesn’t have to be a drag! Start the kids small, be open talking about food, different flavors, what food does to our bodies, why we need it, what we need, what we don’t need.

Here are a few quick tips for more adventurous little eaters: 

• introduce new flavors regularly – babies have a right to know how bitter, salty or sweet tastes. don’t hold off for too long; if you know what’s in it or you made it, the worst that can happen is the baby won’t like it!

• get early into a habit of making 1 meal for everyone – planning pasta with tomato sauce? make the sauce with no salt & less spice for the baby version and when almost done, split it to 2 and season accordingly. planning a salad or stew? a perfect purée.
• don’t hide the veggies in a cake or sauce – I believe that kids must see what they eat! ‘hiding’ veggies all the time into meals makes them never see the actual veg, so they think they don’t eat any/ veg isn’t important 
• embrace different textures – purées, finger foods, soft, crunchy.. it’s all great to explore for the little hands and mouths. And let them make mess! (I’m more relaxed on the mess front with the no2, haha, but still constant cleaning can be a drag, BUT it will not last forever!) 
• be the example – sit with them and eat. show babies how you do it, what’s on your plate. Describe the tastes, make faces. For older ones, involve them into making their own smoothies/ porridge bowls or to help with small cooking task.
• don’t give up – persistence pays off! If your baby doesn’t like something today, he may like it tomorrow. Keep offering it, sometimes it takes time to ‘grow’ into certain foods.
• don’t rush with alternative – if your baby’s fussy, don’t make it a rule to offer something else instead. Try to find a way- songs, silly faces or older siblings work well for us. Sometimes it takes a change of scenery or a little break and you’re good to go.

My kids are still little, so a lot ahead of us (school lunches? other influence?). For now, I enjoy them tasting all the cool healthy stuff & growing awareness around food. 

Do you cook different things for everyone (because of taste / preference — not due to allergies, intolerances) ?

Would love to hear your thoughts and what are your main struggles when it comes to cooking for your family- let me know!