Pre-kids I always hoped I would have kids who ate healthy foods. You have these fantasies don’t you? Perfect Mum and these perfect kids! I thought as I lived on fruit, nuts, yoghurt and cereal, so would my kids.
Of course NOTHING with kids ever turns out like you hoped it would. The gremlin was a fabulous eater until I went back to work, around 14 months. She suddenly decided she didn’t want to eat fruit. People told me this would get better. Peer pressure. She’ll grow out of it. She will realise that strawberries taste waaaay better than Weetabix.
No, this has not happened yet. At school fruit is freely available and does she eat it? Does she heck. She isn’t really even a massive fan of juices and smoothies and because I’m not, we don’t have a lot of these in anyway. Many of my friends think it is hilarious, as she is the daughter of a dietitian. Of course she should like fruit but she doesn’t and I can’t force her to eat it. We can melon and raisins down her as a dead cert, occasionally an apple or satsuma but it is rare.
Big sigh! So what do I do? I have to think of healthier snacks if she feels hungry and these are my top 5:
1) Nuts and dried fruit
I’m really pleased to say the little monkey loves almonds and raisins so a small tub of these is a great way to keep her going. Protein, essential fats and fibre. I feel happy knowing this is one of her snacks.
2) Sweetcorn
She may hate fruit but she loves sweetcorn and tends to have that most days. If she is getting peckish before a meal, I often give her a small tub of sweetcorn to graze on. One of her 5 a day!
3) Oatcakes or breadsticks
Oatcakes have got a good fibre content for healthy bowels and I’d much rather her have these than a packet of crisps, which to be honest, we don’t have in the house.
4) Greek Yoghurt
The gremlin is always starving after school and I am reluctant to give her tonnes of fromage frais (more than 1 a day) which she loves. They have their place; calcium and protein but there is a high sugar content. Plain greek yoghurt is creamy and nice, high protein but less sugar. Sometimes she gets a few mini marshmallows on top, which she feels is a lovely treat.
5) Cereal and milk
I do struggle a bit with this one as her fave is raisin wheats which do have a higher sugar content BUT they are wholegrain, have a good fibre content and are fortified with vitamins and minerals. She also likes cornflakes, low sugar Cheerios and have just discovered no added sugar Alpen, which I am surprised at! The milk is extra protein and calcium, so a good snack for her.
You have to pick your battles with your kids don’t you? I know she will never be a fruit-bat like her baby sister but there are some alternatives you can try.
Good luck if you have a fruit dodger too!
Luckily, our kids are generally okay with fruit and veg. Salad is the issue. Great alternatives here though, and I am tempted to try out Greek yogurt with the kids.
These are great alternatives. I am not a big fan of fruit and veg myself! I love fruit and veg beverages though.
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If the snack can be salty, I recommend also:
– carrot/cucumber sticks with hummus
– crackers and cheese
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My daughter suddenly went off veg which I really struggled with as it is such a key component of our diet but after removing it from her plate then gradually adding it back in one at a time she seems happy to eat it again. PHEW!
These are good ideas. I try to stick to healthy snacks as Poppy always wants something else when she gets home from nursery. At the moment it’s crackers and cheese and she’ll devour blueberries and grapes too!
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Hi, thanks for sharing some alternatives I also love almondas and raisins and often have a milni pack of raisins in my bag #bloggersbest
My son loves all fruit, my daughter only eats the odd raspberry! It’s a tricky one isn’t it? She does love dried mango though. Like you say…pick your battles. #bloggersbest
Great ideas! My girls love fruit it’s me that tends to stay away from it and the only time I really eat veg is on a Sunday dinner. #bloggersbest
I must admit my daughter love her fruit and vegetables. But she can be fussy sometimes. #BloggersBest
I must admit my daughter love her fruit and vegetables. But she can be fussy sometimes. #BloggersBest
These are fab options and coming from the opposite place, L would exist solely on fruit if he could and I’d like to see more variety! #Bloggersbest
Good ideas there, I find Alfie loves fruit he could eat apples till they are coming out of his ears while Elarna prefers raisins, most recently though they both love pears! Useful tips! #BloggersBests
Fab suggestions can chef really hard to get them to eat at times so nice to find suggestions X #bloggersbest
We also have a fruit dodger! She does love tinned peaches – in juice not syrup – and dried fruit though. It’s hard. You know what to do, but they won’t co-operate. Thank you for some additional suggestions of things to try 🙂
My kid would happily eat cereal for every meal: they love it! I have a fruit allergy so have been very careful about introducing raw fruit to the children #bloggersbest