Fun Ways to Make Vegetables Exciting for Your Kids
Guest article by Carrie Spencer
If you have young kids, you know how difficult it can be to get children to eat their vegetables. Children have incredibly sensitive taste buds, and vegetables with bitter or strong flavors can be off-putting. At the same time, children may dislike certain vegetables due to their mushy or slimy textures. Children are also heavily influenced by what their friends dislike, as well as advertising and media that promote less healthy foods. How can you inspire your children to appreciate and savor these nutrient-packed wonders? Branch2Bloom is here to share some tips!
Grow Your Own Vegetables
Growing your own food is a fantastic opportunity to encourage your children to appreciate vegetables. When kids are involved in planting, nurturing, and harvesting vegetables from your backyard garden, they develop a deeper connection to their food. This can give your kids a sense of pride and curiosity about vegetables. Show your children the process of growing vegetables from seed, cooking them into something delicious, and then composting the scraps to use in your garden. Planting a garden can even improve your home value! Be sure to document improvements like these so you have proof to show future home appraisers. Take before and after photos, and hold onto your receipts!
Set a Positive Example
As a parent, you have a direct influence on your child’s eating habits. The best way to encourage your kids to eat vegetables is to enjoy them yourself! Let your children watch you eat all kinds of vegetables and encourage them to give them a try as well. The goal here is to create positive associations around vegetables and healthy foods. Make sure you don’t force your children to eat vegetables, guilt trip them about wasting food, or bribe them with promises of candy or dessert. This makes mealtime stressful for kids and can cause them to build an unhealthy relationship with food.
Prepare Vegetables in Different Ways
Let’s face it; no one can blame a child for turning their nose up at a bland, mushy piece of broccoli. Steaming and boiling aren’t the only ways to prepare vegetables! Explore different ways to cook vegetables to transform their flavors and textures into exciting culinary experiences. Roast root vegetables with garlic and olive oil, stir-fry broccoli and cabbage lightly in butter, grill zucchini and peppers on the grill, and combine complementary flavors into hearty soups. Whatever preparation method you choose, proper salting and seasoning are essential to making vegetables taste their best!
Sneak Vegetables into Your Child’s Favorite Meals
If your child refuses to eat vegetables no matter how you prepare them, see if you can sneak them into your child’s favorite meals. EatingWell.com suggests pureeing vegetables into your pasta sauce, adding finely-chopped mushrooms into ground meat-based meals, or mixing shredded zucchini into shredded BBQ chicken on pizza. This is your chance to have some fun and get creative with your cooking!
Cook with Your Children
A study by Nestlé recently revealed that children who help in the kitchen eat significantly more vegetables than those who are not involved in cooking. Cooking with your child is also a great way to teach them valuable life skills! Even very young children can help in the kitchen, washing vegetables, stirring ingredients in bowls, and finding items in the fridge. Older children can help with measuring, mashing, assembling, grating, blending, and even using a knife to slice soft foods like cheese, tofu, and bread. Empower your child to practice these new skills and make sure you have patience as they learn their way around the kitchen. Again, it’s all about creating a positive atmosphere around food.
Making vegetables exciting for your kids is not just about what’s on their plates, but about the journey of growing, cooking, and tasting new foods. By planting a garden in your backyard and encouraging your kids to help in the kitchen, they’ll develop a deeper connection with their food and enjoy a sense of pride in the dishes you produce as a family. Embrace these tips, have fun, and explore the wonderful world of vegetables together!
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