My 19 month old son is the pickiest. eater. EVER. He won't touch meat, and doesn't eat any kind of protein (except hummus), so I've turned his love of french fries into tricking him into eating a lot of proteins (he still mostly just eats the ketchup)... Anything shaped like a french fry and accompanied with ketchup, he will (sometimes) eat. So I've been giving him a lot of fish sticks and chicken strips.... a lot... like he eats this junk every day. I need more ideas! WE, as a family, rarely eat anything fried or frozen, so it's killing me that this kid only eats that junk!! What else can be cleverly cut into strips and dunked into ketchup?? Not just protein, ANYTHING!! PICKY PICKY PICKY, I never thought I'd have a picky eater, the girls ate EVERYTHING... and still do.
Any suggestions?
He does eat pizza (pulls the meat off), mozzarella sticks (not the frozen kind), and the veggie straws (the kind like chips, only straws)... So far he's resisting fresh veggies (except olives, weird kid)... thanks for the other suggestions so far, I'm trying them ALL ;)
what about jicama, celery, and carrot sticks? Maybe dipping in Ranch. String cheese or block cheese cut into sticks. cut hot dogs into strips. pizza sticks. whole wheat waffles can be cut into strips and dunked in syrup. Whole whaet toast would be good to dip in ketchup.
How about sweet potato fries or carrot stick fries. Cut toast into strips and have him dip in peanut butter or jelly.
Hi R.-
My kids LOVED sweet potato sticks...fried or oven baked. They are good for you too!
Try veggie and fruit 'sticks' too...even cukes can be cut to french fry shapes...as can hot dogs (yuck...lol) or even beef !
Best luck!
Michele/cat
Ok, this sounds kind of gross, but it is really good (or I think so anyway! :)). Take some firm tofu, and cut into whatever size strips you want. Then, coat it in nutritional yeast (different than brewers yeast,s so be sure to get the right kind) and a little salt/pepper. Nutritional yeast has a yummy, nutty flavor. Fry in a little bit of olive oil or vegetable oil until crispy. Tofu is a great source of protein, and is much better crispy.
-deli meats can be rolled and "dipped"
- apples and other "hard fruits" can be sliced and dipped
- burgers can be sliced and dipped
My little guy was a "dipper" too... would eat ANYTHING as long as he could dip it!
You can still give him chicken strips and fish sticks, but make them yourself. This will be a lot healthier as you will know exactly what is in his food. All you have to do is take the fresh meat and cut it into strips. Use your favorite crunchy bread coating and bake them. And you can freeze them so you still have the convenience factor!
For more protein, have you tried greek yogurt? The plain is very tart but it also comes in other fruit flavors. If you are concerned with the sugar or cant find a flavor that he will like, you can mash or puree his favorite fruit and make your own flavor. It is very good for everyone in your family!
So my son loves pancakes but veggies are a problem. So I found this receipe for veggie pancakes on weelicious.com. I am thinking that you could make a pancake and cut it in strips. The pancakes are crunchy if you cook them long enough.
They’re perfect to serve for brunch, put in a lunch box or even to have as a side dish at dinner. Veggie Pancakes (14 Pancakes)
1 Carrot, grated
1 Zucchini, grated
1 Egg
1/4 Cup Milk
1/2 Cup Flour
1/2 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Tsp Salt
Oil or Canola Oil Spray
I would recommend that you check out her website and follow on FB. The deal is that she makes her kids lunch every day (during school year - less often in summer) takes a picture of it and puts receipes out there. So all are kid friendly. I will say that her kids will eat way more than my kids but I digress. Anyway - she also has a receipe for hummus pinwheels and other stuff that your son may eat. Good luck.
Here is the link...
http://weelicious.com/2009/04/15/veggie-pancakes/#comments
baked sweet pot fries?
Zucc fries
fried asparagus strips
Grilled cheese cut into sections and dipped in tomato soup
quesodiallas dipped in sour cream
do a baked version or chicken fingers
My mom used to make silly faces out of veggies and fruit and cut our sandwiches in funny shapes. She made hotdogs into octopus (don't know the plural for that!). She put rice into the meatballs and called them porcupines. She was just really creative and good at finding ways to make food fun while stretching the ingredients she had. (There were five of us kids and my parents.)
Frozen Bananas on a stick with a drizzle of Magic Shell would be a yummy treat.I say take the things you know he will eat and make them healthier. Bread and bake your own chicken nuggets. You can do that with pork or beef too. Just use your imaginatation and I am sure you will come up with some really cool ideas. And remember, this too shall pass!
Good luck! :)
Cut all your veggies into stick shapes! Zuchinni, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, celery, squash - let him dip them into whatever he likes. (My kids are big dippers of everything) Grill some chicken, steak, pork and then cut it into strips for dipping. Fruits too! Apples, pears, watermelons, etc... He'll get over his pickiness soon. Good luck!
Jicama!
Buy one, cut off the outside peel and cut into strips. Yum!
What about the "LiL Smokies"? Would he eat something like that?
WaterMelon, Cantaloupe, Snack Cheese
Summer Sausage
Banana
Meatballs (slice these into stick shape)
Brownies
Cucumber
Boiled Egg
Pancakes sliced into stick shape
Waffles (do the same way as the pancakes)
Breakfast sausage
Apples (sliced into stick shape)
Bagles
Pretzel
Carrots (depending on how many teeth he has...carrots may be too hard of a veggie)
Celery (this may be too stringy for him)
Toast cut into stick shape
French Toast
That's about all I can think of right now that you can cut into stick shape. Hope this helps. My two boys are real picky too! Makes dinner time hard to decide what to fix. Or you have to fix two meals, one for the kiddos, and one for you and hubby. That's what I have to do sometimes. Hope these suggestions help you and/ or help you come up with more.
How about the (imitation - that word makes it sound yucky) Crab Meat Sticks?
Apple Sticks
Pear Sticks
Avacado Sticks
Still thinking...
As a vegan, I have lots of suggestions. Many young children at this age have great body wisdom. Veggies and grains have lots of protein. You can goggle protein values of vegetarian foods to get a good idea about this. There are all types of seasoned tofu that you can try. Tempeh is also a wonderful food with B12 and tons of protein. I have worked with parents of picky kids and many will go for fruit and veggie smoothies. Avocados are great to put in smoothies as is kale, spinach, chard and many others. Try baked sweet potato sticks dipped in veggie mayo. You can also cut out veggies in shapes with cookie cutters. There are also fake meats that are either made of soy or wheat. Take some time to go through Whole Foods and look through soy bacon, sausages etc.
When you make the smoothies, use frozen fruit- bananas, blueberries, mangoes, strawberries.
Vega protein powder is wonderful. You can order it @:http://shop.sequelnaturals.com/
Also, Tofurkey makes a frozen vegan pizza carried @ Whole Foods
If you eat well, feed him whatever you are eating - just cut it into different shapes. If you don't offer him junk, he won't eat junk. Things that you can cut into sticks are carrots (steam or roast), kohlrabi, sweet potatoes, turnips, parsnips, beets (all can be roasted), firm/extra firm tofu, melon (please don't dunk in ketchup), whole grain breads, grilled chicken, grilled or broiled fish (catfish, salmon, halibut and firm textured rather than flaky fish would likely work best). Green or red peppers, cucumber, zucchini.
Cheese sticks--the string cheese kind. They are shaped like "sticks"
Sweet potatoe fries are good (at least better than white potato fries).
If he'll drink stuff, make smoothies (you can add chocolate "instant breakfast" stuff to make it more appealing if absolutely necessary). A smoothie with 1/2 cup yogurt, 1/2 milk, 1/2 berries + 1/2 cup bananas and a small handful of fresh spinach. Add 1 tsp ground flax seed, 1 tsp wheat germ. Blend in blender or process in food processor. I use frozen blueberries, strawberries, and bananas, and sometimes use kefir in place of the yogurt/milk---it makes it like berry ice cream & my LO gobbles it up!
I serve applesacue (no sugar added, Motts & Musselman both offer lots of flavors) over pancakes.
What about celery/peanut butter sticks. Maybe even add some raisins to it as well.
I only read a few posts, so forgive me if I am being redundant ;)
Make your own chicken strips. Cut a breast into strips, moisten it with a little water, egg or ranch, then roll in a mix of panko bread crumbs and parmesan. Maybe some parsley too if he's game. Bake for a little while and voila! You have chicken strips the whole family will enjoy! I'm sure you could do this with fish, zucchini, etc. If he likes spaghetti, try spaghetti squash with some marinara sauce. YUM!
With my 2 YO DD, sometimes I can get her to eat stuff just by making it look fun. For example, on the rare occasion that I give her a hot dog, I will cut it in half, then quarter the halves so I have 8 sticks. I put some ketchup in the middle of a plate, then have the sticks poking out from it like rays of sun. She loves it!
Can you 'roll' anything?
Like lunch meat. Then you could try a whole assortment of meats.
I buy block cheese and cut it into cheese sticks. He could dip it into ranch or something if he wanted. Same with the meat, there's bound to be at least one cheese he likes, right? ;)
Apples cut straight, dipped in honey or peanut butter.
Um, I'm trying to think of more...
Isn't it crazy how little kids can out wit their parents any day?!
Good Luck!
KATIE
DIdn't read all the responses, but fried zucchini comes to mind.
