Seeking Lunch Ideas for 15-Month Old Twins

My daughter is 18 months and became very picky about what she would eat at about 15 months. She did not want anything cut up and she would not eat anything unless she could feed herself. (problem was she was not very good at feeding herself.) We came up with a new version of hotdogs.

Whole wheat hot dog roll, with a banana inside. toppings were everything from jelly, peanut butter, wheat germ or granola. My 5 year old son has been now eating them as well.

If you use the peanut butter you end upwith a pretty balance meal wheat, protien and fruit all in one.

My boys (also twins) can't have peanuts yet, but we have discovered SunButter, which is just like peanut butter, but made with sunflower seeds. We make SunButter and Jelly sandwiches that are very tasty and easy to make and store in advance.

The boys also LOVE naturally dried fruit (like Just Bananas and Just Strawberries). As a snack they like Healthy Valley Apple Tart Bars (they come in a variety of flavors, and are basically cereal bars, so they pack a lot of healthy calories).

Have you tried Yogurt Smoothies? They are drinkable yogurts, which I often sneak into a sippy cup when they won't eat breakfast.

dole fruit cups

fish sticks

chicken nuggets

french fries

broccoli and cheese

grilled cheese

grilled paninni ( just a grilled cheese with turkey warmed in the george foreman grill)

mac N cheese

soup

pasta

quiche- get a pie frozen crust 4-5 eggs can of spinache( drained) cheddar cheese and turkey add the eggs then the pinache and turkey and top with cheese, bake on 350 for about 1 hour

this is a great way to get veggies into kids

Stewed or crock pot meals

chicken or beef stewed with carrots onion and potatoe

peas and pasta

chicken cutlets

hotdogs sliced down the middle on a bun with ketchup

waffles, pancakes with fruits whip cream,

french toast with powdered sugar
cut in triangles

lET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED MORE IDEAS

m

RICE, RICE A RONI

banana, watermelon, mango, kiwi, cantalope,

If you are concerned about protein intake, I have found that canned black beans are a great finger food option. Just rinse them and serve- they are small enough that you don't have to cut them up. I also like the Morningstar Farms "Veggie Bites". My little one LOVES the broccoli cheddar bites, and spinach artichoke bites. They are pretty garlicky but she loves strong flavors. Just microwave for about a minute, cut them up, and serve. Cheese is also a good option. Soups (i.e. minestrone) that are drained of the soupy part is great because the veggies are nice and soft. Hope that helps!

Hi R., Why dont you try yogurt, string cheese, bagel & cream cheese (you can even add jelly) or on whole/white bread. Will the day care heat up the food if so you can try baked ziti or mac & cheese (not from the box). If you want to stick to the meat what about turey slices or chicken nugets. Good Luck!
J. B.

Have you tryed cutting up a cream cheese and jelly sandwich? My son loves them. You could also try a cooled off grilled cheese sandwich. My son will also eat fruit, cheese and crackers for lunch all stuff he can pick up and eat himself. Hope this helps.

Hi R.,
The fact that your children don't like to us a spoon makes this a real challenge. If they drink from a straw you can use the yoghurt drinkables. Not sure if the daycare would heat food up but you could try making hamburger patties with grated green squash and carrot, a grilled cheese, chunky stew or soup but with limited or zero fluid.
I hope you find some inspiration - I think trying to be creative with mealtimes can be a draining - Goodluck.

what about pbj sandwich cut up into small bites? or even left over mac and cheese, pasta? i know at the grocery store in the baby food isle there are already made up meals to go, check em out! hope this helps....

Don't feed them peanuts or nut butters if they haven't had it yet. A lot of children are very allergic to peanuts, and they are banned in a lot of daycares, especially the baby room (under 18 months.) We learned the hard way that our son was allergic to peanuts. The american academy of pedietrics recommends waiting till 3.

That said, I would try pasta, like little stuffed tortilinies or mini ravolies without the sauce so they don't make a huge mess, cooked carrots and green beans, chunks of cooked potatoes, corn, meatloaf chunks, big kidney beans (my son's favorite) are some good colorful fingerfoods that toddlers can feed themselves. My son hated pasta pickups. they were too mushy for him.

R.,

I would give them a combination of cheese, fruit and crackers. You can also give them the lunch meat and chicken along with it on some days. The yougurt drinks like danimals are also a way to get nutrients into there diet. This gives them the major food groups and also gives them a variety of colors and textures. Try letting them use the spoon themselves while introducing them to foods like applesauce with apples diced up in them..this helps more stay on the spoon while they are learning. Many 15 month olds are starting to want more independence and don't want to be fed...they "want to do it themselves".
S.

You can try cutting up cold cuts and putting it in there own containers. Also, try the same with fruits. At that age, finger foods work great... putting it in fun containers will get them to eat. :) good luck

Have you ever tried haveing a finger food such as..hot dogs..even green beans..carrots(cooked) and yogurt.....I know my daughter did this with her twins...as long as they were feeding thereselfs they didn't mind taken a spoonfull of something else too....

You say they are in daycare....these daycare workers usually will help young want to do things for themselfs to learn to use a spoon....they make disposable spoons these days I would in courage use there help in teaching the girls to use a spoon.

Hope I helped in a small way anyways

If i have to pack a lunch for my son for any reason I will either make a cheese sandwitch and cut off the crusts and cut it up into bit size squares (big hit) or a cream cheese sandwich, again can easily be made into pieces and easy to eat. you can try the pasta pick ups from gerber but they are a hit or miss.

Cheese and crackers, quartered grapes (not whole!), bananas, mini bagels are a few things that come to mind in addition to those things mentioned. Also ask at daycare about what things others bring that seem to work well.

Hi R.!! I have (almost) 18 month old twins and am experiencing the same thing but at breakfast time!! For lunch maybe you try some pasta and peas or chickpeas (skin off and cut). I give them the inside of fish sticks ( I try not to give the the batter part), bread and cheese, meatballs, I make eggplant (w/o bread crumbs) parmegiana, hard boiled eggs, cottage cheese with fruit. Maybe you can give me some ideas for breakfast!!!