Tips on How to Deal With Picky Eating Kids #FoodieFriday


If anyone has picky eaters for kids, it’s me! All my boys want to eat is mac and cheese, chicken katsu, and rice, with the occasional banana or apple slices. Other than that, they aren't very good at trying new foods.

Thanks to the Children's Physicians Medical Group (CPMG), I was able to hang out with a few other mommies with picky eaters and talk about best practices to get our kids to try new foods and eat more healthy.

Dr.

Dr. Jaime Friedman shared some tips on how to get picky eaters to be more open to trying new foods. She suggests:
First and foremost make sure your child is gaining weight well and is healthy. A visit to your doctor can be reassuring and you may not have to make any change at all!
■Allow your child to shop with you and cook with you. Getting them involved will encourage them to try the foods they prepare.
■Have cut up fruits and vegetables readily available.
■Have meals together as a family and model healthy eating.
■For younger kids, use a sticker chart for trying new foods but don’t use junk as the reward!
■If your child needs to gain weight, talk to your doctor about healthy ways to add calories (avocado, olive oil)


Here is Dr. Friedman's video on picky eaters:


Jimbo's Natural Food Grocer also cooked up a few yummy treats for us to share with our kids. My favorite were the Cheesy Broccoli Bites:

Ingredients
2 cups chopped organic broccoli
2 large organic eggs
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 cup panko crumbs
1/2 cup organic parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. organic olive oil

Directions
1. Steam broccoli.
2. Add broccoli, egg, salt, panko, and parmesan to a food processor.
3. Pulse until finely chopped.
4. Roll into 1 1/2 – 2” balls.
5. Heat oil in a skillet. Drop the balls of broccoli mixture into pan. Flatten with a spatula and cook until both sides are crispy. Serve alone or with ranch dip (we used organic Greek yogurt mixed with Simply Organic ranch dressing mix.)

 
 
The cheesy bites were a bit crunchy and tasted a like Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets which my kids like! I hope to try this recipe out soon to see if my kids will like it!

Be sure to visit the Children's Physicians Medical Group (CPMG) blog for more ideas and tips on how to work with your picky eaters.