Have you raised fussy eaters? Try these 9 sneaky ways to help your kids to get their daily fruit and veg
Do your kids scream at the sight of vegetables or cry when you try and feed them anything other than pizza and chips? You're not alone. Here are some handy hints to help them get their five-a-day without the tears and tantrums.
Dress up your food
Kids are suckers for a smiley face so dress up some healthy meals to make them gobble up their veg.
Give any of these a go and see clean plates all round.
- Mini fish pie faces
- Clown face frittata
- Turkey munchkin
- Sunshine chunky pasta
Blend veggies
If you don't already own a hand blender, now's the time to invest. By blending down veggies, you can hide them in all sorts of sauces and your kids will be none-the-wiser.
Try adding your own blended veggies to this basic tomato sauce recipe
Hide it
We wouldn't usually recommend you deceive your little ones but sometimes needs must! Hide veg in classic recipes like this super shepherd's pie - they'll never know the difference.
Try our easy ways to five a day for more ideas.
Healthy snacks
Try and banish unhealthy snacking on crisps and chocolate. Instead, slowly introduce better options like carrot sticks and houmous or a packet of raisins. Both tasty alternatives kids will be pleased to nibble on.
Try our houmous recipe and make your own.
Eat together
Try when you can to eat together and the same food. Research has shown that kids respond well when they see parents and older brothers and sisters eating up their veg, so show them how you eat your greens and they should follow suit.
Try our cheap, family recipes for all-round winners.
Chop or grate
The smaller the veg, the more likely your kids are to eat it. It's as simple as that, so try and reduce down chunky, unappealing lumps to thin strips of goodness.
Try grated carrot in sandwiches like this one with houmous.
Be careful with labelling food
You might think you do this already by saying things like 'You can't have any ice cream unless you eat up your peas' but this might actually be having the opposite effect.
By making ice cream the treat, you're ingraining into your kids that peas are horrible and junk food's great. Try saying 'If you're good and eat up your dinner this week, we can go and do something fun on the weekend'. It doesn't label foods as 'good' or 'bad' and you still get them to eat well.
Reward them with these ideas for family days out.
Make smoothies
Shop bought smoothies can be pricey, but blending down your own make a healthy and nutritious drink for your kids after school. No more fizzy pop, these drinks will satisfy their thirst, bump up their five-a-day count and they'll love helping to make them too.
Try our smoothie recipes.
Make it tasty
Fruit and veg doesn't have to be a chore and if your kids see it that way, it's time to show them the light!
Whip up some of these tasty fruit-packed desserts.
- Plum crumble
- Milky strawberry sticks
