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Old 13-11-2012, 13:05
bazaar1
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I'm struggling to get anything exciting into my kids diets - they eat well and healthy but it seems to be the same old stuff every single week!

The difficulty is balancing ones likes against the others!

My son HATES any form of potato (chips included), which is normally ok as I can just not give him any, but do some for the rest of us, but rules out anything like shepherds pie etc. He also hates cheese (but I can occasionally sneak some in!). He's ok with slighly spicy stuff but is really funny about trying new things (although he happily ate gator in the US )

My daughter is allergic to all things in the squash family (pumpkin, gourds etc) and can only tolerate tomatoes once or twice a week.

They are both funny about eating meats other than chicken or mince - they will eat them but only after a long battle, which isn't what I want to start, I want them to enjoy food!

So my week consists of roast chicken, spag bol/pasta dish, chicken in a bag, mince & yorkshires, sausages etc, nothing different!

So any suggestions on things I can try to encourage them to eat different meals - I've got some wraps today and was going to try some mince and veg in them to make a step towards mexican style food.
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Old 13-11-2012, 13:33
molliepops
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Mince canbe made into so many things so if they eat that I would start trying meat balls, home made burgers, etc as you can all sorts of bits into a meal like that which they may try.

Chicken stir fried with various veg ?

Pasta bakes ? you can hide all sorts in those.

Wraps are good with sausages or mince as you suggested.

Pancakes ? savoury ones with mince ? you can layer them up and make a pancake lasagne.
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Old 13-11-2012, 13:34
jojo01
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Just an initial thought which may help - how about making a shepherds pie but instead of potato on the top, you could use a mixture of mashed carrot and swede (or even sweet potato)?
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Old 13-11-2012, 13:57
lozenger
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My son enjoys making his own Tacos, (perhaps you could add beans to the spicy mince)

Also sticky ribs are a favourite as he can make his own sauce, chicken wings with Corn on the Cob

Paella - with prawns, chorizo, peas etc

Chicken Korma - you can add broccoli / peas etc to a simple sauce (if you can't be bothered making one from scratch a jar of Aldi's ready made Korma sauce is quite nice - it has the spices separate)
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Old 13-11-2012, 14:07
Kathrynha
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Just an initial thought which may help - how about making a shepherds pie but instead of potato on the top, you could use a mixture of mashed carrot and swede (or even sweet potato)?
All root veg work well on top of shepherds pie. Celeriac is nice.
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Old 13-11-2012, 14:20
Smokeychan1
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Just an initial thought which may help - how about making a shepherds pie but instead of potato on the top, you could use a mixture of mashed carrot and swede (or even sweet potato)?
Or just remove one portion of the mince and make a shepherd's pie with the remainder.

Have you tried cous cous bazaar? I finely chop up veg (usually green) and onion and boil them in stock for a couple of minues. Drain, add to dried cous cous and use the stock instead of water to rehydrate.

If you only use beef mince, you could try other varieties. I use pork or turkey mince in rancheros pie and make the topping from mashed potato and sweetcorn with cheese on top. You could leave out the cheese and use sweet potato mash instead if your son will eat that.

I agree that stir frys are a good option too. If the meat is well marinated they may not even guess its provenance
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Old 13-11-2012, 14:59
bazaar1
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thnks for the suggestions - sorry should of said ref shpeherds pie - shes allergic to swede too and sweet potato is universally hated across all of us

Its not so much the getting the veg into them, just the boring lack of change - its all mince or chicken (or the occasional sausage) we do burgers, meatballs etc and of course I have to be careful for the little one not to do anything spicy as shes so senstive (has GERD). And pasta bakes are done frequently but most need cheese so it means doing a portion without and another with - its all so time consuming when I've been working and thier hungry!

Theres somes great idea though - thanks will see if I can tempt them into something else. I doubt they'll go for prawns or sea food but might try mixing some other meats in there see what I can - ditto the mince (although I dislike non-beef mince, I'll put up with it if they'll eat it )

My main issue is that I'm not foodie and I'm really not a cook, so I struggle to use my imagination, I don't want that rubbing off on them, so will take these ideas and work with them thanks guys!

I some times wish I was a fast food mum, it would be so much easier!!! (not that there is anything wrong with the odd fast food meal, I'm no angel, but I couldn't feed it to them all the time!)
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Old 13-11-2012, 16:19
lozenger
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thnks for the suggestions - sorry should of said ref shpeherds pie - shes allergic to swede too and sweet potato is universally hated across all of us

Its not so much the getting the veg into them, just the boring lack of change - its all mince or chicken (or the occasional sausage) we do burgers, meatballs etc and of course I have to be careful for the little one not to do anything spicy as shes so senstive (has GERD). And pasta bakes are done frequently but most need cheese so it means doing a portion without and another with - its all so time consuming when I've been working and thier hungry!

Theres somes great idea though - thanks will see if I can tempt them into something else. I doubt they'll go for prawns or sea food but might try mixing some other meats in there see what I can - ditto the mince (although I dislike non-beef mince, I'll put up with it if they'll eat it )

My main issue is that I'm not foodie and I'm really not a cook, so I struggle to use my imagination, I don't want that rubbing off on them, so will take these ideas and work with them thanks guys!

I some times wish I was a fast food mum, it would be so much easier!!! (not that there is anything wrong with the odd fast food meal, I'm no angel, but I couldn't feed it to them all the time!)
Good luck bazaar1 - Maybe buy a kids cookery book they usually have some easy recipes in there (which is where I got the paella & sticky ribs suggestions from which are now a firm favourite in our house)

Usually if they have had a hand in cooking it, they can't wait to try it.

I don't put seafood other than prawns in the paella - but you could throw whatever you like in there - I put allsorts in - green beans - sweetcorn... OK its not very authentic but it gets eaten!

Oh try chicken cacciatori too (spelling )
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Old 13-11-2012, 17:24
bazaar1
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Good luck bazaar1 - Maybe buy a kids cookery book they usually have some easy recipes in there (which is where I got the paella & sticky ribs suggestions from which are now a firm favourite in our house)

Usually if they have had a hand in cooking it, they can't wait to try it.

I don't put seafood other than prawns in the paella - but you could throw whatever you like in there - I put allsorts in - green beans - sweetcorn... OK its not very authentic but it gets eaten!

Oh try chicken cacciatori too (spelling )
I did have an annabel Karmel one, but everything needed expensive ingredients in (spices etc) then when cooked would be ignored there were some nice desserts though!

Mince beef wraps went down well with 50% of them tonight, my son loved them, daughter not so much typical! She ended up eating the wrap and some sweetcorn.
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Old 15-11-2012, 15:24
bazaar1
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just an update to say thanks for the advice on here (its nicer in here than advice! )

my son has asked 3 times for 'tarcos' as he calls the wraps we had the other night, so going to do some with some beans in too this time see if he likes those.

Little girl is not eating much at all the moment so think she's poorly, maybe not the best time to try new food, so will be cooking 2 different meals again tonight!
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Old 15-11-2012, 16:49
Smokeychan1
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just an update to say thanks for the advice on here (its nicer in here than advice! )

my son has asked 3 times for 'tarcos' as he calls the wraps we had the other night, so going to do some with some beans in too this time see if he likes those.

Little girl is not eating much at all the moment so think she's poorly, maybe not the best time to try new food, so will be cooking 2 different meals again tonight!
Glad wraps have proven to be a partial success.

I used to do a pork mince crispy version which was basically pork and some garlic cloves simmered in salted water until cooked. Drain and mix the meat and garlic well. Fill a Tortilla, wrap and secure with a toothpick, then shallow fry until golden and crispy. I used to halve the wraps and serve with guacamole and some salad, but for kids a helping of baked beans might be more palatable...or you could make your own refried beans - gimme a plate of homecooked beans and I wouldn't need anything else

PS: Hope your little girl gets well soon.
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Old 15-11-2012, 17:15
bazaar1
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Glad wraps have proven to be a partial success.

I used to do a pork mince crispy version which was basically pork and some garlic cloves simmered in salted water until cooked. Drain and mix the meat and garlic well. Fill a Tortilla, wrap and secure with a toothpick, then shallow fry until golden and crispy. I used to halve the wraps and serve with guacamole and some salad, but for kids a helping of baked beans might be more palatable...or you could make your own refried beans - gimme a plate of homecooked beans and I wouldn't need anything else

PS: Hope your little girl gets well soon.
Oooh that sounds good!
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Old 15-11-2012, 17:41
DrFlowDemand
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What about soup or veg fried rice? Your diet sounds quite varied to me though, I think we just happily get on with eating the same things all the time.
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Old 15-11-2012, 19:43
Alex482
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Give them a choice:

They either eat whatever meal you put in front of them or they go to bed hungry.

That's how me and my siblings were raised in the 80's and none of us grew up to be picky eaters.
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Old 16-11-2012, 05:57
bazaar1
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Give them a choice:

They either eat whatever meal you put in front of them or they go to bed hungry.

That's how me and my siblings were raised in the 80's and none of us grew up to be picky eaters.
I don't want to make meal times a fight, it's just going to cuase more problems, besides if you genuinely don't like something why should you be forced to eat it? I hate bananas I would happily go to bed hungry rather than eat one
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Old 16-11-2012, 07:12
Christian_Grey
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I don't want to make meal times a fight, it's just going to cuase more problems, besides if you genuinely don't like something why should you be forced to eat it? I hate bananas I would happily go to bed hungry rather than eat one
It's part of the power games children had, at that age, there are very few things they genuinely dislike. I watched that freaky eaters series on bbc3 and without fail, every person on there was like that that because their parents had caved in and let them have exactly what they wanted as they didn't want meal times to be a chore, and now as adults, they were miserable because it meant they had problems going out with meals with friends and going to dinner parties. Not saying that will happen to your kids, but there is something to be said for limiting choice.
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Old 16-11-2012, 10:43
Jambo_c
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Similar to Tacos and wraps but how about Fajitas?

Use various spices (parika, cumin, chilli, whatever you fancy) to flavour it to your taste and use a griddle pan to fry up either chopped up steak or chicken with peppers, red onion and chorizo.

Have pots of cheese, sour cream and a salsa and bring the pan to the table still sizzling for them to make their own fajitas.
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Old 18-11-2012, 21:41
bazaar1
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It's part of the power games children had, at that age, there are very few things they genuinely dislike. I watched that freaky eaters series on bbc3 and without fail, every person on there was like that that because their parents had caved in and let them have exactly what they wanted as they didn't want meal times to be a chore, and now as adults, they were miserable because it meant they had problems going out with meals with friends and going to dinner parties. Not saying that will happen to your kids, but there is something to be said for limiting choice.
No my son genuinely dislikes potatoes, I've had people try and sneak them in or trick him into eati them because they think they know how to parent my so better than me, it drives me mad. He has his moments of looking at things and saying he dislikes them but is generally good at eating what I put in front of him. It's not an issue of them not eating what thier given (but my daughter does pick out her favourite bits) it's more the variety of thing. Whilst there is something to be said for not letting your kids walk all over you, forcing them to eat things they don't want or like just makes meal times unpleasant for everyone, and causes difficulties later on in life. I was in a family where you 'eat what your given or go hungry' and I still struggle with fish (as mum would make me eat it, like it or not), to the extent that I feel sick when I smell some fish cooking - I 100% put that down to meal times as a child.

I started the thread to ask for idea on how to broaden thier horizons gently, without making waves so to speak.
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Old 20-11-2012, 11:26
Kiko H Fan
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No my son genuinely dislikes potatoes, I've had people try and sneak them in or trick him into eati them because they think they know how to parent my so better than me, it drives me mad. He has his moments of looking at things and saying he dislikes them but is generally good at eating what I put in front of him. It's not an issue of them not eating what thier given (but my daughter does pick out her favourite bits) it's more the variety of thing. Whilst there is something to be said for not letting your kids walk all over you, forcing them to eat things they don't want or like just makes meal times unpleasant for everyone, and causes difficulties later on in life. I was in a family where you 'eat what your given or go hungry' and I still struggle with fish (as mum would make me eat it, like it or not), to the extent that I feel sick when I smell some fish cooking - I 100% put that down to meal times as a child.

I started the thread to ask for idea on how to broaden thier horizons gently, without making waves so to speak.
Interesting. How old is he?
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Old 20-11-2012, 18:04
shmisk
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Op my son has disliked potato in all forms since weaning and he's ten

A big like for him (not me I am veggie) is meat on the bone- drumsticks, ribs, chops- all of them

And he will eat veggie spaghetti or meatball pasta when he doesn't know it's quorn!
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