5 Meals to get toddlers eating dinner
Parents are always asking me how to get toddlers eating dinner.
It’s a well known fact that most children go through a ‘phase’ when they just don’t want to eat what is put in front of them. But what can we make to get our toddlers eating dinner?
(I'm writing a related post on how to help your child eat what they get-meanwhile access my FREE Toddler Toolbox ebook for a quick bunch of strategies on this topic!)
However, I have found that young children and babiesfluctuate in their development continually.
As my mother in law says, ‘One week they’ll be eating youout of house and home, the next you’ll be still dishing them up that amount andthey won’t eat hardly any of it.’
I really took that advice to heart. It basically meansRELAX, because it’s normal. Sometimes our kids just aren’t that hungry.
However, we still need them to eat, right? They need to getenough nutrition in!
So here is my well-used list of 5 meals to get toddlers eating dinner.
My kids loved these meals (and please note, they may not be loved by your children, but any ideas help, right?)
1: Meat and Vegie Pastie
This is a favourite of my husband-and the kids love it too.
It’s basically mince and vegies in pastry-with tomato sauce, of course.
Cook mince with a little onion and some diced carrot, potato and peas. Then use an easy pastry recipe to make a square pastry. Fill in half with browned meat and fold over. Cook for around 30-45 mins until browned.
Simple, with a little preparation-and voila! A hearty mealwhich can be served with salad too-or if you’re in a hurry just have the pasty!
This is also perfect for eating with your hands (if youdon’t mind a little mess), so for baby led weaning or toddler experimentingwith different foods and textures, try this one!
2: Salmon and Mash with carrots and beans
I don’t know why, but my kids LOVE salmon. Like, literallyeat us out of house and home, eat-salmon-every-night, scream-with-excitementstyle.
So this one is easy for us-and really, steamed vegies andmash is basic but so easy to prepare.
Salmon pieces take 10 mins or so to cook, total.
Steamed vegies/mash go on half an hour or so prior toplating up.
For us, this is a consistent winner-even with our 16 monthold.
3: Tacos.
Do I need to say anything more?
Wraps, finely diced tomato, cheese, taco mince, lettuce (Ioften use finely chopped spinach).
Note for seasoned mamas- My toddlers were never that fussed about lettuce (see above) and if I didn’t feel they were eating enough food, I would sometimes cook a little potato and mash that up roughly with the taco meat, diced spinach and cheese/tomato combo.
They LOVE it.
And we get to eat tacos too. Obviously. #best
4: Homemade Pizza
I used to make my own bases for pizza, and I love it, butit’s quite time consuming so with 3 kids we found better bases at Baker’sDelight for $2 each. (my time is worth more than that, really!)
So, to make a pizza with some nutrition, that everyone eats:
-Tomato Passata, mixed with minced garlic and basil (you can add pureed kidney beans too?)
-chopped onion & capsicum-just a bit
-grated or finely sliced zucchini
-salami or diced bacon/ham
-cheese and rocket
Put them on the pizza base and bake until browned!
The kids should love it!
And... the adults can sprinkle a little dried chilli on top.
(Drooling right now)
And onto my final meal to get your toddler to eat atmealtimes!
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$29.99
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Aicha Flippy Short-Sunset |
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5: Spaghetti bolognaise.
This is almost not worth adding in, as every parent knows how kids love pasta. But still, there it is!
To get the nutrition count up, I always add grated carrot and zucchini to the sauce, and often pureed kidney beans too so they can’t see them (which I never said I’d do, but no one likes beans including my hubby so it’s easier to add them quietly.)
Although my secret recipe to spaghetti bolognaise is… myhusband makes it!
He uses a lot of spices, tomato and garlic to make it tasteAMAZING, and he’s so good at it that I have a night ‘off’ from cooking when wehave spaghetti.
Although that means I’m putting kids through the bath,dressing them and getting everything else done-you know the drill! Goodteamwork, right?
How do you make your spag bol?
Do you use a recipe from your Mama? Is it a tried-and-true creation of your own, or a friend?
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$19.99
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Body - Scoop Crop Bralette Bikini Top - Black & white stripe rib |
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Do you add chilli, BBQ sauce, herbs, vegies, and a wholelotta love?
Good work. Enjoy it-and your kids will too!
There we have it-my 5 meals that will get toddlers eating dinner!
Pop in the comments what you thought was helpful! Will yourtoddler eat these meals? What are your go-to’s?
Remember-at the end of the day it’s about getting whatever nutrition you can into your child.
It is not a competition. Kids survive-but hopefully these meals can help you achieve the desired outcome...
...some vegies into your toddler, as well as a tasty dinner for you.
I hope you got some value from this post! Enjoy making those meals!
Miranda xx
Don't forget to download my FREE ebook The Toddler toolbox and grab those super helpful strategies for parents of toddlers!
I also have another short ebook on Amazon called 'Ten ways to Enrich your Toddler.' It's $3.99! Get it here!