Show Us Your Life - Food!!!

I am a self-proclaimed "health nut." My family will gladly proclaim it too. Sometimes my concoctions hit a home run, and sometimes...well, let's just say there is usually peanut butter around to fill in when mom strikes out.

My journey to healthy food started about 9 years ago. In the beginning, I knew nothing more than that eating a salad was good for you. Boring, iceberg lettuce salad. Now, there is nothing I won't try to prepare and no recipe that I won't try to make healthy. I can make chocolate chip cookies that I feel really good about, but more importantly, my kids will gladly eat all sorts of colorful vegetables and fruits. We try to see if we can pick out every color of the rainbow at dinner each night.

My current "health food hobbies" include sprouting, raw meal preparations, and home made baby formula (breast is always best, but our youngest son is adopted and nursing did not work out, so I had to improvise).

The question posed today on Kelly's Korner is "What do you feed your young children?" My short answer is: Whatever we are eating. I have five children, two before my "health nut" status and three after. So, I can attest to the fact that if you allow your children to opt for chicken nuggets when you try a new recipe, then chicken nuggets will quickly become the only thing they will eat and you will be making multiple meals. I did that with my older ones, and my oldest son is still my pickiest eater. No more!

If you start kids out from the very beginning loving the colorful foods in the state God created them, you will not have a problem. I have proof of this with my younger three. They have never refused a food that I can think of.

My ten month old has only been eating for about three months. So far, he loves everything I have given him. He eats whatever we are eating - mashed! Last night, we had sauteed chicken, seasoned with rosemary and garlic, steamed broccoli (including the leaves), baked sweet potatoes, and salad. I put chicken and broccoli in the food processor, gave it a couple of pulses, and voila! dinner for Patrick. He loved it. He also loves avocados, unsweetened applesauce, plain yogurt with fresh fruit, roasted butternut or acorn squash (plain or with a little cinnamon), green peas, and egg yolks.

I have found that the easiest way to get my kids to eat what I want them to eat is not to have any alternatives around the house. To that end, we do not buy boxes of Pop Tarts or bags of cookies. A treat for my kids is Honey Nut Cheerios. Before you feel too sorry for them, I bake home made things quite often - cookies, brownies, and other desserts. I just tweak the recipes, usually substituting agave nectar for sugar and gluten free flour for refined white. Everything still tastes delicious.

More importantly though, we have taught them the health benefits of foregoing junk food. They have learned to love fresh picked strawberries, apples, and oranges. We have experimented with all sorts of soups. Some of their favorites are garlic soup, butternut squash soup, and of course home made chicken noodle. All of these are super easy to make and only take a few ingredients.

We eat a lot of nuts for protein - walnuts, cashews, and pecans. We use them to top salads, eat with hunks of cheese, or just plain. They snack on fruit or popcorn. We pop our corn in a popcorn maker ($10 at Target), using coconut oil and then instead of butter we sprinkle it with nutritional yeast. It is fabulous!

Breakfast we eat eggs or oatmeal, and occasionally cheese toast. Lunch is usually some sort of soup or leftovers from the night before. Sometimes a sandwich with either peanut butter and honey or for my daughter and myself tomato, avocado, and sprouts. Dinner is simple as well. Grilled chicken, a steamed veggie like asparagus or broccoli, baked sweet potatoes, and salad are staples at our house.

We do like to get creative sometimes and try new recipes. Like tonight we made a soup from sprouted lentils. We added kale, onions, garlic, and some chicken sausage with spices. It was pretty good. Not to die for, but definitely edible.

One other thing we like to make is smoothies. We will throw almost anything into a smoothie and even the baby loves them! Our favorite is a base of frozen raspberries, blueberries, and lemon. Let me tell you, anything can be hidden in this smoothie! After I put all that in the vita-mix, I pack as much spinach as the container will hold and blend it up. You can not see or taste the greens!! Perfect. You can also add an avocado and no one will be the wiser.

I could go on and on about healthy food, but if you are familiar with my blog at all, you already know that. I hope that if you are reading you will not be overwhelmed, but excited to get your kids to try new things. Make it exciting. Let them help you choose something new at the grocery store or if possible where you live, go to a farm and pick something. It is amazing what kids will eat when they work to get it. We love to go to an apple orchard or strawberry patch, any chance we get. Talk about the different varieties of fruits - do you like Granny Smith, Jonagolds, or Red Delicious? After our last trip to the apple orchard, we discovered Honey Crisps. Oh my, yummy! Have fun in the kitchen. Even though it is messy, let them help. Kids enjoy setting the table for daddy and showing off their culinary skills. Usually they are more likely to eat something they helped prepare.

Finally, if you are serious about changing your eating habits, then stick to your guns. Your child will not starve and missing a meal or two will not do them any harm. I do not ever tell my kids they have to clean their plate. I refuse to get into a food battle with a stubborn eater. However, if they choose not to eat, then they will likely be super hungry by the next meal. It is said that "hunger is the best seasoning."

The journey to healthy eating is not as hard as it may seem. Recipes for anything are available at the click of your keyboard. Enjoy!!