1. Names have power. If I say Egg Salad Sandwich to a kid who thinks negatively of salad, he or she is not going to like it. They won't even give it a chance. If I say Smooshy Egg Sandwich to that same child, he or she will taste it with an open mind. A child may not like celery, but might eat 'ants on a log' (celery with peanut butter and raisins for the ants). It's all in the name.
2. Children want control. If I put a salad in front of a child for lunch and it had one thing in it that they don't know if they like (or definitely don't like) they may not eat any of it. If I put 10 diverse salad fixings out with serving spoons and an empty bowl in front of each child the bowls will empty faster then I can refill them and the kids will be full at the end of the meal. This also works for getting them to put veggies on 'Make Your Own Pizzas', eat veggie pita sandwiches, and devour fruits & granola toppings on their plain yogurt. There are so many things they have no control over in their lives, give them a little power and they will revel in it!
3. Appearance matters! Adults know that something may look gross but taste amazing. Children have not always had the experiences that make that believable yet. If at all possible, make it look good. I only buy whole wheat pancake and waffle mix and many of 'my kids' are used to the "regular stuff". Not a problem though. I make snake, sun and flower shapes out of the pancake batter and... drum roll please... my awesome Aunt Joy once gave us a Mickey Mouse waffle maker for Christmas. Problem solved. Supply them with plastic knives and Apple butter or strawberry jam and I can avoid syrup too (see the control factor above).
4. The two bite rule (at least two bites of everything before they can have seconds of anything, but not mandatory, only if they want seconds) Combined with repetition- WORKS! The tricky part is outlasting them and not overdoing it. Make sure you don't serve that one food they don't like every day. Once or twice a week at the most if at all possible and pair it with food they LOVE so they will want seconds!
5. Shake things up. Kids like routine, but they also like craziness. Get a good book and find some good websites for food ideas. Turn them into kids that like to try new things and they will turn into open minded teens! My favorite book is Healthy Lunchboxes For Kids by Amanda Grant.
Some good websites are:
And of course Pinterest has an unlimited supply of great ideas!
Bring in new ideas, come up with crazy/fun names, give the kids control (either helping with the cooking or assembly or choices), make it look good, and let them try it & not like it as many times as they need to.
This is what I have found to work well. What tips/tricks/hints do you have??
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