I’m sure you’ll agree that getting kids to the table and actually eating their food can often prove to be a real struggle. However, when you make food fun, the kids will be more inclined to try and eat and maybe even enjoy what’s on offer.
Don’t be shy! Let your creative side run wild – present your kids with food which has fun patterns and different colors and they may even try foods which they wouldn’t normally eat.
Here are 12 ways I make food fun for my kids to entice them to the table and get them to eat the nutritious food presented:
1. Present Food In Shapes – using mini cookie/vegetable cutters and cutting their vegetables, fruit and even cheese into stars and other shapes can really liven up their plate. In this plate there are cheese, red pepper/capsicum and cucumber stars. Plus I cut a star from a green apple and placed it back into the apple in reverse for a simple yet eye catching effect.
2. Egg Mold – shaping a hard boiled egg into a shape can turn this rich protein source into an appealing food item for kids. It’s really simple to do, just click through for a step by step tutorial. The below egg is shaped into a fish which the kids always enjoy.
3. Food Picks – are not only a fun way to present food to kids, they are also a great learning tool to help kids with their fine motor skills. My kids often use food picks to carefully pick up individual peas.
4. Cute Cups – instead of placing food directly onto their plate you could use re-usable cups like the ones below. This is a simple way to add a bit of fun and color to their plate.
5. Muffin Tin Meals – when you present a meal to your kids in a muffin tin, it’s incredible how much more they are likely to eat. They absolutely love it and have so much fun working their way through each compartment.
6. Kebabs – taking food they are less sure about and threading it on a kebab/skewer is a fun way to get through a meal. For example you could deconstruct their sandwich by threading bread, tomato and cheese in alternate layers on the kebab. They may try tomato if they have to get through it to get to the cheese!
7. Exploring Other Cultures – read books with your kids which explores food of different cultures and then go shopping for the ingredients and cook the food of other cultures together. A wonderful example to read is What The World Eats by Faith D’Aluisio which explores what 25 families from 21 countries from around the world eat in a week. You could also decorate the dining area with pictures and the flag of the country of the food you are cooking.
8. Fun Plate For Kids – these fun plates are a huge hit with my kids. They enjoy making funny faces with the help of their vegetables.
9. Fun Lunch Box – putting together a lunch box using a combination of fun techniques is a great way to get them to enjoy they meal. In this meal, I combined together favorites like popcorn, cheese and grapes while presenting less familiar (and less favored) foods – tomato and spinach. Even my picky oldest son couldn’t resist picking the tomato flower, eating it and then replacing the tomato 3 more times. For him it was a fun game – for me it meant that this little fun tactic resulted in him eating his way through 4 tomatoes. 4 more than at other meals when the tomatoes were just popped on his plate on their own.
10. Chopsticks – maneuvering chopsticks can be a challenging and rewarding task for children. At first, encourage them to practice with chopsticks by picking up bigger pieces of fruit and vegetables before moving onto trikier foods like noodles and rice.
11. Special Cutlery – having special cutlery which helps the kids feel “grown up” and be independent at mealtimes.
12. Rainbows – displaying fruit and vegetables in a rainbow pattern is a simple and attractive way to entice the kids to eat their way through the rainbow of nutritious food.
I’d love to hear from you. Please share your tips for how you make food fun for your kids.
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