As a mom of two young kiddos, mealtime is always….exciting. (read: stressful, exhausting, sometimes reassuring, always an adventure) Thankfully, my kids are not picky eaters but that doesn’t mean we don’t have challenges when it comes to food.
Truth is, my kids would eat one thing all day if they could. All strawberries. All cucumber. All hummus and pretzels.
When they find something they like, that’s all they want. Do you have any littles like that?
I’ve learned (quickly) that in order to ensure my kids get a well-balanced diet throughout the day I need to offer them a variety and leave it up to them to choose what they want.
RELATED: 3 Tips for Raising Vegan Toddlers
What do I mean? Let me show you…
This is, what I like to call, a snack plate and it is the BEST way to get your kids to:
1) be less picky
2) have more choice and control over what they eat
3) be excited about healthy choices!
I make a plate like this with a variety of items on it for my kiddos late morning, and allow them to snack and eat it as they please. Sometimes it becomes lunch, sometimes it’s just a snack, and almost every time they clear the plate and ask for more.
RELATED: What our vegan family of 4 eats in a day
If you have a picky eater or just want your littles to start enjoying MORE options, definitely give this a try.
snack plate ideas for your vegan kids:
• Rainbow Love: Cherry tomatoes, orange peppers, banana, avocado slices, blueberries and/grapes. Add a coconut or almond yogurt for dipping the fruit or a hummus for the veggies.
• Savory Snacker: Edamame or snap peas, hummus with pita chips or pretzels, pinwheels of diced veggies & nut based cream cheese, and baby carrots or sliced carrots.
• Summer Fun: orange slices, watermelon, cucumber, avocado chunks, and whole grain crackers.
Your snack plates can be made up of whatever you want and have on hand so don’t feel like you need a specific combination. If you’re unsure of what you should include, here’s what I do.
Include a minimum of:
- 1 fruit
- 1 vegetable
- 1 grain
- 1 fat
- 1 protein (can be as simple as adding hemp hearts to your avocado or offering beans or hummus)
We don’t do snack plates daily but honestly, some days it’s just WAY easier for mom to do this than put together a meal that makes sense. I even find that I enjoy snack plates, too!
Would your kids enjoy something like this? What would you put on a snack plate?
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Vegan Shakeology Vs. Mainstream Alternatives (The best plant-based options!)