10 Ways to Get Your Kids to Eat More Veggies!

I recently received an email with a link to a website that listed 10 ways to get you kids to eat more fruits in vegetables and thought it would be good information to share, because having past work experience with kids and having a 10 year old brother, I know getting kids to eat vegetables is a big challenge that parents face. So here is what I learned...

10. Serve them raw

Try putting out a plate of cut up peppers, cherry tomatoes, celery, cauliflower, carrot sticks, or sugar snap peas on the table for an after school snack. 

If that doesn’t entice them….

9.  Let them have dip

Let them have a little ranch dressing with their raw cut up veggies.  Kids love to play with their food and who doesn’t like their broccoli dipped in a little ranch dressing? You could also try hummus or spinach dip as well!

8. Plant a garden

Studies show that kids who grow veggies themselves are more likely to eat them! If grown organically, you can pick them right out of the garden and eat them, unless of course they are grown underground, like potatoes and carrots, which require a little washing first.

7.  Add a little butter

You maybe be gasping, butter but isn’t that bad for you? As a future dietitian, my motto is that you can have anything in moderation. Some nutrients contained in vegetables, such as spinach and kale, are better absorbed by the body when they are consumed with a little fat. Another obvious example of this is adding a little butter to corn on the cob.

6. Add them to soup

Have a picky eater? Try chopping up vegetables that they do not like into tiny pieces and adding it to a savory broth to simmer for 30 minutes and they won’t even notice it.

5. Make a chopped vegetable salad

Chop up whatever vegetables you have in your fridge into little bits then add a little dressing that your kids enjoy and perhaps some toasted nuts or a little cheese and enjoy!

4. Roast them

Try roasting them in the oven until they are golden and crispy. This is a trick that I even do for myself.  Cut up vegetables such as sweet potatoes, cauliflower, carrots, asparagus, and whatever else is in the fridge into bite size pieces and then coat them with a little olive oil and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper then pop them in the over for 30 minutes at 350 degrees and you have a delicious yet healthy snack!

3. Put your kids to work

Kids love to help out in the kitchen, even if they may not be ecstatic about it, it will at least get them away from the TV and video games and capture their attention for a little while. Who knows you may have the next Iron Chef on your hands!

 2. Add a little cheese to them

Who doesn’t love cheese? Next time you are cooking up some broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, or other vegetables sprinkle some cheese on them.  After all kids need their calcium too and cheese is an excellent source! On a side note, because I cannot resist, as a future dietitian I would recommend using naturally lower fat cheeses such as mozzarella or a cheese made with 2% milk.

1. Eat them yourself!

Believe it or not, kids pick up a lot of their habits from watching their parents or caregivers, so practice what you preach and load up that plate with some veggies!