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| fdarling fotos |
Eating more meals at home is one step toward eating healthier and doesn’t have to be a chore according to Laura Gauthier, a Marquette County Health Department registered dietician. Eating out several times a week may be quick, easy, and socially enjoyable for most people, but restaurant meals may be a big source of unwanted salt, fat, and sugar.
Start by going through the store ads with children to find valuable coupons. Look for foods the family enjoys and think of meals that incorporate these foods. Make a meal plan for even a few days and post on the refrigerator. Include side dishes of fruits and vegetables. Watch for produce to be in season and on sale. They may be something your family has never tried and become a new family favorite! Make a list, shop together, and teach children how to find fresh produce. Point out brown or wilted food.
Use Healthy Snacks
There are many very nutritious foods that also taste good. By having the knowledge on what foods to buy and how to prepare them, both taste and nutrition can be combined for optimum health. The Internet can be a great resource to learn how to prepare or eat a certain unfamiliar fruit or vegetable.
Incorporating healthy snacks into the family’s daily routine can be a great weight and nutrition management technique. Energy levels can be increased and hunger managed by eating the right snacks. Combining lean protein and fiber makes a powerful nutrient combination that will help with optimum fullness and overall satisfaction. Some examples of these combination snacks include homemade trail mixes, yogurt parfaits and smoothies.
Sneak in Veggies
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| Mark Nowicki |
A perfect way to combine taste and nutrition is by gradually adding “nutrition” to foods you enjoy. Take for example a smoothie. A fruit smoothie is naturally sweet, which tastes really good! A little fresh or frozen spinach adds vitamins without compromising the flavor.
Try leftover vegetables in an omelet at breakfast; add extra tomatoes or spinach to your sandwiches. Sliced peppers, snap peas, or cucumbers add extra crunch to lunchtime favorites. Children will enjoy using a table knife to cut veggies into math shapes. Soups and casseroles can have extra vegetables added. Substitute or add pureed fruits and veggies and extra whole grains for baked goods.
It is very important to enjoy what you are eating. It’s no surprise that taste wins over nutrition when it comes to food choices. As in previous mottos, “All foods can fit,” all foods that you enjoy can become a part of your family’s new daily diet.
This month focus on experimenting with foods. On the weekends, children can help wash and chop while you carry on a conversation. Refrigerate extras, and use all week.
Photos: Fran Darling, fdarling fotos; Shetches: Mark Nowicki
More Ideas and Activities....See the authors’ book “Learning Through the Seasons” at area bookstores and grandparentsteachtoo.org. For more help to prepare young children for success in school see the authors’ web site: www.grandparentsteachtoo.org. Also check our audio Podcasts WNMU Radio 90; Youtube video activities; and join us on Pinterest
Cooking with children is an important parenting activity. It is a good chance to teach and discuss. The cooking doesn’t need to be fancy. Very young children can help measure ingredients and stir. As soon as children can handle a table knife they can also learn to cut up fruits and vegetables into small pieces for family salads.
When they can spread with a table knife it’s time to teach how to make a sandwich. If your children are not allergic to nut spreads like peanut or almond butter, they are ready to move toward helping themselves. Nut butters go with almost anything. They can be spread on vegetables like celery or carrots. They can be slathered on fruits like apples, pears, and banana halves. This is a perfect way to sneak in protein. Two tablespoons have 210 calories, 7 grams of protein, and 1 gram of sugar. Look for no sugar added.
Nut butters make delicious easy sandwiches with bananas, pickle spears, apples, pears, low sugar jelly, or mashed berries.
It’s also a good time to talk about reading food labels. Preschool children can learn to recognize protein, and different vitamins and minerals on all labels of food they eat. They can also look for ingredients that are not nutritious like sugar, salt, and fat. 
Calorieking.com is a research tool that breaks down nutrition value of foods including those in restaurants.
Tortilla Sandwiches
The tortilla is an easy all purpose base. Cooking with tortillas involves eventually putting them in a toaster or microwave so children will need supervision.
Any nut butter combo sandwich can be rolled in a warmed whole wheat tortilla wrap. Children find them easier to handle than a cut up bread sandwich.
Here are a few other possibilities. Spread cream cheese on a warm tortilla. Add an optional thin slice of ham, turkey, or chicken, and raw shredded carrots. Roll up and eat. If children like scrambled eggs, scramble two, add ½ cup shredded cheese and a few small pieces of lettuce. Children may like the warm lettuce better than the texture of raw lettuce. Roll up in a warmed tortilla. If you have spaghetti and meat sauce leftovers, warm them up, add cheese and place in a warmed tortilla.
Tortilla Pizza
For a tortilla pizza, you’ll need 1 small flour tortilla, 1 tablespoon spaghetti sauce,
2 tablespoon shredded cheddar cheese, meat and vegetables, if desired. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese. With supervision, children can lay tortillas on a cookie sheet.
Broil for 2 minutes and watch carefully. These can also be microwaved on high for ½ minute. Cut up or roll when cooled.
Photos: Fran Darling fdarling fotos
