I need some suggestions for my toddler who is allergic to dairy, so no milk, butter, cheese, yogurt etc. Now she has decided to go on strike against all meat. I can't get her to eat any of it. She has been living on pasta, some vegetables, fruit, and cereal. I need some new ideas for healthy foods I can feed her. I have tried chicken, turkey, steak, ground beef. ground turkey, sausage, and nothing won't touch it.
Thank you for the suggestions. I actually do separate things for her as that is how my older daughter is too, so I am just used to it. If we do make tacos, she eats everything but the meat, same if I try to mix it in with things, she will pick around it. She is very picky with her fruit too. She will eat hard fuji apples but no other kind and won't touch applesauce or cooked apples. She loves sauce, but I try to limit what I give her because most are full of sugar.
I am not a good cook and making my own sauces is something that makes me laugh. I could burn water, in fact I have by forgetting about the pan on the stove and smelling the pan burning. I love the suggestion of tuna though, we don't eat it, so I don't keep it in the house, but she may like that.
I try not to cater to my kids eating, I am concerned with the balance of her diet though. I don't give her anything else, but I always give her a balanced meal and she will only eat what she likes, and leave the rest. I don't offer her anything else until the next meal either, besides fruit and vegetable snacks. I just want to make sure she is getting everything she needs in nutrients and I know she is not.
lots of great ideas!
here's one more thought: I do not cater to picky eaters. If I know the food is good, healthy, & tasty....then the meal is offered. When mealtime is over, if the food is not eaten...then it is wrapped up & served again at snacktime or the next meal. No other foods are offered. I also do not allow the child to fill up on drinks. Eventually, obstacles are eliminated & peace is restored in our home. :)
I don't mix things for my DD, either. Most of the time she likes her pasta plain or with butter, her cheese on the side, but not on her broccoli, etc. If she does imitate us and make a taco, that's her thing, but she won't eat it if I construct it for her. Will your DD eat soup? Beans? Tofu? Tacos (without cheese)? Hummus and crackers? For a long time we cooked DD's meats without sauce or spice because she wouldn't eat them, but she surprised us by eating taco meat one night so that's history now.
What we learned about our daughter is that she would eat best when the foods she was given were in very small portions and not all mixed together.
For instance Spaghetti.. I make the sauces with shredded zucchini and carrots in the sauce. She could not see it. When I made meat balls, they were tiny for her, but larger for us.
On her plate there was a pile of plain pasta, a small amount of the sauce on the side and 1 tiny meatball alone on another side of the plate. IF she ate something. I added a tiny bit more. No comments, just silently until she quit eating.
Salad was a pieces of carrot, celery some spinach and 1 cherry tomato.. Again if she ate this, I would add a bit more.
Tacos with turkey meat. I would cut the corn tortilla in half and place a tiny amount of meat inside and roll it up. Again if she ate that one, I would add the other half. Pile of lettuce, some avocado, some tomatoes chopped.
Believe it or not, some children like mild hot sauce.. May want to give it a try.
Brown Rice in little balls. or small pile.
Tiny baked potato with just a little salt and pepper. We like them with avocados and sesame seeds and a little lemon.
A sandwich was only a 1/4 of it give to her. If she ate it and another 1/4th could be added to her plate.
A bowl of soup was given to her in a ramekin bowl. and only 1/2 filled.
Blend cooked veggies into soups and sauces. She will have no idea they are there.
A whole apple looks overwhelming, but a small fruit salad, where the fruit has been chapped looks more appetizing.
No begging, not bribes and no begging.
Children sometimes are honestly, just not hungry.. This can go on for days or weeks. The next thing you know they are starving. Follow her lead.
Cheese?? Off the top of my head that would be a biggie. Will she eat that? I'd give up the struggle because it will probably make things worse. Just make sure she get's a good multivitamin. Other than protein, she sounds like she's eating pretty well.
First, I did notice you said she's allergic to dairy. :)
Honestly, it sounds like she eats pretty well. You can by veggie pasta or brown rice pasta to replace white pasta (if you haven't already.)
Veggies, fruit, and cereal...that pretty much covers it. Not many toddlers are adventurous when it comes to food.
You might try tuna...I notice you didn't mention it. My toddler loves tuna salad (just canned white tuna, no albacore, with a little Hellman's.) She also likes gluten free organic chicken nuggets...I think they're Applegate Naturals...they taste WAY better than most chicken nuggets.
Also, if you want to get her eating meat (which I personally think is a good idea) you can try some healthier hot dogs. Jennie-O makes turkey dogs that are pretty good, and my toddler LOVES to eat them with chili.
Hi there,
My daughter is also a picky eater and we don't eat meat or dairy. She really likes the soy and coconut yogurts (available at heath food stores). You could also try different grains, or bake healthful muffins/biscuits/etc. (Google the Sneaky Chef for some interesting recipes.) Also, if you get her involved in preparing her own food (even if it's just standing on a chair with you and watching you cook, or stirring things in a bowl/dumping ingredients in) she may be more interested in eating. But as long as she's eating enough calories and getting enough calcium (all of the non-dairy milks should be calcium-fortified), you can always supplement with a multivitamin (like Poly Vi Sol or a chewable if she's old enough) if you're concerned. My daughter refuses to eat nearly all vegetables (and we're vegetarian and eat LOTS of veggies), but our dr. has never been too concerned. I was a picky eater as a kid and now I'm fairly adventurous. So I figure my daughter will grow out of it. And my son (#2) seems to be a much better eater so far. Anyway, enough about me. If you're still in a bind, you could check out Vegan Lunch Box (they might have it at the library?). It's very kid-friendly and dairy- (and meat-) free.
Best of luck!
R.
