Recipes with vegetables for children
Does your child not eat vegetables? You are in good company, because it is a problem that thousands of parents face almost daily. And the whims at the table risk ruining the serenity of one of the few moments a day when the family is all reunited. You need a good menu, full of vegetables: here are the recommendations of Michela Trevisan, nutritionist and author of the book "If you don't eat vegetables" : 120 recipes to make the whole family appreciate vegetables. of the (ed. Terra Nuova) from which the recipes are taken.
In this article
- How to make children eat vegetables: practical advice
- How to deal with whims at the table
- Recipes with vegetables for children: the appetizer
- Vegetables for children: the recipe for a tasty first course
- Meatballs with vegetables for children: second course
- Hide vegetables from children? Let's try a dessert!
How to make children eat vegetables, practical advice
Let's start with some tips to entice the little ones to make some nice bites of spinach and company.
- Parents, lead by example:
"One of the main reasons why vegetables are not loved by children is that the parents themselves do not set a good example - explains the expert - If every meal was always served a course of vegetables, as it should be, the children would see it. as a food that cannot be done without ». - Offer it at the beginning of the meal:
«Hunger makes you savor everything with more flavor, do not always relegate the vegetables towards the end. A pinzimonio for appetizer can be a good solution ». - Quality matters:
"Think of the taste and scent of a vegetable bought on a farm and not wrapped in the plastic of a supermarket ... And don't underestimate what an experience it can be for your children to see a field and maybe pick something with their own hands: you can be sure that who has collected at least will taste it! ».
How to deal with whims at the table
How to behave when faced with a whim at the table? Michela Trevisan specifies: "Many times it is not a question of the refusal of food itself, but it expresses something else: a frustration of the day, or the request for attention and in a certain sense also for rules on the part of the parent. Thank that the place of negotiation is at the table and nowhere else. And be careful, because if you give in to the table, they will raise the bar with other tricks, for example by throwing objects and maybe your mobile phone on the ground, which they sense to be precious for you ».
It is therefore important to arrive at the table with serenity: «Establish rituals before meals, perhaps a cuddle to relax on returning home before dinner».
No prizes should be promised if the children empty the plate: "Vegetables must not become a bargaining weapon: it is a food like any other and has value in itself, for its properties ».
Recipes with vegetables for children: the appetizer
Pizzas are a universally loved food: let's try to prepare them with pumpkin on top.
STARTER: FAST PIZZAS
Ingredients
- 200 g of finely ground millet
- 200 g of rice flour
- 2 tablespoons of cream of tartar
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon of sesame and flax seeds
For the filling:
- 500 g of clean pumpkin
- 1 sprig of sage
- 1 sprig of rosemary
- 1 teaspoon of gomasio
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
Method
To make the pizzas, finely chop the seeds and then add them to the other ingredients in a bowl. Knead until the mixture is soft and homogeneous, then let it rest for about 1 hour. For the filling, cut the pumpkin into cubes, add chopped sage and rosemary and the gomasio. Cook in steam or in the oven for 15-20 minutes, then when cooled season with oil and blend until creamy. Roll out the dough that is not too thin and cut into discs with the help of a glass: place them on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and cover with the cream. Bake at 170 ° C for about 15 minutes.
Vegetables for children: the recipe for a tasty first course
FIRST: CREPES WITHOUT EGGS
The crepes are delicious but above all they represent a precious treasure chest to hide the vegetables inside.
Ingredients
- 250 g of flour (choice of barley, oats, spelled or semi-whole wheat)
- 50 g of corn starch, oil
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 pinch of nutmeg
- 150 ml of soy or hemp milk
For the stuffing:
- 500 g with a choice of spinach, chard or chicory
- 1 golden onion
- 200 g of robiola or goat ricotta
- 4 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 pinch of salt or 1 tablespoon of vegetable broth granules or 1⁄2 vegetable cube
Method
In a bowl put flour, starch, 2 tablespoons of oil, salt and nutmeg. Mix the milk with 100 ml of water and pour it a little at a time, eliminating the lumps with a whisk until a thick and fluid cream is obtained. If it is dry, add 50 ml of water. Let it rest for at least 30 minutes and pass the filling: sauté the onion with the oil and 4 tablespoons of water then add the vegetables cut into strips and cook until the water runs out. Add the salt or the cube, then remove from the heat and blend together with the robiola. To prepare the crêpes, heat a thin layer of oil in a pan and pour in a ladle of batter. Cook 1-2 minutes per side and set the crepe aside, keeping it warm. Stuff with the prepared filling and roll them up.
Meatballs with vegetables for children
SECOND: CHICKPEAS AND QUINOA MEATBALLS
Meatballs meet the favor of young and old: with quinoa and chickpeas they are a perfect veg alternative.
Ingredients
- 500 g of cooked chickpeas
- 100 g of quinoa
- 1 small onion
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1 tablespoon of capers
- 1 tablespoon of Taggiasca olives
- 2 tablespoons of sesame
- 1⁄2 glass of oil
- 1 teaspoon of turmeric
Method
Toast the quinoa in a tablespoon of oil, then cover it with double its volume of hot water and boil for a minute. Turn off the heat, cover and let the cereal swell for 20 minutes or until the water is completely absorbed. Coarsely blend the drained chickpeas and quinoa with the rest of the ingredients (excluding the sesame), then form into meatballs and coat them with the sesame seeds. Transfer them to a baking tray covered with parchment paper and cook at 180 ° C for about 30 minutes.
Hide vegetables from children?
To make children eat vegetables you can try to hide them in a dessert: here is a recipe with hidden vegetables.
DESSERT: YOGURT BAVARESE WITH PUMPKIN
Ingredients
- 350 ml of plain yogurt
- 150 g of finely grated pumpkin
- 50 g of almonds with the skin
- 1 tablespoon of honey or 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon of agar-agar
- 1 pinch of salt
Method
Toast the almonds in the oven for a minute, let them cool and then chop them. In a saucepan pour the pumpkin with 100 ml of yogurt, salt and agar-agar. Cook for 5 minutes, then let it cool and add the remaining yogurt, chopped almonds, honey (or sugar). Mix well, then pour everything into the bowls and let it cool in the refrigerator.
THE INTERVIEWED
Michela Trevisan è nutritionist and President of the Environmental Nutritionists. Together with Linda Busato he wrote the book "If he doesn't eat vegetables" (ed. Terra Nuova): 120 recipes to make the whole family appreciate vegetables ".
TAG:
- vegetable children
- food
- recipes for children
- 1 year
- 1-2 children years
