When my 2.5-year-old was younger I went through a long period of worrying about what he ate, or more specifically, what he didn’t eat. For a while there it seemed like he lived almost exclusively on Saltines and milk, and I compulsively checked him for symptoms of scurvy. Well-meaning people gave me all kinds of suggestions for foods to offer him, but in the end he refused them all and rode out the crackers-and-dairy stage with all his teeth intact.
His palate has expanded since then, but he’s never been one of those kids who happily devours whatever Mom and Dad are having. I don’t really push that issue, especially when I’m low on time and dinner just needs to happen, even if it involves a less-than-gourmet, surely-not-approved-by-Jessica-Seinfeld meal for him. When I’m in a rush and trying to juggle two kids and get the dog and cat fed and empty the dishwasher all at the same time, I tend to go for the tried-and-true. Sure, I might be encouraging a Food Rut, but . . . well, I don’t know, I guess I’ve decided it’s not that big of a deal.
The foods my kid never refuses:
Good old Eggo waffles. Riley eats one slathered with peanut butter and jelly every single morning.
Annie’s Cheddar Bunnies. I kid myself by pretending these are healthier than Goldfish crackers.
Chicken nuggets, and not just any brand, only Tyson seems to do the trick. Served with a large vat of ketchup for maximum mess.
Look, something sort of healthy! Fuji apples, cut in slices, are always a hit.
Delicious gooey macaroni and cheese, heated in the microwave and served with a “man poon” (man spoon, don’t ask).
Chicken soup, noodles only, rinsed so that at least some of the 14757206 grams of sodium are removed.
Yogurt tubes, which have the best meal delivery method ever. ALL toddler foods should come in a tube.
What are your bullet-proof kid meals? I mean, the things your kid will ALWAYS eat, the things you feed them when it’s been a long busy day and you just want them to get food in their bellies and there’s no time for lengthy meal preparations or the fervent hope for adventurous taste buds?
I have nothing to offer here, but to say, Mmmmm.. pressed chicken nuggets.
Sarah | March 11th, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Wow… those are the foods my kids will eat too! Except for mac-n-cheese… my little runts refuse to eat it AND spaghetti which I thought all kids were supposed to love.
My kids will eat hashbrowns or french fries but not baked or mashed potatoes.
Add strawberries, grapes, bananas and raw carrots (very small pieces) and the list is complete.
Oh how I wish a green vegetable was on the list.
Laughing Mommy | March 11th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
Well, I don’t have much to offer, as our son loves most things that are faves of the toddler/preschool set! But, for us, here’s the top 10 list of the go to things for when we just want him to eat SOMETHING, ANYTHING…
1. Peanut butter and jelly sandwich
2. Turkey and cheese sandwich
3. Mandarin oranges
4. Mashed potatoes
5. Macaroni and cheese - btw, he has refused my homemade mac and cheese in favor of Kraft! UGH! what is that about?
6. Apple slices
7. Watermelon
8. Grilled Cheese sandwich
9. Chicken nuggets
10. Scrambled eggs with cheese
Carrie | March 11th, 2008 at 7:41 pm
My 1 yo isn’t too fond of vegetables and has quite the sweet tooth, but I try to keep it as healthy as I can. He will always eat:
macaroni and cheese (mini-shells only, he won’t eat the elbow macaroni kind)
bananas
toast with cream cheese and jelly
Annie’s Bunny Grahams
I wish he’d eat yogurt, but he always wants to feed himself and he’s not ready to use a spoon yet so I can’t get him to eat it. I’ve never tried the tubes, though- I am going to get some of those!
Buckeye Mommy | March 11th, 2008 at 7:44 pm
HOT DOGS. There, I said it. It’s a sure thing.
My kid likes apples too and we have one of those $20 apple peeler/corer/slicer thingees where you impale the apple and then crank it through the peeler/slicer and she LOVES to do that. She’ll eat a whole apple if she gets to crank that Bad Boy.
Tessie | March 11th, 2008 at 7:44 pm
I had scurvy once. It sucked really bad. But as long as his gums aren’t bleeding, he’s probably fine.
Also, I’m impressed with Riley’s discerning taste buds. He can taste the difference between chicken nugget brands? I don’t know if I’d be able to do the same.
Jess | March 11th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
My 2.5 year old is also pretty picky. PLUS, he’s a grazer, so by the time dinner comes around, he’s not hungry. He will eat cereal (Annie’s bunnies, raisin bran), pizza and meatballs (LOVES meatballs). Other than that, he wants food in a small ziploc or a little dish. Basically, if it looks like an hor d’oeuvres, he’ll eat it. So, those little cow cheeses, snack size cottage cheese, snack size apple sauce, pretzels, raisins in a ziploc, etc. Oh, and he also loves waffles. We do the Van’s mini waffles.
foodmomiac | March 11th, 2008 at 8:25 pm
Here’s a list of what my boys eat regularly:
Hot dogs
Cheese sticks (string,cheddar,colby jack)
PBJ’s (Uncrustables in lunch box for school)
Waffles with Yam (jam)
Apples
Yogurt
Pudding
Grapes
Green Beans
Pizza
Chicken Nuggets (dino’s from Costco!)
Spaghettio’s
Mac N Cheese
That’s a huge list, and I thought they didn’t eat much! It just depends on the day which food they’ll chuck at me and which they’ll eat willingly!
Katie | March 11th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
I’m at the “checking for scurvy” stage too. GAH. Some things my child will eat only SOME of the times. And he also likes to have a royal taste tester. Meaning if he sees us eat it and enjoy it then he’s far more likely to take a bite.
PB&J when it’s cut up with an apple slicer (one of those little sectioned dealies? Know what I’m talking about?), otherwise he just makes a huge mess and refuses to eat any of it.
French Toast Sticks (cinnamon apple at the moment)
Yogurt
Blueberries
Mandarin Oranges
SOMETIMES he’ll eat chicken nuggets
Cereal w/out the milk (he digs Peanut Butter Crunch at the moment)
The child is going to drive me to drink.
Marilyn | March 11th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
Peanut butter & jelly sandwiches (I was prescient enough to start with wheat bread, no-sugar-added PB and low-sugar jelly, so at least it’s relatively healthy.)
Morningstar Chik’n (vegetarian) Nuggets
corn (frozen, zapped in the nuker)
applesauce (again, we get no sugar added)
veggie booty
craisins
oatmeal
Pretty Much Anything spread with peanut butter
most granola bars
frozen berries (blue, straw, rasp, boysen)
my 2 year old also likes cottage cheese, cheese and yogurt (I buy the real stuff and mix in canned fruit) but my 3 1/2 year old is pickier.
My 3 1/2 year old adores jerky.
And of course they’ll eat anything that’s dessert, chips or candy. duh.
Jan | March 11th, 2008 at 11:19 pm
lol i love this! my almost 2 year old refuses any kind of mac and cheese, sandwiches, and pretty much any kind of ‘dinner’ food at home.
things he will eat:
crunchy/salty snacks: Annie’s cheddar bunnies
veggie chips (who am i kidding? he will eat any crunchy fried food)
cereal bars (organic, whole grain, natrual sugar, fruit bars)
Kashi blueberry frozen waffles
bananas
blueberry yougurt (dannon ‘natrual’ at least has less sugar…)
any kind of bread or cracker - specifically ONLY eating the crusts of bread!
somehow if we go out to dinner it is so much tastier and he will eat things like Pesto Cavatapi (sp?)!!! french fries (go figure) and other random “you are really eating THAT?!) types of food!
oh and v8 fusion juice - i figure he can at least DRINK his veggies if he isnt going to EAT them!
kate | March 12th, 2008 at 1:02 am
Payton (also 2.5) is definately going through a picky stage right now. The list of stuff he will RELIABLY eat is very short, but we can usually get him to eat:
oh-meeeel (oatmeal)
eggs (breakfast time, dinner time, whichever)
fruit (pretty much any kind)
yogurt (Dannon Lite & Fit)
applesauce (unsweetened)
fruit snacks (usually the Gerber Todller ones)
raisins
pretzels
chips (we don’t give him these very often)
Unfortunately, anytime we even drive near some sort of fast food place with a drive-thru, he starts shouting from the backseat “I hunry! I wan eat!
Cara | March 12th, 2008 at 2:41 am
For no muss, no fuss dinner:
King’s Hawaiian Bowls cuz they have chicken/rice/veggie all in one and I don’t feel bad eating the left overs. I usualy keep frozen potstickers and frozen chicken taquitos on hand since they are the kind of thing where you can make 1 or 10 depending on the appetite.
In the lunch bag everyday (He finally packs it himself at age 9): mini cinnamon raison bagel with peanut butter, frozen gogurt (I didn’t know that Horizon made squeezable yogurt, where do you buy it and how much is it?), fruit roll up, dry salami and a minute maid lemonade cooler
Fast snack:
carrot sticks dipped in peanut butter, triscuits with peanut butter, one of those easy peel tangelos with peanut butter…J/k, but the boy loves his peanut butter, I bet he’d eat brussel sprouts for a snack if I spread peanut butter on ‘em.
amber | March 12th, 2008 at 2:59 am
OK, my kids are abnormal. One things that always gets my 5yo excited is sushi, and for her last two birthdays she requested crab and shrimp for dinner.
On a more normal day, my kids love waffles, yogurt, cheese (especially string cheese) and chicken nuggets.
Kristie McNealy | March 12th, 2008 at 3:25 am
1) Spaghetti w/ parmesan cheese
Dannon La Creme Rasberry yogurt
2) Kraft mac n cheese
3) Oscar Meyer cheese dogs w/ ketchup
4) mashed potatoes and corn
5) Chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs
6) Goldfish crackers
7) fruit roll ups
9) cheese sandwiches
I actually thought my kid was the pickiest kid ever, but look, 9 items! Not as bad as I’d thought!
Jamie | March 12th, 2008 at 6:03 am
This is SUCH A GREAT POST. I may print it out and post it, along with all the comments, on the fridge. Because this is such a constant source of struggle and anxiety in our house. Good ideas! I’m totally finding the noodles-only Campbells.
Some things that work most of the time for my two-year-old:
Bologna
Braunschwager
Canned pears & mandarin oranges
Honey graham stix
Pretzels
Foam from the top of a beer
Excuse me while I flog myself for bad parenting.
Erin | March 12th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
I love the foam from the top of a beer post!! Mine apparently like a pinky dipped in red wine–I tried it *once*, expecting that they’d hate it and stop asking for what mamma has. Nope! Now they act like little guppies whenever I have a wineglass!!
Other foods
Cheese sticks
Oatmeal
Edamame (boiled soy beans)–really try these for some reason they are a major hit and actually good for them!!
Yogurt, but never blueberry!
Graham crackers
Broccoli
Bananas
Green beans
French fries
Anything dipped in ranch dressing
I guess we’re doing okay after all.
spacegeek | March 12th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
We got through stages where all my son (almost 2) wants is milk. I am lucky that he does like fruit - veggies are another story.
1. oatmeal (with frozen blueberries)
2. oatmeal to go bar (it’s sort of like eating oatmeal, right?)
3. fruit cups, any kind
4. bananas
5. chicken nuggets
6. grilled cheese
7. mac and cheese (when in the mood)
8. waffles
9. french toast sticks
for awhile he loved yogurt and would eat 3 in a row if i let him. Now he has no interest in it. So maybe he will go through stages and cycle through a few more healthy things! I love all the other suggestions and will be trying them out!!
sdbab | March 12th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
So I should feel OK about the apple sauce & yogurt phase (not at the same time) my son is going through? I swear I think this kid would eat pureed food until he was 5 if I let him. He’s on the skinny side too (not underweight!) so I always try and keep him Full, if you know what I mean…
Getting him to eat new things is tough too but we are slowly getting there just offering apple sauce as dessert as our little promise to him for finishing enough of his torturous other food first.
I also cannot stand it when he all of a sudden won’t eat something (bananas!!) that he usually eats every day - I’m not sure what drives me crazier though; throwing the food out or figuring him out!
I guess as long as he doesn’t lose weight, we’ll just buy stock in apple sauce
Jennifer | March 12th, 2008 at 6:48 pm
There is nothing, NOTHING, that my kid will always eat. Our odds are good with cereal with milk (Nu-trios, Bran Flakes, Mini Wheats or Special K - one of them is usually bound to work), but even that’s not a guarantee. Just when we think we’ve got a sure-fire winner, nope, she gets tired of it. It’s kind of frustrating.
Shawna | March 12th, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Oh and, what the heck is “veggie booty”? Seems healthy, yet dirty-sounding…
Shawna | March 12th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
Our 2 yo is currently in a “nut” phase, which means she ONLY wants to eat almond “sweet and salty” granola bars. She’s had at least 4 each of the last 3 days and had 2 before lunch today - when I cut off her supply at lunchtime, she had a complete noodle-bones, pound-her-hands-on-the-floor tantrum. For the rest of the day she ate Cheerios. Honey NUT Cheerios, specifically. *sigh*.
On a good day, when she’s not fixated on nuts, we can usually count on her to eat any of the following:
-waffles
-soup (almost any flavour - sneaky vegetables!)
-chicken nuggets
-fries (of course!)
-ketchup (dip dip)
-watermelon, grapes, 2 bites of a banana (but she always wants her “own” and the whole thing has to be peeled and cut up or drama ensues!)
-cereal with milk
-chocolate milk (1/2 chocolate, 1/2 2%) or watered down apple juice to drink
-rice
-3 or 4 peas (no more, heaven forbid she eat a decent helping of a green vegetable, but she’ll always eat a couple!)
-she’ll lick the peanut butter off of just about anything, but won’t eat whatever it was spread on
-Timbits (we’re from Canada - they are small “donut holes” sold at Tim Horton’s coffee shops that are EVERYWHERE in this country!)
Hmmm… that list doesn’t look too bad, actually. Now, if I could just convince her that we’re out of granola bars, maybe she’ll eat something else tomorrow!
mrsgryphon | March 13th, 2008 at 3:02 am
Plain pasta works every time for both my kids. Since it’s their absolute favorite we try to give them at least whole wheat and sometimes organic versions. They love the dinosaur nuggets too. Not particularly healthy but just about the only meat they’ll eat. Fruit is always easy, and often cucumbers work too. Lately my almost 3 year old loves plain tofu as well. Just slice and put on a plate and she’s thrilled. go figure.
Barbara | March 13th, 2008 at 3:18 am
Um wait a minute, Annie’s bunnies ARE healthier than goldfish, right? right?
Lucas will eat anything we call pizza — English Muffin pizza and pita pocket pizzas are always easy hits!
aimee | March 13th, 2008 at 1:56 pm
aimee! yes they *are* have less salt and um i forget - but at one point i read the packages and determined that bunnies are healthier! (much to my hubbys sadness)
thank you for the pizza reminder! ours will now eat english muffins and usually likes pizza - i bet we could make this a winner!!
Kate | March 13th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
My 20-month old daughter loves turkey dogs. We get them at Trader Joe’s w/o nitrates and (relatively) low in sodium.
Annie’s Mac & Cheese is usually a hit. I’m sure it’s just as bad for her as Kraft, but I pretend it’s better.
Oh and baked beans. I get the vegetarian kind so not too much sodium. She’ll even eat them cold so it’s ridiculously convenient.
Christine | March 13th, 2008 at 7:50 pm
Uhm Cheerios…. his preferred snack. Usually we can get him to eat oatmeal (with apples and cinnamon -no sugar) for breakfast.
He also loves loves avocado (who knew!) and will throw mini toddler fits if he sees me chopping vegetables without immediately handing some to him. He loves raw veggies. Can’t stand em cooked though.
Chicken in almost any form and salmon or haddock. Pretty good for a 18 month old.
He never eats much… and he loves pretselsticks- yes the salty kind. But I’m kinda hoping that his love of the raw veggies is making up for the sodium badness. Right? Right?
Emblita | March 14th, 2008 at 9:34 am
My 2.5 year-old will love me unconditionally as long as he has his:
1. POST Cocoa Pebbles
2. toasted-till-crispy raisin bread
3. toasted-till-crispy bread with slice of melted slice of cheese on top sprinkled with cinnamon sugar
4. Goldfish
5. Bird’s Eye Fish Fingers. I love that they’re so nutritious, rich in DHA and protein, and low-sodium and you can bake them in the oven for less than 20 minutes. No need for deep frying and greasy clean-up afterwards.
6. French fries - baked from frozen.
7. Home made chicken veggie patties. You get your protein, carbos and veggies all in a few deceptive nuggets.
Mix minced chicken, grated parmesan cheese, chopped carrots, onion, pinch of thyme/oregano/herb of your choice, mashed potato. Shape into nuggets and dip in egg then roll in breadcrumbs. Fry in oil or bake in oven for 15 min at 200 celsius. Or refrigerate them until just before cooking.
TheBakerGirl | March 14th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
I love this!! It has made my day. Now I feel like I am not a bad mother and “just gave in” to my kids. My two boys like different things so I am in the kitchen making three different things at supper time - one for each of the monkeys and one for me and hubster. You should see my arms fly…
Here’s our list - six year old:
- Any bread with butter and crusts cut off
- Loves cheese quesadilla - only cheese and tortilla and heaven forbid if the cheese oozes out a bit
- carrots and cukes - yippee
- cheddar bunnies and organic cheesies (I try to tell myself that’s is, uh, as healthy as a real meal….)
- popcorn, chips, pretzels etc - if it’s biege, crunchy and a carbohydrate - bring it on mama!
-Fruit leather, apples, grapes and strawberries
3 year old:
-pasta (woo hoo!) we manage to get the whole grain version in him
-bagels with jam
- single colored soup with nearly a cup of smashed crackers in it
- apples
The “foam off the beer” and “the red wine” stories made me laugh out loud. My little guy loves Tequila, yep, tequila, straight up. I offered him a sip once when he was eyeing it thinking he’d gag on the stuff, but he just kept reaching for more (of course I don’t let him drink it - god knows I need every last drop.) It’s Mommy Survival Juice!
Cheers!
Zuzkapoo | March 18th, 2008 at 11:08 pm
So sad but, cheetos, a tub of cream cheese with a spoon, and a brick of cheddar. Hmm I’m sensing a theme here. Oh and ice cream, but only the ice cream out of daddies bowl, it apparently taste different then the ice cream in his own bowl
wilddreemer | March 22nd, 2008 at 1:08 pm
1. Anything that they helped prepare/assemble/cook; and
2. Anything cut into small pieces and served with toothpicks!
SleeplessInKL | March 26th, 2008 at 8:06 am
Whew! Im glad my kids are normal!! Yogurt in a tube, string cheese and a pb and j everday after school.
My daughter loves to try whatever I am eating and she could clean up my steak dinner (esp if I am hungry). My son the odd ball loves crab, lobster, shrimp, mussels and most fish. Expensive dates.
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Vaine Loera | April 11th, 2008 at 6:32 pm