Meals for a toddler

[paperSkin]

At 19 months 26lbs is great. Don't worry at all.. my 19 mo. old daughter is only 21 lbs. I am not worried about her at all, and my 4 year old daughter is 32 lbs. Chubby babies are cute, no doubt, but if that is not who our children are, then we can't fight it.

[Renacer]

Originally Posted by paperSkin

At 19 months 26lbs is great. Don't worry at all.. my 19 mo. old daughter is only 21 lbs. I am not worried about her at all, and my 4 year old daughter is 32 lbs. Chubby babies are cute, no doubt, but if that is not who our children are, then we can't fight it.

True, I'm getting better on that aspect. In my culture they think chubby babies mean healthy baby and skinny babies unhealthy, I know that's not right but sometimes is in the back of my head.

I forgot to mention that yesterday evening he ate some black beans, a little bit of rice and chicken. I was very happy.

Thanks everyone!

[MeganBeth]

I haven't read all the posts but here are some things we do.

Spaghetti. DS LOVES it. In the sauce I add pureed spinach and carrots then 1 can tomato sauce and then some mushrooms. He hates meat most of the time so I just leave it out of the acutal sauce and offer him some meatballs or whatever I made with it.

Chicken nuggets: I guess more like chicken tenders. I take chicken breasts and cut them into tenders. dip into eggs that have been beaten and then into crunched up cereal. Something like Corn flakes type texture then bake.

Pizza. You can do it on flat breads, pitas, homemade dough, english muffins, etc. I buy jarred sauce and add purred spinach and carrots and tomato sauce again. Top with whatever your LO will eat. Bell peppers, mushrooms, broccoli, carrots even, chicken, turkey pepperoni.

Mac 'n Cheese, i make my own cheese sauce and add pureed squash to it, then add broccoli and tuna as well in with the whole wheat cooked pasta then bake.

Chicken noodle soup (homemade because the smell of canned makes me gag this pregnancy and i like to control the salt) is another hit.

Tomato soup with grilled turkey or ham and cheese sandwhiches. It's messy but FUN!

Quesadillas are a good one too. I take left over chicken, turkey, or pork and shred it up REALLY fine and add it in to the cheese. Then add some bell peppers (DS LOVES bell peppers)if we have them and toast in a pan. Serve with sour cream or homemade guac.

FWIW, my son is 2.5 and only weighs 27lbs, as long as he's healthy and eating I'm happy. If you're worried about your LO not eating enough have you thought about a snack tray? We used to take a muffin tin and after breakfast I'd chunk up some cheese and put it in one or two holes, slice up some apple and put it in some, or some other fruit, add some cheerios and/or crackers and put it on the table. That way he could snack if he was hungry. In the summer I'd put the empty muffin tin in the freezer or fridge over night so it'd keep the food colder during the day.

[summersbluepits]

I have a 20 month old who has been fed organically since birth, and I struggle with finding things to feed also!
One of my favorites is Trader Joes cornmeal mix and I hide organic frozen veggies and free range chicken inside...............then I cut it into 4" sections, sometiems I do meat in it sometimes just veggies but he loves it!
Another quicky mashed potatoes and gravy, assuming you use healthy ingredients. When you consider a baby/toddler's main nutrtional need is fat for brain development, gravy makes a great addition! We also supplement with coconut milk and fish oil, sometimes flax.
I also make homemade sausage, he loves finger foods. And I make homemade fish sticks, which I make like 5 lbs at a time and freeze them tos end to daycare.

[summersbluepits]

Sorry all of mine were dairy free LOL, my son has a serious dairy intollerance.

[Renacer]

Originally Posted by MeganBeth

Mac 'n Cheese, i make my own cheese sauce and add pureed squash to it, then add broccoli and tuna as well in with the whole wheat cooked pasta then bake.



.

Thanks for all the ideas! Do you mind telling me your recipe for the cheese sauce?

Originally Posted by summersbluepits

I also make homemade sausage, he loves finger foods. And I make homemade fish sticks, which I make like 5 lbs at a time and freeze them tos end to daycare.

Excellent ideas as well! How do you make the sausage. Which type of fish do you use? Flounder?

Thanks!!

He still around the 28 pounds, just truned 2 last November. I don't worry that much anymore about his weight since he is getting good healthy meals and he is eating them for the most part. Thanks everyone!

[MeganBeth]

I don't really have a set recipe... I learned by doing the day my great grandmother had a fit that I was fixing boxed mac 'n cheese for my DS lol.

Here's what I do though.

1-2 spoons of butter in a hot pot, add 3-4 spoons flour to make a roux. Add in milk stirring constantly a bit at a time. Maybe 1-2 cups (??) I just eyeball it and stop adding when it's the thickness I want. Add in shredded cheese (1-2 cups really as much as you like), dash of garlic powder, dash of cheyenne pepper, salt, dash of regular pepper (all to taste really).

I boil maccaroni noodles and put them in a 9x13 pan then add chopped broccoli, mushrooms, cooked chicken (sometimes all of the above sometimes none, whatever veggies you have and like can be added). pour the cheese sauce over the top and mix it up a bit, put in a 350 oven for 15-20ish mintues.

[MeganBeth]

Originally Posted by Renacer

He still around the 28 pounds, just truned 2 last November. I don't worry that much anymore about his weight since he is getting good healthy meals and he is eating them for the most part. Thanks everyone!

If it makes you feel any better my DS wasn't 28lbs until around 2.5 years old. I'll find out today how much he weighs today at 3 but I'm thinking right around 35lbs

[Renacer]

^^^Thank you so much! I'll try it.

Good luck at the appointment!

[MeganBeth]

Originally Posted by Renacer

^^^Thank you so much! I'll try it.

Good luck at the appointment!

no problem! Another thing I found DS loves is stir fry with homemade sauce. I put the recipe on the daily plate to keep track of it I'll link you to it if you're intrested!

And DS is 31.5lbs at 3 years old but only 36in tall too, I think some kids are just smaller than others naturally

[Renacer]

Originally Posted by MeganBeth

no problem! Another thing I found DS loves is stir fry with homemade sauce. I put the recipe on the daily plate to keep track of it I'll link you to it if you're intrested!

And DS is 31.5lbs at 3 years old but only 36in tall too, I think some kids are just smaller than others naturally

I would love to! Thanks!

My son is on the little side too, he got it from me hehe. I'm glad everything is good with yours, mine had an appointment today with the Urologist and we didn't receive the news that we were hoping for. I'm a little bit sad but he'll be OK.

[2muchbackend]

All great ideas I'm glad I found this thread. My Daughter is almost 10 months and I'm just starting with table foods. I feed jarred baby foods but use organic for the most part.
Since me and spouse are overweight I need to really watch her.

[garstar]

I think it's really important to let children listen to their own body signals in order to teach healthy eating habits. Don't encourage your child to eat more if he's done you know? That's just what I think!

I nanny for family who also eats whole foods (it's really handy for me! haha) and we feed him the following:

1 egg in the microwave scrambled with avocado (or guacamole) mixed in
yogurt
annie's mac and cheese
rice with organic baby food mixed
rice with anything mixed!
Cooked carrots
chicken
Sweet potatoes
Apple sauce with flax, honey, and organic baby cereal mixed in
almond butter with whole grain bread and jam

[2muchbackend]

Hey garstar just saw this how long do you microwave the egg? Is it the whole egg? Don't know if you'll see this or not.

[VeggieGirl84]

My son just turned 2 and he loves hummus