Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, just making food "fun" can get a toddler to try new things. Arrange fruit in the shape of a face on his plate. Dips are AWESOME.

+1. Annabel Karmel's books are a gold mine for these types of fun food ideas. When I have time, I make fun shaped pancakes, cut waffles into wedges and arrange them with fruit on the plate like butterflies and flowers, make faces on sandwiches, etc. The kids love it and it really does make a difference!

Mickey Mouse pancakes are my kids' favorite! Very easy - one big puddle of pancake batter in the pan, then two smaller puddles for the ears. The only tricky part is flipping it without tearing an ear off, I've served a lot of one-eared Mickeys over the years . Blueberry for each eye if I have them on hand. If the kid has an "easy" first letter in their name (C, L, I, etc), pancakes in the shape of their initial is also fun.

Anonymous wrote:Also, just making food "fun" can get a toddler to try new things. Arrange fruit in the shape of a face on his plate. Dips are AWESOME.

+1. Annabel Karmel's books are a gold mine for these types of fun food ideas. When I have time, I make fun shaped pancakes, cut waffles into wedges and arrange them with fruit on the plate like butterflies and flowers, make faces on sandwiches, etc. The kids love it and it really does make a difference!

I liked this site when mine were that age:
http://www.wholesometoddlerfood.com/

In general, though, I agree with PPs - smaller portions of adult food. I just tried to incorporate something toddler-friendly into all of our meals.

Roasted or steamed sweet potato cubes were always one of our favorites. Cut into bite-sized cubes (1/4" to 1/2" on each side), toss with olive oil, roast at 350 degrees until soft. You can sprinkle seasonings on when you want to start introducing different flavors - curry powder, cumin, cinnamon, or dried herbs are all good.

Also, just making food "fun" can get a toddler to try new things. Arrange fruit in the shape of a face on his plate. Dips are AWESOME.

I agree with the PP's.. I would feed what you are eating. I like to try a wide variety of veggies (Usually roasted). Some of the easiest ones to start with (roasted spinach and garlic in Olive Oil (put some spinach and minced garlic in a pan add olive oil- mix and cook at 375-400 for 7-10 minutes) Cut into small pieces. Roasted eggplant is also good (cut the skin off when they are young though). Right now his favorites are: Eggplant, cauliflower and asparagus. For a while it was butternut squash carrots and spinach (it literally changes week to week).

I got some inspiration from Annabel Karmel's books, but I agree with the above posters that it's best to give your toddler the same things that the rest of the family is eating. The sooner your incorporate kids into the family's regular meal routine, the better.

Agree with pp's. I just fed my toddler what we were eating. She got used to the tastes and textures of our food. She is a great eater today...at the ripe old age of 10.

Your toddler can ear smaller portions (and appropriately sized/ cut up) of whatever you're eating. The more foods you expose them to, the less likely they are to reject foods.

I like some recipes from Weelicious. But for the most part, I feed my toddler whatever we are eating. For convenience on nights we don't cook in time, I keep a stash of mac and cheese, frozen meatballs, chicken nuggets, and fish sticks on hand. He also loves Israeli (pearl) couscous for some reason, just plain with maybe some grated cheese.

We're moving out of purees now and out of my comfort zone as a cook.