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One of my favorite activities as a Healthy Eating/Behavioral Feeding Coach was facilitating cooking classes for kids. I had groups for children as young as three years old, with groups that went up to age 22 for young adults with special needs. While there really wasn't much cooking involved in these conference room-held classes, there was a lot of education about healthy foods, a lot of hands on food prep, a measurable amount of brave tasting of new foods, and a ton of creativity and fun!
Help a Picky Eater Try New Foods
The research is clear that when kids have a hand in helping to prepare foods, they are often more likely to try the foods. Having your picky eater or eager helper 'Kid in the Kitchen' share in food preparation tasks can go a long way to support a healthy relationship with food for them. Taking it slow with baby steps (like letting them help get the carrots out of the fridge for the salad), allows them time to get comfortable with the newness of foods that they are unfamiliar with. Let's face it, often times picky eaters have already decided they do not like a food before even trying it.
Gather your kids in the kitchen for a little food art FUN! Use your creativity and spark theirs while simply making this activity about having fun with food.
You don't have to have a lot of ingredients...just use your imagination. Our cute little turtle here is made with only 2 ingredients...kiwi and green grapes. Yes, those tiny turtle eyes are made from kiwi seeds. :)
There are no rules to food art fun. Try using your child's favorite themes whether it be characters, vehicles, colors, shapes, animals...you get the idea!
Use cookie cutters to make different 'flower' shapes, adding to the fun for creating this fruit flower bouquet. The fruits are put on the ends of kabob sticks, and you can use cake pop sticks as an alternative. Kabob sticks do tend to make it easier to put on the fruits, but you can decide based upon your kid in the kitchen's age and readiness skills.
You can keep things simple to make food creations and just use some rainbow foods (AKA fruits and veggies), or add in your kid's favorite crunchy snacks to entice them to get creating.
Have your kid chef engage with the foods - touching them, smelling them, and cutting them with a kid-safe knife like this favorite best seller set from Tovla. This can help a picky eater try new foods by first getting comfortable with these foods in their space. It's also really a great way to help kids with sensory issues lessen their defensiveness as they get used to working with foods and how the foods look and smell, along with the texture, temperature, and taste of different foods.
A veggie train is so much fun to make! Just cut up some colored bell peppers for the train cars, slice some carrots and celery for the cargo, slice (and attach with toothpicks) some cucumbers, and add some broccoli 'trees' nearby the train track, and you're all set. Really, any vegetables will do here.
You can add a salad dressing or a dip to further encourage some brave tasting. Dipping is a hit with many kids when it comes to not only their favorites (think fries with ketchup), but also when they are trying new foods.
Here's a simple, yummy homemade dip recipe that you can make and taste together. Your kid chef can help you measure and stir the ingredients.
Yogurt Veggie Dip
8 oz. plain yogurt (Greek yogurt has more protein and you can also use plain dairy-free yogurt)
8 oz. mayonnaise (any favorite brand will do)
1 Tablespoon parsley flakes (sometimes we omit these and it still tastes yummy)
1 Tablespoon onion powder
1 teaspoon dill weed
Instructions
Measure and put all ingredients together in a small bowl.
Stir all ingredients together, blending well.
3. Chill in the refrigerator to enhance flavor.
This simple veggie 'sushi' is make up of just slices of peeled cucumber with cream cheese, hummus, or guacamole, cooked rice, and raw veggies.
Let your kid chef spread the cream cheese, hummus, or guacamole onto the cucumber slice and then lay the veggies (and rice if using) along the cucumber slice. Then help them get started rolling it up. Voila! These are scrumptious and it's really fun for kids to make their own unique veggie sushi masterpieces.
Teach your picky eater that all of these foods are fun! And don't forget to show them what you can make, too! Our kids learn by example so feel free to 'lay it on thick' when you're creating and commenting on how DELICIOUS these foods taste as you do some brave tasting yourself for your kids to witness.
And while you're having your food fun...if a bit of brave tasting happens (with a little modeling, no pressure, and some loving encouragement along the way, of course)...even better! Look at this as an important stepping stone to peak your child's interest, increase their comfort level, and open the door to them developing a healthier relationship with food. There's plenty of time later for them to do some brave tasting as they get more and more comfortable interacting with these new and healthy foods.
Look at the Mickey Mouse food art creation we made in class together...the kids had so much fun! As you can see, we added some kid-favorite treats to entice our picky eaters to get involved (an Uncrustable with some Nutella for Mickey's head, cream-filled cookies for his ears, pretzels for his arms and legs, and marshmallows for his buttons). The rainbow foods (AKA fruits and veggies) we used were blueberries, strawberries, apples, and celery.
You may be pleasantly surprised with your picky eater's response when you share some food fun together! I hope you've found these food art ideas inspiring.
Happy Creating!
Reward your picky eater each time they try a new food! Use a sticker chart like this one to track new foods. Kids can work toward bigger incentives to keep the brave tasting going!
GET YOUR FREE COPY NOW!
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All blog content shared through HealthSmart! Kids is for informational purposes only and not to be construed as medical advice. Always talk with your qualified health care provider for managing your health care needs.