Comments on: Redefining Kid's Menus: Beyond Chicken Fingers & Buttered Noodles http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/ Reviving Traditional Foods Wed, 23 May 2012 14:32:47 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Matthew Olsen http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2503 Matthew Olsen Fri, 02 Dec 2011 03:13:48 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2503 Absolutely agree. I was lucky enough to have parents like you, and in kindergarten, my favorite food was a toss up between sashimi and king crab. I have been ingrained with a deep appreciation for food which has inspired creativity in the kitchen and provided me with a variety of healthy options without ever sacrificing flavor. Let's not limit our children! Absolutely agree. I was lucky enough to have parents like you, and in kindergarten, my favorite food was a toss up between sashimi and king crab. I have been ingrained with a deep appreciation for food which has inspired creativity in the kitchen and provided me with a variety of healthy options without ever sacrificing flavor. Let’s not limit our children!

]]> By: Julie http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2502 Julie Fri, 21 Jan 2011 16:13:53 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2502 Great post! I totally agree with you! My three children are the same way! On the rare occasion that we go out to eat, we always order several "adult" dishes, ask for extra plates and share everything family style. People are often surprised that our children have such grown up tastes. I too, have fed my children what we eat and they prefer home cooked meals over the fast food! I have a step son who visits us on occassion and it saddens me that he refuses to eat what the rest of the family eats and his diet consists of the traditional American fast food (grilled cheese, quesadilla, PB&J, cheese pizza and pasta with cheese). I don't force him to eat, I just ask him to take one bite of what the rest of us are eating, sometimes he does and sometimes he cries. Which is really sad, because I don't want him crying over food, so it's always "what do you want with your cheese today?" My other three children always ask why their older brother won't eat what we eat and I just tell them that he likes what he likes. for the longest time the poor kid thought that salt was "spicy", but he loves McD's chicken nuggets and fries! Very food confused child, but I keep trying with every visit to expand his taste buds :-) Great post! I totally agree with you! My three children are the same way! On the rare occasion that we go out to eat, we always order several “adult” dishes, ask for extra plates and share everything family style. People are often surprised that our children have such grown up tastes. I too, have fed my children what we eat and they prefer home cooked meals over the fast food!
I have a step son who visits us on occassion and it saddens me that he refuses to eat what the rest of the family eats and his diet consists of the traditional American fast food (grilled cheese, quesadilla, PB&J, cheese pizza and pasta with cheese). I don’t force him to eat, I just ask him to take one bite of what the rest of us are eating, sometimes he does and sometimes he cries. Which is really sad, because I don’t want him crying over food, so it’s always “what do you want with your cheese today?”
My other three children always ask why their older brother won’t eat what we eat and I just tell them that he likes what he likes. for the longest time the poor kid thought that salt was “spicy”, but he loves McD’s chicken nuggets and fries! Very food confused child, but I keep trying with every visit to expand his taste buds :-)

]]> By: I Believe in Real Food http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2501 I Believe in Real Food Sun, 19 Sep 2010 22:08:54 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2501 [...] breast until their first foods and beyond.  I believe in dining out with kids and in ditching the kids menus. Most importantly, I believe in nourishing our children, and fostering a love of fresh vegetables [...] [...] breast until their first foods and beyond.  I believe in dining out with kids and in ditching the kids menus. Most importantly, I believe in nourishing our children, and fostering a love of fresh vegetables [...]

]]> By: Dining Out with Kids http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2500 Dining Out with Kids Fri, 10 Sep 2010 04:01:50 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2500 [...] read me rant before about deplorable children’s menus, and the need to redefine them. Even otherwise good restaurants with thoughtful cuisine offer boring and flat children’s [...] [...] read me rant before about deplorable children’s menus, and the need to redefine them. Even otherwise good restaurants with thoughtful cuisine offer boring and flat children’s [...]

]]> By: Dominic P. Tremblay http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2499 Dominic P. Tremblay Mon, 11 Jan 2010 01:12:28 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2499 Haley, I really like your idea of offering children portions instead of children's menu. Maybe one option is to take the full portion for the child and bring the rest home. Haley, I really like your idea of offering children portions instead of children’s menu. Maybe one option is to take the full portion for the child and bring the rest home.

]]> By: The Straight Dope Dad http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2498 The Straight Dope Dad Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:09:05 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2498 Great article. Children's menus are truly depressing. Unfortunately the mimic the adult menus which are junk as well in most chain restaurants. Bland fried fatty foods for the adults and bland fried fatty food in smaller portions for the kids. My daughter loves sushi and Thai coconut soup. This wasn't by accident. We love to eat these things and she's been exposed to it since she was a toddler.In my home we do a child's tasting menu to liven things up.I wrote about it here <a href="http://www.straightdopedad.com/feeding-picky-eaters/" rel="nofollow"> Feeding Picky Eaters</a>. Thanks. Great article. Children’s menus are truly depressing. Unfortunately the mimic the adult menus which are junk as well in most chain restaurants. Bland fried fatty foods for the adults and bland fried fatty food in smaller portions for the kids. My daughter loves sushi and Thai coconut soup. This wasn’t by accident. We love to eat these things and she’s been exposed to it since she was a toddler.In my home we do a child’s tasting menu to liven things up.I wrote about it here Feeding Picky Eaters. Thanks.

]]> By: Jenny http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2497 Jenny Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:02:35 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2497 <p>Pippi -</p> <p>I think feeding your daughter what you prepare for yourself is spot-on, though there's been more than a few nights when I whip up scrambled eggs for my little guy when I'm exhausted and won't get supper on the plate until well after his 7:00 p.m. bedtime.  We're in the let-him-go-hungry camp now that he's turned four, but I wouldn't and didn't take that approach when he was under two.  I'd always offer a before bed snack regardless of whether he ate his supper or not until he was about 2.5 or so.  Last night he didn't eat and chose to go straight to bed then I woke up at about 2:00 a.m. after hearing a commotion in the kitchen; he'd woken up hungry in the middle of the night and was fixing himself a midnight snack! </p> <p>Take Care -</p> <p>Jenny</p> Pippi -

I think feeding your daughter what you prepare for yourself is spot-on, though there’s been more than a few nights when I whip up scrambled eggs for my little guy when I’m exhausted and won’t get supper on the plate until well after his 7:00 p.m. bedtime.  We’re in the let-him-go-hungry camp now that he’s turned four, but I wouldn’t and didn’t take that approach when he was under two.  I’d always offer a before bed snack regardless of whether he ate his supper or not until he was about 2.5 or so.  Last night he didn’t eat and chose to go straight to bed then I woke up at about 2:00 a.m. after hearing a commotion in the kitchen; he’d woken up hungry in the middle of the night and was fixing himself a midnight snack! 

Take Care -

Jenny

]]> By: Pippi http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2496 Pippi Thu, 24 Sep 2009 22:13:06 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2496 I always feed my almost-2-year-old daughter whatever we eat (unless it's taking to long to make and she's tired -- then I resort to the standby of scrambled eggs), but when she doesn't want something she's stubborn. I was in the "let them be hungry" camp until she would scream herself to sleep and wake up all night wanting to nurse. If she didn't like it, the only substitute was Mama milk. She could scream all night with us trying to console her without giving in and giving her milk. So now if she doesn't eat much at dinner I casually offer a smoothie before bed. It usually has yogurt, berries, and some nut butter in it. She loves it, it fills her up, and we all sleep. She hasn't figured out yet that if she doesn't eat dinner she gets a smoothie and we might need to change tactics when she does, but for now a healthy alternative seems the best option. I always feed my almost-2-year-old daughter whatever we eat (unless it’s taking to long to make and she’s tired — then I resort to the standby of scrambled eggs), but when she doesn’t want something she’s stubborn. I was in the “let them be hungry” camp until she would scream herself to sleep and wake up all night wanting to nurse. If she didn’t like it, the only substitute was Mama milk. She could scream all night with us trying to console her without giving in and giving her milk. So now if she doesn’t eat much at dinner I casually offer a smoothie before bed. It usually has yogurt, berries, and some nut butter in it. She loves it, it fills her up, and we all sleep. She hasn’t figured out yet that if she doesn’t eat dinner she gets a smoothie and we might need to change tactics when she does, but for now a healthy alternative seems the best option.

]]> By: Peggy http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2495 Peggy Tue, 04 Aug 2009 06:37:07 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2495 I completely agree with you-in theory! My first 2 years with kids we ate healthy, including as much organic everything as possible, tofu, sushi, etc. Then we moved to Big Agribusiness-ville Nebraska, where organic food is unheard of (except what I am able to grow in the back yard), and good restaurants don't exist even for grown-ups, let alone kids. Now that I have a 3 y/o and 2 y/o, we have fallen into the trap of just ordering grilled cheese (1 for them to share, with a side of overcooked, limp broccoli), because it has the best chance of being edible. The stuff we order for us is hit-or-miss, and we certainly share as much of ours with the kids as they will eat, sometimes a lot, sometimes a little. But the grilled cheese often gets left untouched as much as anything else. While we're on the subject, why doesn't McD's offer their Fruit and Walnut salad as a happy meal option? I've even asked my friend who works at McD's corporate HQ, and got no response. So, my kids often get just a bag of apples and bottle of milk when we go to McD's. It's all they'll eat anyway.... To those of you in civilization, take advantage of your location, and be sure to eat some sushi for me! I completely agree with you-in theory! My first 2 years with kids we ate healthy, including as much organic everything as possible, tofu, sushi, etc. Then we moved to Big Agribusiness-ville Nebraska, where organic food is unheard of (except what I am able to grow in the back yard), and good restaurants don’t exist even for grown-ups, let alone kids. Now that I have a 3 y/o and 2 y/o, we have fallen into the trap of just ordering grilled cheese (1 for them to share, with a side of overcooked, limp broccoli), because it has the best chance of being edible. The stuff we order for us is hit-or-miss, and we certainly share as much of ours with the kids as they will eat, sometimes a lot, sometimes a little. But the grilled cheese often gets left untouched as much as anything else.

While we’re on the subject, why doesn’t McD’s offer their Fruit and Walnut salad as a happy meal option? I’ve even asked my friend who works at McD’s corporate HQ, and got no response. So, my kids often get just a bag of apples and bottle of milk when we go to McD’s. It’s all they’ll eat anyway….

To those of you in civilization, take advantage of your location, and be sure to eat some sushi for me!

]]> By: Lisa http://nourishedkitchen.com/redefining-kids-menus/#comment-2494 Lisa Thu, 30 Jul 2009 13:08:44 +0000 http://nourishedkitchen.com/?p=596#comment-2494 Thank you so much for posting this! I love the picture of your son eating that soup. I am definitely going to give this some more thought. I would love for my children to enjoy real food when we go out to eat. Thank you so much for posting this! I love the picture of your son eating that soup. I am definitely going to give this some more thought. I would love for my children to enjoy real food when we go out to eat.

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