Kids who won't eat veggies?!
Kids who won't eat veggies?
My 14 yr old (daughter) wants to be a vegetarian, which I support..only she won't eat veggies. (She's a carbotarian, eating only pastas, beans, rice and grains.) Unfortunately not in very healthy quantities. We have tried several vegetarian cook books but too many real unusual combinations.
Does anyone know of a kids cook book which would have more appealing recepies?
Thanks
Answers:
there are some good vegetarian recipes on these sites =)
http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/recipes/in...
http://www.vrg.org/recipes/
and this just sounded delicious
Sweetcorn Fritters with Cucumber and Mango Salsa
Makes 12 fritters (Serves 3-4)
You can make these with a mixture of sweetcorn and petit pois or even broccoli broken into tiny florets. You can also replace 1 tbsp of the flour with 1 tbsp dessiccated coconut. If you use frozen corn, you may require a little less liquid. However, if the mixture is dry, add a splash of water till it holds its shape.
kernels from 3 corn-on-the-cobs, each yielding about 225g, or equivalent weight of frozen kernels
3-5 tbsp flour, depending on wetness of corn (or replace 2 tbsp with rice flour)
? tsp baking powder
5 tbsp double cream
splash soya sauce
1 tbsp finely chopped coriander, optional
salt and pepper
sunflower oil, for frying
lime juice, to serve (optional)
For the salsa
? mango, peeled
?-? cucumber, peeled
dash of orange juice
dash of soya sauce
Mix the corn, flour, baking powder, cream, soya sauce and coriander together in a bowl, add seasoning, and allow to settle for a few minutes before forming into small patties in the palms of your moistened hands (or simply form into quenelles with 2 dessertspoons).
Heat a few spoonfuls of sunflower oil in a frying pan and lower the fritters carefully into the hot oil. Allow the fritters to cook well on one side before turning over carefully onto the other. A fish slice makes the job easier.
Transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper and sprinkle with a little salt, or lime juice if your children are up to this.
For the mango and cucumber salsa, simply dice the flesh of the mango and cucumber and mix well. Add the orange juice and soya sauce and serve with the fritters.
http://www.ivillage.co.uk/food/fruitveg/...
minniexluff is 100 % correct, and should get "Best Answer", but, have You tried any Morningstar Veggie Burgers, or Sauasges ? They're in the Frozen Food Section of all major Supermarkets. I eat them all the Time, and they're really good. The Sodium Content is a little elevated, but if that's not a Problem, it just might be worth a try.
Your 14 year old daughter needs to grow up if she is still not eating veg at her age, especially if she is vegetarian. You should encourage her to eat veg otherwise she will be come extremely fat (this is like doing the opposite of the Atkins diet). Eating just carbohydrates, like you are letting her at the moment will increase her chances of becoming morbidly obese and to suffer from heart disease, diabetes and a wide range of mental problems ranging from severe depression to bi-polarism (i.e. manic depression). I can not underestimate the seriousness of her lack of a healthy diet.
As she has chosen to be vegetarian she has to be even more careful that she has a varied diet, which must include vegetables and fruit. You have to tell her this and I advise you to tell her straight that eating like this will kill her. She could also become infertile if she is not having a good diet. Ultimately the buck lies with you, as her parent, to make her eat food she may not like. It may not be popular with her at first, but at least you'll have a daughter who will live after her 40th birthday.
There is scientific evidence that eating something more than about 8 times will make you subconciously like the food. It is just these first few times that are the difficult ones.
As to recipes, I think you should first mix your vegetables together with your other dishes to help hide the taste of them. After a while you can start to introduce the veg as a separate portion of the meal(perhaps not telling her that it is in the food may help - she may be pleasantly surprised). Carrots and peas are often good starters. Mashing them may help hide them better.
Try giving her mashed potatoes. You can flavour these with anything savoury, such as cheese, garlic and other herbs (and even veg).
My personal favourite is roasted veg (such as parsnips, onions, garlic, butternut squash, red/yellow peppers or anything that takes your fancy), which is chopped up veg that you cover with oil and herbs and leave in a hot oven for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. This is good to have with a wide range of mains such as veggie sausages and veggie burgers and is easy to do.
Good luck with your endeavors.
One great thing you can do is to make the dishes your teen is used to eating and replacing the meat with tofu, fake meat or any veggie she actually eats.
Here is a guide that has some good easy recipes.
http://www.vegsoc.org/youth/parentteenag...
Speaking as a vegetarian who hated vegetables, I found that a person slowly needs to experiment… shred some sweeter veggies like yellow squash and zucchini into dishes… stir fry others with oil, garlic, seasonings. If she eats cheese, broccoli and cheese is a wonderful taste combo. Red peppers and onions are mild and fit well into stir-frys and Chinese dishes.
Find out how most people like to eat a certain vegetable. Whenever I try a new vegetable or one I remember not liking in the past, I honestly come here and ask how to cook with it and I state my specifications. :) I get lots of great answers. Spinach is wonderful when cooked with lemon juice and a bit of garlic salt. Maybe she would even like raw veggies like a veggie sub from Subway.
If she is really passionate and serious about vegetarianism but on the brink of tears when she eats a vegetable, you two can go out and buy a cheep juicer. In about 6-12 oz of juice, she can have the nutrients of 5 servings of veggies… maybe she can do chores to pay off the $50.
If you are worried about carbs, get the girl a few choices in fake meats and some tofu. They are very yummy. Morning Star Farms is probably the most kid-friendly brand of vegetarian meats.
But when I first transitioned into vegetarianism, the thing that worked best for me was eating what I was used to eating, but without the meat.
Thanks for being such a caring parent; a lot of young vegetarians do not have that luxury. Here are some other fun recipe sites.
:)
http://www.cok.net/lit/recipes/...
http://vegweb.com/index.php?phpsessid=52...
http://allrecipes.com/recipes/everyday-c...
http://www.all-creatures.org/recipes.htm...
http://www.vegsoc.org/newveg/fft/index.h...
EDIT- Oh yeah, another great thing she can do is to cook. If I get inspired to try veggies, I like what I make. If my man cooks veggies without my knowing (at least in the past) I didnt' like them as much.
There is something to be said for a person's personal choice in experimenting with vegetables.
:)
Have you had the pediatrician talk with her?
Kids never like to listen to their parents. Maybe you could find a vegetarian mentor for her. There are many knowledgable folks in the health food store.
Although this book was developed for autistic children, it's possible your daughter will enjoy the helpful information in it about vitamins and nutrition. Also, autistic kids really don't like vegetable so it is helpful in this regard to ensure she is fully protected nutritionally.
Special Diets for Special Kids (Spiral-bound)
by Lisa Lewis
You may be able to work out a compromise. She's not a dog, she's a person with a free will who is struggling to learn the ways of the world. Point her in the right direction and let her make some decisions that she so obviously wants to make.
Well you can make a veggie stew
I always like that! just add anything u like!
:)<3
3 words. Green Bean Casserole.
Well I'm younger than your daughter and I love vegetables here is what I like to eat you could try vegetarian pizzas or try making only vegetables for a day without anything on the side so she has no choice and you can have you own creativity with the food by putting your own mix of spices in the vegetables and you can add vegetables with the pasta and rice and you can try making salads more so she can get used to them you really don't need a cook book you can just add vegetables to any of your foods.
A Teen's Guide to Going Vegetarian...it's really good! I had this same prob. when I became a vegetarian about a year ago...I was 14 too. I mix vegetables in with anything I can...omlettes, cheese ravioli with squash, etc.
The Enchanted Broccoli Forest (Moosewood). http://www.amazon.com/enchanted-broccoli...
I went veggie at age 13 and also hated vegetables. Indian food really helped me to start eating more veggies (the heavy flavors covered up the taste of the veggies). As I grew older and started to cook more, I began to like more vegetables and branch out more.
It's very difficult to get a child to eat vegetables if they don't like them. Take me for example. My tastebuds are extremely sensitive and as a result, I hate almost every vegetable (except cucumbers, carrots, onions etc). Unfortunately, it's very hard to cook the flavor out of vegetables, and if you do, all the nutrient go with it. My best suggestion is to find vegetables that she does like, and get her to eat as much as them as possible, and you should probably consider a daily multivitamin.
she probably doesn't like veggies because of the systemic pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides (all poisons). You need to show her "organic" veggies. If she will try those or study "organic" farming, maybe that will help.