What is a good way to get Vegetables into a one year olds diet?

Question

Kids are supposed to have like 6 servings of Veggies and fruit a day, but since you have to cook veggies and buy them fresh often it is pretty hard to get them into my daughters diet. Does anybody have good ideas on getting more veggies into my daughters diet? (ps, the freeze dried veggies are pretty good, but she can only eat so much of that)

Just to clearify, she can not eat raw veggies, they are too hard, she only has a couple of teeth. She is VERY picky, the monkey see, monkey do works to a certain extent, but if she doesn't like it, she just refuses to eat it. Remember, she is only 1 year old (and she NEVER ate baby food, I had to toss probably 30+ jars trying to get her to eat baby food). Smoothies and V8 were good ideas. Also like mixing the veggies into sauces, that's good idea too. Anybody have any good meal-plans for a one-year-old or know of free meal planning software?

Answer 1

Try canned veggies. Also try sting less sugar snap peas my daughter loves thoughs. Try baby carrots that come in packages. Also try the prepackaged salads. Also try coleslaw. You can also get veggies trays at your local store that will last for awhile and she can munch on them. Also try veggie soups.

Answer 2

I spike my daughter's mac 'n' cheese with baby food squash or yams (both are about the same color), she's never noticed.

Buy carrot juice and use it in fruit smoothies with nutmeg and Cinnamon. Carrot juice can also replace some liquids in soups, or can be consumed plain.

Make zucchini, carrot or pumpkin breads.

Hide shredded veggies in tomato sauce over pasta (I've done zucchini and carrots this way).

Have baggies of finger veggies cut in the fridge to offer as a snack.

Frozen vegetables have the same nutrients as the fresh ones and may be fresher because they are frozen at the point they are picked. Some kids even eat them frozen as a snack (little green peas and corn are the ones I've heard about).

Dips and sauces! Toddlers love to dip so give her ranch or ketchup or something to dip finger veggies in.

Make mashed sweet potatoes like you would mashed potatoes or mix them 50/50

Also, when my toddler went through a "fruit only" phase, my pediatrician assured me that a child can get all the nutrients needed from just fruit so I shouldn't worry.

Answer 3

Have you tried V-8? My kids love the stuff. Don't you eat veggies? At 1 year old, your child should be eating pretty much what you eat. I try to always serve 2 veggies at dinner with a meat (or some combination thereof). Sometimes fresh just isn't an option. But canned is better than nothing. Portions are smaller than you'ld think for kids, so just make sure she gets at least 2-3 veggies and she'll be fine. And remember, that serving amount is fruits and veggies. It doesn't have to be only veggies. Juice at lunch, fruit at snack, 2 veggies at dinner and you almost have it covered. Find a child food chart so you know correct amounts and sizes for her age.

Answer 4

I learned in parent-child relations class that it is always best to get a child to eat vegetables before fruit because fruit is sweet and much like candy, becomes addictive. Anyway, it would be a good idea to buy veggies fresh and cook them down. Canned vegetables, however are a good resource. Start off with peas and carrots, green beans and tomatoes. Carrots are espeicially good, so are yams because they have a sweeter taste to them. Also try fresh squash and fresh spinach. If there's anything a child hates it is the texture of canned spinach. Make the meal as appealing as possible and show you eat and enjoy the vegetables too. I hope this answer helps.

Answer 5

V8 cold drink?

Remember that too many veggies and fruits give the runs. So you might want to try a flintstones vitamin or one crushed into food, or maybe some vitamin in liquid form (maybe check with your doctor first). Don't let her see you crushing it up or she will mock you later and it might be a fatal experience.

Stay away from carrot juice for a while as there was a recent scare noted on the news 10/6/06

Answer 6

First of all I am against giving canned or frozen food to a small baby. I know it is a little more work everyday but try and give freshly made veg and fresh fruit cocktail. Vegetables should be partially boiled with some seasoning and then it is your choice to puree them or mash then with a fork and feed. These you can make once a day everyday and do not freeze it as it will loose all its food value. Same goes for fruits try 2 different fruits per day so the baby does not feel the same taste everyday. Whatever you do keep your baby away from canned and frozen stuff. Take care

Answer 7

Well - you can try shredding carrots and putting that in Orange Jello and making a Carrot Jello salad and it's good. Kids like the sweet stuff so maybe on beets you could get pickled beets, Green Bean salad (a lot of people just make that on special occasions but it's really easy to make) Beans - you can make burritos & put some cooked veggies in with the beans & cheese and they'd probably never know. ha ha Sweet Potatoes are good cause their sweet. And just like raw veggies w/ranch dip they might like that, especially if you make a big to do over it say "mmmm, this is good" - (you know the old monkey see monkey do trick). My kid always like veggies so I never had that problem. Hope some of these suggestions help.

Answer 8

My two year old will not eat any veggies unless I make soup with them or mix them with rice. Try getting some nice veggie soup recipes from the internet. I cook a medium size pot and then freeze in small portions the rest and date each container. That way I dont have to cook all the time. Find a recipe for Spanish yellow rice and just add veggies to the mix. My son loves it!!

Answer 9

Children eat what they see the grow-up eat. How much do you eat? Why do you have to cook them all? Wash them yes cook no. broccoli,cauliflower are good to eat uncook.
when you make a roast put carrot in it give her them with a little butter. steam the broccoli, cauliflower, carrots or other veggie that you'll like this changes the taste a little. Every now and then put a little cheese on top that good also.
By the time my children where 1 they had teeth so they could eat small bit of carrots that where not cooked.
Best thing is make sure you are eating what ever it is you are trying to get her to eat and make it a rule that you most have one spoon full of it.
There is a lot of veggie out there you do not have to keep doing the same ones over and over again. Or it you do try cooking them in a different way from time to time.
Try waxbean my children love those in place of greenbeans.

Answer 10

Usually if you put cheese on anything, a child will like it much better! As far as canned veggies go...I have to say Aldi's canned & frozen veggies are just as good as the name brand stuff, so save some money & get the cheaper stuff! Also, if you find a couple vegitables they like, try making a few combinations & switch things up a bit from time to time? Also, try a few different seasonings added to make them a little more appealing. One more suggestion to get them to try new ones is to give some sort of a reward for trying & or finishing their veggies! Give a clean plater award, make up a certificate or poster that they can add a sticker to each time they are a clean plater? Have a big reward set up for them to look forward to if they keep the clean plater going for a month or so, whatever they rally like, (Hot wheels, Barbies etc.). Kids like to play games & they like rewards, so use the avenue that works best for your situation? Good Luck!

Answer 11

One-year-olds tend to like a simple diet.

I'd try low-sodium canned or bags of frozen (so you can take a few and have the rest for another time) peas, carrots, and lima beans. You could serve a mix of these with dinner or serve two with dinner and one with lunch.

You could supplement those with a jar of the toddler beets or sweet potato, even if you did something like bring the jar out with you and use it as a snack. You could use the other jar (if you want) with lunch or with dinner.

The small, single-serve, applesauces without sweetening are good for babies. So are the small servings of diced peaches or pears in cups. Pineapple is kind of strong and can make diarrhea or pains in the belly.

A little orange juice, apple juice or grape juice are another three ways of getting fruit. Cut up apple chunks, slice bananas (or even serve from the toddler food jar as a dessert), or cut up pear chunks as a snack.

Just some simple ideas that are easy to put together, mix and match, and bring out if you take the baby out.