Kids don’t always like new foods right away. This is totally normal, but can be frustrating as a parent. You may even be thinking, “I know they won’t eat it- why should I give it to them?” But, if you never serve it, they will never have the chance to eat it, right?
Offer new fruits and vegetables many times, served in a variety of fun and familiar ways.
It may take over 15 times of being exposed to a food before a child begins to accept it. The first few times children are given a new food, they may just smell, touch or play with it. That may progress to tiny nibbles and licks the next few times they are given a food, maybe resulting in them spitting it out. Finally after many times of being offered a food, they may actually eat and swallow it.
Making new foods fun can make them more likely to be tasted. Try some of these fun ideas:
- Silly names: be inspired by the color, animals, their favorite characters, sports teams, or books. Example: Green drops from Greenland (peas) is from I Will Never Not Ever Eat a Tomato.
- Simple things like using a colorful cup or bowl to introduce a new food can help. Get creative!
- Shredded cheese, citrus juice, chopped herbs, or a seasoning mix can be sprinkled on top by a child.
- Hummus, bean dip, salsa, and salad dressing make tasty dips for veggies, while vanilla yogurt can be an enticing dip for fruit!
Food shape cutters can also be good for first introducing a plain food item and making it more exciting. Here are some tips on how to use them:
- Different shaped food cutters can be used every now and then as a special way to introduce plain produce.
- Start small! You don’t need to cut an entire lunch or whole melon into different shapes. Just do a small piece of the new fruit you are offering or a few pieces of the vegetable they only sometimes like.
- They work well with firm items cut into flat pieces, like apples, carrots, cucumbers, melons, peppers, and radishes.
- Cut the food into thin, flat pieces, place the food shape cutter on top and press firmly down. If the cutter doesn’t go all the way through the food, first try wiggling it back and forth while pressing down. An adult may need to gently press their thumb on the edge of the cutter to make it cut through.
- If a food gets stuck in a food shape cutter, you can use a straw or chopstick to push the food out from the top of the cutter.
- When using the food shape cutters, the outside edges left after cutting shouldn’t be wasted. They can be eaten as is or chopped up to be used in another dish, like a stir-fry, salad, or smoothie.
If you want to try your food shape cutters with a recipe, this Veggie Flatbread is a kid-friendly option that lets kids personalize their own individual flatbread!
