The Ultimate Picky Eater Recipe Challenge...

[TheLemonSong]

LemonSong - you don't have kids do you - *wink* (we lost our winking emoticon) - it is easier said than done. Especially if it's going to create WWIII every mealtime.


But remember..............and this too shall pass............

It really will.

Nope, no kids yet, but when I do have them I'm certainly not going to put up with this kind of negative behavior. Nor will I allow my kids to lead an unhealthy lifestyle. If that means causing "WWIII" every mealtime, then thats what it means.
My mom let me get away with this type of "picky eater" behavior and I really wish she'd have laid down the law. It never helped me until I grew out of it, so I agree that "this too shall pass" but in the mean time it left me unhealthy, overweight, and allowed me to walk all over her in other things that didn't help me (like housework, etc.).
Parents today are afraid of their kids. They're afraid they'll cause "WWIII" and I don't think that thats going to help any situation. You're the parent, she's the child, lay down the law.
If its a topic where she has a legitimate point, then thats one thing...but she doesn't have any legitimate point here. She wants to live an unhealthy lifestyle that annoys you/bothers you/stresses you out so much you have to post on this message board about what you can do to cater to her negative behavior...why fall in to that trap?
Certainly I mean no offense whatsoever, and to some degree I think you should allow her to express herself and eat what she wants...but not all the time! When she's out on her own, if she wants to be super-picky and eat crap, then that is her own issue, however while she's under your roof she follows your rules! Its never too late to help your family to lead a more healthy lifestyle!
I wouldn't recommend doing the "eat everything on your plate before you get up" thing, but like I said..make a meal, if she doesn't want it, don't cater to her bad behavior by giving in and making special meals for her.
If she wants to spend her money buying something she'd like to eat, fine. If she likes what you make or eats part of it, fine. If she makes her own meal and cleans up the mess, thats fine too. Otherwise, this is HER problem not yours, don't make it yours.

 

[Constance]

Paint, I looked over your list, and I think your daughter can live just fine off those foods. Don't worry about it too much. If you make a big thing of it, it will just make matters worse.
She'll grow out of it.

In regard to pizza, I think it has an undeserved bad reputation. You can cut down on the fat content by making your own...(or letting her do it). Buy the refrigerated canned pizza crusts, have her nuke the pepperoni on paper towels to get out a lot of the grease, and let her go at it. All she needs to do is smear a little sauce on the crust, put on the mozzerella and pepperoni and anything else she wants, and bake.
It will be no big deal for her to boil a little pasta, (my grandaughter likes bowties), and toss with some butter and cheese of her choice. Not a big step to add some tuna and peas, if she'll go for it.
Have you showed her how to make a bird's nest of her mashed potatoes? Just make a little indentation in the center and put the peas in there like little eggs. I still like that myself.

About meat...most of us eat way too much anyway.
Is there any kind of breakfast cereal that she likes? A lot of them are fortified with iron, as are some breads and other grain items.
I'd also recommend you check with her doctor, and have him recommend an appropriate vitamin for teenage girl. It doesn't have to be a horse pill to work.

 

[Paint]

Thanks everyone!! Kitchenelf - you are right, I do have to look at the bigger picture. It is easy to just focus on the bad things she eats and forget about the good stuff. She does have a healthy breakfast (she likes organic 'weetabix' which is very healthy), and I am managing to send her to school with fairly healthy lunches (sandwiches on wholewheat bread, yogurt, fruit, low-fat chips etc.). I guess I am focussing on dinner because that is the main meal of the day.

Alix - I was not offended at all by your advice! She always has liked to be the centre of attention. DH has never liked the idea of family mealtimes - he would much prefer that I fed the kids before he gets home from work and then just us two eat in the dining room later. However, I do believe that eating together as a family is very important - it at least gives the kids a chance to see what we are eating and to try some if they want to.

I'm going to search out recipes for some of her favourite things (cream of tomato soup, pizza, macaroni and cheese) and have a look to see how heart-healthy I can make them. I should be able to make them in bulk and freeze portions for her....and maybe try and get her interested in helping to cook them too.

I'm not worried about calories. She is naturally skinny...we all are. It's heart-health I'm mostly concerned about. She prefers diet soda - but is only allowed soda at the weekends (I buy the kids a 2-litre bottle of soda each on a Friday).

I've tried pureeing veggies and hiding them in things, but she can tell the difference in taste. I think I will just have to keep nagging at her to take her vitamins for now!

I had some good news today...as I mentioned before, both my Mother and Father have high cholesterol and heart disease. My Father has had 4 strokes and 3 heart attacks and ended up having triple bypass surgery. I have always tried to eat a low-fat healthy diet because of this, but I was still concerned because it's mostly genetic. Anyway, I went for a cholesterol check on Monday and got the results today - I am in excellent health with very low risk of heart disease. Both my 'bad' cholesterol and my triglyceride levels are only half of what would be considered 'normal' and I have great 'good' cholesterol levels. It means that I am doing a good job cooking dinners that are heart-healthy....I just need to try and adjust DD's dinners to make them healthier too....if I managed to do it with the food we eat, then I can do it with the food she eats. It just takes some thinking about.

Thanks again,
Paint.

 

[amber]

Too many posts to read here, but since your teen is able to decide what she likes, let her. My 14 year old knows how to cook, makes her own things, much the same as your daughter. Heart disease runs in my family too, but kids their age dont care about that. My girl loves bread, pasta, rice, mac and cheese, veggies (limited to corn, and broccoli), all the things your girl likes too. The only advice I have is to bake things instead of frying, and steam veggies.

 

[TheLemonSong]

I'm not worried about calories. She is naturally skinny...we all are. It's heart-health I'm mostly concerned about. She prefers diet soda - but is only allowed soda at the weekends (I buy the kids a 2-litre bottle of soda each on a Friday).

Heart health (as you probably know) has nothing to do with being "naturally skinny". The same is true of health in general. Weight and size aren't issues at all! Her metabolism will slow down eventually and the bad habits will remain...this happens to many people and accounts for heart disease and other obesity risks being at an even higher risk later on in life.

If you're concerned about heart-health here are somethings you can do:
1- Limit sugar intake and add more fiber! (sounds like you're doing a good job w/ wheatbix and such, but take it even further...why allow any pop at all if you have success during the week not allowing it?)
2- make sure she does a cardio workout everyday!!! (and if you can get her to lift weights, thats even better!)
3- Fats are fine, just make sure they aren't transfats and limit saturated fats. Good fats come from things like salmon and nuts. See if she'll eat almonds instead of low-fat chips.

 

[Caine]

I was, and still am I guess, a single parent. Two boys, 13 years apart. The younger is now 23. The older one was the picky eater. He showed up on my doorstep when his mother couldn't deal with him any more, at the age of 15. She fed him a steady diet of Swanson pot pies and TV dinners, and , maybe, a Banquet entre on Sunday. When he came to live with me, he would only eat beef, pork, and maybe some veal. Hoit dogs and hamburgers were, of course, a major delight. No lamb, no organ meats, and heaven forbid, no fish or seafood. The only vegetables he would eat were corn, frozen, not canned, and green beans, canned, never frozen. I am really not sure if his mother ever prepared a fresh vegetable, or if she knew how.

The younger one I had on my own since he was nine months old. The only things he ever refused, and still does to this day, are flan (egg custard) and sweet potatoes.

I made sure they had something nourishing for breakfast every day, packed each of them a lunch all through school and into their first jobs, and I prepared a hot meal almost every night of the week. They always had two choices: Take it, or leave it! They are both still alive, and healthy.

 

[TheLemonSong]

I made sure they had something nourishing for breakfast every day, packed each of them a lunch all through school and into their first jobs, and I prepared a hot meal almost every night of the week. They always had two choices: Take it, or leave it! They are both still alive, and healthy.

Hope that didn't cause WWIII !!! Glad to hear they're both alive and healthy

 

[middie]

i'm picky too. but nowhere near as bad lol.
caine it sounds to me like your kids were way better off
with you. you're getting some karma from me.

 

[Alix]

OK, Paint, it sounds like you got some good advice here, and YAY to your good news about your cholesterol. I am sorry I didn't get a chance to post my other picky kid recipes, but I will get there I promise. I am glad you are feeling a bit better about the overall picture, thats what we are here for, to support each other! I completely agree with you about the sit down dinner too. Good for you for insisting upon it. Your husband may grump about it now, but your kids will talk about it when they are grown and he will realize it was important.

LemonSong, you make me laugh very hard. Please don't take this the wrong way but I have a feeling you have WWIII coming your way when you do have kids. From your posts you sound pretty um...opinionated and steadfast in your beliefs, I suspect any child of yours will inherit this trait. So don't be surprised if your words come back to haunt you. I don't know of any parent who doesn't have one of those "MY kids will never..." moments. Never say never. LOL.

Caine, kudos to you for exposing your kids to so many good things. It aint easy when you are single to do that.

Constance, you are absolutely right about pizza having a bad rep. It can be very very healthy, or very very bad. Just depends on how you make it. That is one reason I suggest either tortillas or pitas as a base for kids. The less processed stuff, the better.

 

[kitchenelf]

LemonSong will have a baby girl - that baby girl will wrap him so tight around her little finger - his heart will melt, he'll be the proudest man - and he'll know not to ever come back to DC and tell us he caved at dinnertime

 

[TheLemonSong]

Kitchenelf- Chances of me "caving" are slim to none. I'll be the proudest man about my daughter because she'll be healthy and in good shape, not because I let her walk all over me and eat whatever she wants. As a parent I will NEVER (feel free to mark my words) let my children be wrapped around my finger to the point that it harms their future or damages their health and wellbeing.

Alix- If WWIII is coming my way because I'm willing to care enough to say no to Hotpockets, McDonalds, and a lack of proper nutrition, so be it. I am steadfast in desiring a long and prosperous life for anyone in my family, especially children if I ever have them! You can laugh about that if you'd like, but lets also face reality. Most people out there are undereducated about nutrition and relatively lazy. Obesity is one of the top killers of my generation and the generation before mine for that exact reason, and while I'm not obese but I'm certainly not healthy either (although I'm working hard at overcoming that issue). If I were to decide to let my child be the same way as I was growing up (or worse), I would be doing a great disservice to him/her.

 

[Alix]

LemonSong, just remember this conversation when you become a parent.

Yes a steady diet of highly processed food is bad for you. An occasional treat is a different story.

Remember, everything in moderation, INCLUDING moderation.

 

[jpmcgrew]

Paint,Thats a tough one I agree with Daisy they will not starve.When my mother cooked a meal and I would say I did not like it she would respond {Well then I guess your not that hungry go to bed.But I also say the pre packaged stuff is bad with the hidden trans fats but there are alternatives heck even cheetoos makes a bag with no tran fats.If you can get her to limit the unhealthy stuff to once or twice a week she can pick the days she can have them,she does like alot of good stuff so maybe play those things up.Another thing is dont keep those really unhealthy products in the house so she has to find another alternative.Sorry I fell like Im being hard on you .But its tough in America where we are constantly being bombarded with fast food advertising and the grocery stores dedicate entire isles to crap food.
Its hard enough on us much less a teenager but in the end you are the mom so lay down the law.

 

[Michael in FtW]

Remember, everything in moderation, INCLUDING moderation.

Spoken like a true Moderator, Alix!

 

[mrsmac]

My brother was/is the worlds fussiest eater! He grew up on mashed potato with peas and peanut butter with the occasional scrambled egg thrown in! When he was very young every meal was a battlefield between him and my father, David would actually get so hysterical he would vomit sometimes. Eventually mum went to the doctor and he told her not to worry, that he was probably getting enough nutrients and that without meat he was probably better off. When my brother was about 15 I convinced him to rty a chicken nugget, then he would eat them every night for dinner until he was in his 20s!! He has gradually through his own choice branched out a bit more and eats chicken and some fish. he isn't a vegetarian really cause he hates most vegetables - his salad is lettuce and carrot!
In a nutshell, hard as it is just let your daughter go, make her responsible for her own meals or try to accommodate her with variations on things she likes. She will eventually sort out what she likes and will eat. I agree with who ever said don't give her the power in this, say "fine get your own dinner" and relax, she won't die of malnutrition with the list you have given of things she'll eat. You need to give yourself a break this is very difficult for you and you need to know that ou are doing a great job and you are a wonderful mum and she has the problem not you.
My 13 yr old would live on plain pasta with a bit of cheese if I let her!! I think they are all difficult, they just take different paths to get there lol.
Good luck.

 

[BBQ Fish]

Both of my daughters are soo pickey about potatoes. They will not eat mashed unless i make it, but i have to bake it first. They say they notice a difference if it's boiled or not because it tastes bad!
So being the 'oh soo mean dad' i put one potato in the oven, and boiled the rest while they were gone to trick them. Had dinner all nice and ready, they took one bite and my oldest said "dad, how could you"! This eight y/o kid caught me and knew exactly what i did!?

That's not all......She grounded me from boiling anything for a month, Seriously!

 

[kitchenelf]

BBQ Chef - ROFLMAO - I can tell a huge difference in potato salad when the potatoes are boiled versus baked first - it IS in the texture!!!! lol - - Guess you shouldn't have raised such smart kids!!! lol AHHHH - we think we are doing so good to teach our children all the finer things about food - textures included - then this is what happens!!!

When my son was 2 he ate his first whole artichoke - I showed him what to do and he did quite nicely. About 6 months later I made them again and he just sat there - I continued to do things around the kitchen just watching him out of the corner of my eye to see if he'd try to tackle it on his own - finally I said - "what's wrong" - he looked at me with this really indignant look and said "WHERE is the butter"?

We do it to ourselves!!!!

 

[BBQ Fish]

Kitchenelf, you just don't know the heap of trouble i'm in when time is not there and i try to cut corners.

These kids are so involved with cooking now, (THANKS Emeril, Giada, Racheal and all other food network people for making my days a few hours longer!) they actually know the concept of time (when to check on things and making well sure to tell me) and measurement, (My 8 y/o asked my 6 y/o if she could borrow her hand because she needs a "Teaspoon" of salt and not a "Tablespoon" that her hand equils)!

When i heard that, this was me---> !
And yes, we do it to ourselves!

 

[Paint]

OK, I had a good look round the grocery store, and round my local wholefood store too....we found some solutions!!

I found low-fat (or trans fat/saturated fat free) versions of many of the foods she likes, and also some special treats that are healthier than the versions I usually buy (like low-fat, trans-fat free, saturated fat free, low sugar 'oreo-type' cookies). I am not going to buy ready-made pizza for her again, it is easy enough to make her own with a supply of pizza dough, low-salt pizza sauce and fat-free cheese. If she's eating meat, she can top it with low-fat turkey pepperoni. She can make her own mac & cheese with low-fat cheese. I can make healthy fruit-based desserts for the whole family (we don't usually eat dessert - but if it gets her to eat more fruit, then that's OK). I can at least continually educate her in choosing lower fat, lower sodium, lower sugar varieties of foods she likes!

She has done OK with her packed lunches - I was disappointed in that she didn't eat any of the fruit I gave her this week though. Her excuses were....

Mon: Kiwi... "My friend stole it from me"
Tues: Grapes..."They got squished in my lunchbox" (They looked perfectly fine to me)
Weds: Peach..."I don't like peaches, but I was going to try it - but it got bruised and soft so I didn't fancy it" (She needs to NOT throw her lunchbox around so much).
Thurs: Apple...she managed one bite out of it...Yay!!..the rest got thrown in the trash
Fri: Grapes....we'll see when she gets home - finger's crossed!

I just hate it when I buy expensive fresh produce for her and it just goes to waste or gets eaten by her friends Grrr...

Paint.

 

[Andy M.]

I suspect one of the things that hurts a foodie most is their children's lack of interest in food.

I have two adult daughters that couldn't care less about learning how to cook or about using fresh, unprocessed ingredients rather than processed foods.

I still try, from time to time, to peak their interest. I bought them three ingredient cookbooks. One asked for a crock pot so I bought her one along with a crock pot cookbook. She doesn't use either.

My eldest can live on Oodles of Noodles. She has thrived on them since high school.

When they were younger, we would complain the their pediatrician about their eating habits. He told us they were doing fine and were healthy.

Maybe someday, if I live long enough, they'll see the light!