Ideas on what to feed my 21month old

[Eva's Mummy]

I have been on here loads as my DD is a terrible eater. I have decided that i need to just give her differnt things and if she eats it good and if she doesnt then tuff, hopefully she will start trying new things as she gets hungrier.

At the moment her staples are fish fingers, fish cakes, fish croquettes (can we see a theme here). Pasta (spirals only), sweet pepper sauce or tomato and cheese sauce, toast (only butter), cereal (weetabix, fruit shreddies), fruit, yoghurt, the occassional plain cracker.

My husband is home late so doesnt eat with us and i am totally off food just now (Think its the pregnancy heartburn doing that). So i havent really been making myself dinner to give her some of it.

What i would like is 7 ideas that i can rotate over the week for her, i will sit and have a small portionof it with her and once she starts getting used to and eating those 7 meals i will start to introduce more. I work 3 days a weekso those days the meals will have to be quite quick made. I will also start offering soup and sandwiches for lunch instead of another hot meal as i thinkit fills her up to much then puts her off her dinner.

So any suggestions of 7 toddler staples and favourites and could you tell me a rough portion size for the meal also.

Thanks

[Aishi]

OK I'm not a great cook so easy cook meals are my get go.

Will she eat eggs? If so I've done boiled egg with slice of buttered toast
Mini omelette (one egg, mushrooms, peppers chopped up small as she doesn't eat veg normally, I even put in cooked cous cous or bulgur wheat to make a fuller meal)
Jacket potato with cottage cheese, cheese, beans or hummus.
Bulgur wheat, couscous, barley or brown rice with boiled veg, egg or beans

I'm a can't cook (not won't cook) cook. Hope these help?!

[creations]

I don't think there needs to be a massive variety in food so long as the food groups are covered. It looks like she could just do with a few vegetables so go with all those yummy fish meals.

I steam several veg at once, and also make extra for the next day as DS will eat it cold or it can be warmed in hot water, this may suit you on the days you work and have less time for prep (actually the prep and cooking time is not much but it might seem like a lot of faffing for just a carrot and a few green beans).
My DS eats quite a lot and could have 2 baby corn, 3 green beans and 4 carrot batons in one meal but it really depends what he had for lunch and he does love veg. I wouldn't expect that of a younger child who wasn't a veg lover. Maybe a serve one corn and two green beans?

[Eva's Mummy]

I think I'll start doing enough veg for 2 days, generally by the time we get her home from CM's she is climbing into her chair asking for her dinner before i even have my jacket off. So being prepared is always good.

Aishi - She wont touch an egg, well for me anyway. She eats scrambled egg at the CM but looks like i am poisoning her if i put it on her plate. But as i am trying to get variety into her i might start offering it a couple of time a week as it would be so handy if she would eat it. Especiallythe mini omelette with veg, its been a long while since i tried her with those.

2 stupid questions, with the baked potato, do you just chop it up for them and with the couscous etc, is that easy enough to eat,i cant even imagine she would be able to get that in her mouth from a spoon or might i be surprised?

[creations]

I know you didn't ask this but...if she'll eat cold food things like canned sweetcorn (in the water, no sugar, no salt) are great for super fast food. Also canned beans, chickpeas, black eyed or kidney beans etc are fine canned, just rinse in water and drain them off.

[Eva's Mummy]

Thanks, again its been a while since i have tried as she always refused them but i will just start putting the on her plate and hope she takes themasit would be so handy.

She loves frozen peas, although i'm not sure i should really give her them frozen but she pinched a handfull out the freezer one day (probably as it was the only things he could reach) but she always goes for them.

[ZacsMumme]

I know you didn't ask this but...if she'll eat cold food things like canned sweetcorn (in the water, no sugar, no salt) are great for super fast food. Also canned beans, chickpeas, black eyed or kidney beans etc are fine canned, just rinse in water and drain them off.

I was going to say this too. T loves chickpeas etc on I his plate, or thrown into a casserole.

What about fritters? With veg in them?
Does she eat meat?
Homemade chicken nuggets?
What about other vege chips like sweet potato or pumpkin chips (baked/roasted in oven)
Pancakes?
Does she eat food with a spoon like mashed potato with casserole on top

[Aishi]

Yes I take the potato out of the skin and just mash it up. I got great advice at playgroup today about mashing up carrots with the potatoes so I'm going to try that.

My dd is about 5 months older than yours but shes been eating with a spoon since 12mo so she manages fine with the couscous but I've also seen her stuff her face with fistfuls of couscous

[creations]

My DS is 40 months and wouldn't touch cous cous with a barge pole never mind a spoon lol  Texture issues 

Frozen peas are yum

[ZacsMumme]

If she likes mash you can also try a mix of potato and pumpkin, potato and sweet potato, sweet potato and apple etc.
hugs, my first LO is incredibly fussy with sensory issues so I understand your frustrations.

[Buntybear]

Well if it was our house and I needed to do 7 meals I know Olly would eat it would look like this

1 - spag bol (always have bol in freezer)
2 - roast dinner (for a weekend)
3 - jacket potato - prob with ham and a cold veg like avocado or cucumber (spud in micro then crisp in oven)
4 -pasta with tom sauce and meatballs (decent packet meatballs (or make and freeze), dolmio pouch for sauce or make big batch and freeze in portions)
5 - waffles, fish fingers/chick nuggets and peas (freezer)
6 - chicken fried rice (with left over chicken - or use packs of cooked chicken, can use pre cooked or frozen rice)
7 - sticky chicken with rice (thids is a recipe that takes about 40 mins to cook)

They are about the only meals I know Olly will eat really. Oh I will sneak in number 8 - sticky salmon with quinoa (about 20 mins to put on table) 

TBH I normally prefer 'proper' cooking but I have included short cuts for you too 

When I look at this this is pretty much what most weeks look like for Olly!

[Eva's Mummy]

Buntybear,is there any chance i could get your recipe for your options 7 & &, ive never used  quinoa before?

[Buttonbobs]

E loves cous cous - particularly if I serve it with a stew of some kind, but she will eat it on it's own. If Eva likes pasta cous cous isn't far from it in taste. She manages well with it on a spoon - maybe try it you might be surprised. It's so easy to prepare

[Eva's Mummy]

She will eat pasta so i'll give it a go. Do you just pour hot water over it or something with a but more flavour and veg or something?

[Buttonbobs]

If I'm doing it with something moist like a stew I just do it plain for her, but I have chopped up little bits of tomatoes and peppers and things in with it. You can also cook it with stock or add a bit of lemon juice. Maybe start with plain and see how you get on.