Let me start off by giving you a little background as to why I chose this book. I'm a busy mom with a 2 year old that has some minor developmental delays. He doesn't like the taste/texture of certain foods, just like he doesn't approve of putting his feet flat on the floor. EDIS and I have goals in place to help him overcome a number of challenges. One of them is nutrition, that I started on well before his IFSP was in place. I'm not a crazy no-sugar-at-all mom, (i have a chocolate addiction pretty bad). I just want my son to eat better.
I love this book because it has great tips and strategies on how to make packaged foods (or any food) healthier. I'm not getting into the debate on hiding fruits and veggies in your child's food. If you don't like it, fine. Don't do it. I understand it can't be done forever. That's why I have a system. My son is 2. He has no concept of why he needs to eat fruits and veggies. He loves apples and will go get them out of the fridge by himself. All he knows is that they taste good. He has no idea that they are full of vitamin C, fiber, potassium, phenols, and are low in calories. With that being said, my system is to start of by hiding the veggies in purees, then increase them noticeably, then move to chunks, and then eating them all on their own. I have said this to many people. I am educated mother on my child's nutrition. I offer him fruits/veggies a number of times (it took him about 5 times to even try a kiwi), I let him help, I let him pick items out in the store, and I try to educate him on various fruits and veggies and praise him when he chooses to eat some.
In reference to the book, it has increased our awareness of what is in food. I am now lowering our sugar and sodium intake. I am trying to do away with things that have over 12g of sugar and 500mg of sodium. It's not easy. I cut my son's juices with superfruit green tea or give him green tea to drink now. He loves it!
The first recipe we made was the quinoa and bean burritos, except I made them as a taco. I used baby carrot food to mix in the beans. I think it would be even better with some avocado and olives. Let me say that, quinoa is now a staple in my house. It's great! Then I went on to make the chili and banana bread. The banana bread was fabulous! Real bananas, yogurt, wheat germ, and I put in sweet potatoes. My son ate it everyday until it was gone. I've been using wheat germ for awhile now. This book gives me more ways to use it. I put in meatloaf, breadings,smoothies, ect. I love that there are sweet recipes that I can hide nutrition in. I am working on my son a healthier option for an Oreo. He eats the organic, all natural oreo-like cookies, but all he does is eat the icing. This book gave me the idea for a better cookie.
I encourage you to give this book a try. Develop your own system for getting your children to eat healthy and make wise decisions. Your efforts will not go unnoticed. Use this book as a reference if you have to. I don't always follow the recipe exactly. If you think something else would be good added, then do it. You can make simple changes at home to provide healthy choices for your whole family. Buy whole grain, cut down sugars and sodium, offer healthy snacks, ect. I am the role model for food in this household. (My husband won't touch a vegetable.) I feel better now that we are trying to eat better and I am happy that I am showing my son how to eat healthy as well. Oh, and about the purees. I don't always make them. I buy the baby food. :)
Borrow this from someone or grab it at the library, if you want to try it out. And make the banana bread! (We are about to make Pumpkin Bread using Coconut Flour)
