Farm Fresh!

Now more than ever kids are disconnected from their food and seem to think that food simply comes from the grocery store. Transforming the way children eat and perceive food is no small feat, but it is important for kids to understand where their food is coming from. For this to happen there needs to be a shift in perception - a new understanding of health in relation to our bodies, the food we eat, where it comes from, and our environment. This shift is not as hard to make as you may think. The following list includes some fun idea’s that can help educate your children on where their food comes from, and who knows; the whole family might learn something new on the way!

·         Go on a farm tour

·         Take your children to the farmers market

·         Go grocery shopping and let them pick out a vegetable they want to try (even if you don’t like it)

·         Let them help you prepare dinner

Farm Fresh Soup

One of my favorite memories as a child was when my grade one class went on a tour of a local farm. It was an old McDonald type of farm so it had a little bit of everything including crops, cows, chickens, pigs, and goats. At the end of the tour we all got to pick out a vegetable to take back to our class room. Once we got back to the class room we put all of our vegetables together along with some noodles and made a soup out of all our finds. This experience was so much fun and was a day that I will never forget. This experience would be easy to replicate at your own home and is a fun, fast, and easy way to get your kids involved.

Creating positive food experiences with your kids will help them develop healthy eating patterns.  Also, teaching your kids to cook will provide them with other skills that last a lifetime. For instance, learning to cook as a family will:

·          Increase your child’s self esteem. Being able to accomplishing a task and see it through the whole way will show them that they can make a difference and be independent.

·         Creates family bonding time. Taking time to cook with your kids will provide them with memories that they, in turn, can pass on to their families. It may take a longer time to get the meal or snack done but the moments with your children will be priceless.

·         Kids will be more apt to eat what they make. Perhaps, it is the enthusiasm of creating something themselves, but they will be more likely to eat whatever they had a hand in making.

Take your time.



It takes 20 minutes before your brain can tell you that you are full and that you need to stop eating. This is a big problem now because many families do not take their time at meals and end up overeating, a factor that is contributing to the obesity epidemic. Listed below are some tips on how you can get your family to slow down and not over eat, I know they worked for my family, so hopefully they can work for yours!

Slow it down:

• Talk as a family during meal time, it slows down the eating time.
• Designate a specific period of time for dinner (say 5:30pm till 6:00pm) and let your children know that you will sit together and talk and eat for this entire time. This will make them realize that dinner is not a race, and helps them eat slower.
• Teach your children that it is healthy for the body to eat slower so that your brain has time to know when you are really full.  Kids are smart and learn fast.

 Tips for smaller portions:

• Place smaller serving utensils on the platters.  Instead of a large serving spoon, how about a spoon that is larger than a tablespoon. 
• Ask kids to put only one serving on their plate to start, if they are still hungry afterwards, they can add more to their plate.
• Cut up meat (you can usually ask the butcher to do this for no extra charge) into 4 ounce servings.
• Place larger serving spoons for the vegetables and fruits. 

No means no.

Every parent has been there, your child asks for something that you don’t want them to have and when you say no you never hear the end of it. “Jonny’s gets it all the time in his lunch!”; “That’s not fare!” and “please, please, please ,please, please”.  If you have ever heard these lines this post is all about the art of saying no and sticking with it. I know it is hard, but hopefully with these tips you will be able to master the skill of saying no.   

It is important to set boundaries with your children, and this applies to rules in eating as well. Some house rules may be:

1. Wash your hand before you eat.

2. Sitting at the table when you eat.

3.  Eating what everyone else in the family is eating.

The following are some guidelines that will help you enforce your rules and make saying no easier:

1. Don’t be sorry about your rules. The rules you have put in place are there for a reason. They help ensure that your children learn boundaries and they develop healthy eating habits.

2. Don’t say “because I said so…” always explain why these rules are important. If they understand why the rules are important they are more likely to follow them.  

3.  The old “but Jonny’s family…” trick. DO NOT fall for this, simply explain to your children that every family eat differently and has different rules and then emphasize that your rules are in place to ensure that they stay safe and healthy, even if they may not like the rules all of the time.

4. Empathy goes a long way, remember that sympathizing with your children is good but do not compromise on your rules. If you stay consistent and steadfast your children will see your rules as the way it is, increasing your credibility.

Did you know!?

Many companies target their advertisements towards children. They target children because they count on the “nagging factor”- they count on the fact that your children will bug you for a certain product until you give in and buy it for them. Just another reminder of why saying no is so important.

LET’S GET CHEESY!

Everyone knows that cheese makes everything better, not to mention that it can provide you with both calcium and protein (good for your bones and muscles!). But if cheese isn’t your thing, some other options are listed below for those who cannot eat cheese but would like to try out these delicious dishes!

Quesadilla’s

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, diced
• 1 (1.27 ounce) packet fajita seasoning
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 green bell peppers, chopped
• 2 red bell peppers, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 10 (10 inch) whole wheat tortillas
• 1 cup shredded part-skim cheddar cheese

1) Preheat the broiler. Grease a baking sheet.

2) Toss the chicken with the fajita seasoning, then spread onto the baking sheet. Place under the broiler and cook until the chicken pieces are no longer pink in the center, about 5 minutes.

3) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

4) Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the green and red bell peppers, onion, and chicken. Cook and stir until the vegetables have softened, about 10 minutes.

5) Layer half of each tortilla with the chicken and vegetable mixture, and then sprinkle with the Cheddar cheese. Fold the tortillas in half and Place onto a baking sheet.

6) Bake quesadillas in the preheated oven until the cheese has melted, about 10 minutes.

  7) Enjoy!

Mozzarella Sticks

·         1 cup of whole wheat bread crumbs

·         1 tablespoon flaxseed meal

·         1 tablespoon sesame seeds (optional)

·         1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella

·         ½ cup cauliflower puree

·         1 tablespoon cornstarch

·         Nonstick cooking spray

·         1 tablespoon olive oil

·         ¼ teaspoon salt

1) In a bowl toss the breadcrumbs with the flaxseed meal and sesame seeds.

2) In a second large bowl, stir together the mozzarella, cauliflower puree, and cornstarch until well combined. Shape into 2x ½ inch logs. Gently roll each log in the bread crumbs, the wrap in aluminum foil or waxed paper and freeze for 20 minutes.

3) Coat a large non- stick skillet with cooking spray and set it over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil. Arrange the mozzarella sticks in the pan in a single layer, being careful not to crowd them. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes, turning occasionally, until the crumb coating begins to brown. Sprinkle with salt.

4) Enjoy!

Why are these dishes so good?

·         The cheese in these recipes can be any kind including soy cheese, rice cheese and low fat cheese; making these recipes good for those who avoid dairy products.

·         Can make the Quesadillas vegetarian by removing the Chicken, and can use many different alternatives.

·         Cheese is a good way to mask the taste of some vegetables that your children normally may not eat.

·         You can ask your kids to help you sprinkle the cheese on their quesadilla or get them to roll the cheese stick in the bread crumbs to help get them involved with food preperation.

·         Both foods go well with dip making it more fun for your kids!

·         Cheese is part of the milk and alternatives group of the Canadian Food Guide, check it out to see how many servings you need per day!

·         The outer bread crumbs of the mozzarella sticks and the whole wheat tortillas provide your children with fiber and a serving of grain products from the Canadian Food Guide (1 tortilla= 1 serving of grain products).

Both of these recipes are very good and easy to make, I especially love to see the look on kids faces when they try these mozzarella sticks for the first time. These cheesy dishes are fun to eat, good for you, and great comfort foods which are sure to be one of your family’s favorites!

Sweet Little Muffins!

Mmmmm muffins, they are a great breakfast food and an amazing snack.  Even better, you can make them in large batches and enjoy them for the rest of the week. These yummy muffins are sure to get a rise out of your children!

Peanut Butter and Banana Muffins

·      - Non-stick cooking spray

·      - ½ cup of Natural peanut butter1 cup of firmly packed light or brown sugar

·       - ½ cup banana puree

·       - ½ cup of carrot or cauliflower puree

·       - 1 large egg white

·       - 1 cup of whole wheat flour

·       - 1 teaspoon baking powder

·       - 1 teaspoon baking soda

·      -  ½ teaspoon salt

1) Preheat the oven to 350° F Coat a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or line with paper baking cups.

2) In a large mixing bowl, mix ½ cup of brown sugar with the peanut butter, the vegetable and banana purees, and the egg white, using a wooden spoon.

3) Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl or zip-lock bag and stir or shake to mix. Add to the bowl with the peanut butter mixture and stir just to combine (the batter will be a little lumpy-do not over mix).  Add the remaining ½ cup of brown sugar and stir once or twice.

4) Divide the batter among the muffin cups and bake until the muffins are lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center, 15-20minutes. Turn the muffins out onto a rack to cool.

5) Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days, or wrap individually and freeze for up to one month.

6) Enjoy!

Blueberry Lemon Muffins

·      -  Nonstick cooking spray

·       - ½ cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar

·       - 4 tablespoons trans-fat-free soft tub margarine spread, chilled

·       - 1 cup low fat lemon yogurt

·       - 1 cup blueberries

·       - ½ cup of yellow squash puree

·       - 1 large egg

·       - 2 tablespoons pure lemon extract

·       - 1 teaspoon lemon zest

·       - 2 cups all-purpose flour

·       - ¼ cup of flaxseed meal

·       - 1 teaspoon baking powder

·       - 1 teaspoon baking soda

·       - ½ teaspoon salt

1) Preheat oven to 350°F Coat a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or line with paper baking cups.

2) In a large bowl, beat the sugar and the margarine with a wooden spoon. Stir in the yogurt, blueberries, yellow squash pure, egg, lemon extract, and lemon zest.

3) Add flour, flaxseed meal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir just to combine, but do not over mix- the batter is supposed to be lumpy.

4) Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Bake until the tops of the muffins are lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center, 13 to 16 minutes. Turn the muffins out on a rack to cool.

5) Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days, or wrap individually and freeze for up to one month.

6) Enjoy!

Why are muffins so good?

·       Muffins are easy and fast to grab in the morning if breakfast is a crazy time of day for your family.

·       They taste delicious.

·       The pureed vegetables are a sneaky way of getting your kids to eat vegetables without them even knowing it!

·       The peanut butter banana muffins provide protein.

·       The carbohydrates will give your kids lots of energy to keep them going till their next meal.

·       Lastly, there are tones of muffin recipes out there and lots of different kinds. Just remember to try and find recipes that are low in fat!