Craig and I were watching TV the other night and came across the new reality show where Shaqille Oneal has chosen a bunch of overweight teens to join his program to help get them in shape. They did all these tests with a doctor and it was interesting to really see how unhealthy they are! I think so often we forget about health, and focus more on physical appearance, when in reality it is our health and our children's health that is the most important. There are many people who are very thin that are probably less healthy than heavier set people, but since they are thin, they still eat whatever they want! Anyway, after watching the show, it got me thinking about ways I can eat healthier, and ways I can get my kids to eat healthier. I thought I'd share some of my ideas for getting my kids to eat veggies, and hopefully you could share some of yours! This goes for anybody, even if I don't know you. . . Just leave a comment. Thanks!
Green Smoothies: My mom actually introduced me to these and at first I thought, gross, I could never drink anything that looks like that! After a while, I decided to try it, and it was actually pretty good! We make them regularly and my kids LOVE them, which is great because it is a good way to get nutrients from veggies and fruit! The basic recipe that we use is: 1/2 bunch fresh spinach,1 banana, 4 apples (cored and sliced), and two cups water. Put it all in a blender (we have a high power blender, but you can use a regular one and just blend for a longer period of time). Add more water or juice concentrate (I like orange juice or peach juice) if you like it more liquidy, or less if you like it thicker (I like it more liquidy). Sometimes we also sweeten ours with Agave (a natural sweetner) or juice, like I mentioned earlier. . . pineapples work well for sweetening too. You can basically experiment with all kinds of fruits and greens to see what you like. We blend ours for like 5 min. and it isn't chunky at all! Good Luck!
A snack that Cade really likes is cucumber slices with a little bit of cream cheese, and a little bit of this Organic Season Salt. I also put this on Kidney beans, and avocado pieces and he loves it!
The last thing I have to share is just a recipe that my kids both love. Some recipes with veggies, they aren't too crazy about, but they will eat the veggies in this every time!
Pasta Primavera with Shrimp (use chicken if you don't like shrimp):
1 ½ cups (about 6 oz.) baby carrots, trimmed
2 cups (about 7 oz.) sugar snap peas, or any other green vegetable (we like broccoli).
3 cups (about 8 oz.) uncooked penne pasta
1 tbs. olive oil
32 or so (about 8 oz.) fresh or thawed peeled shrimp
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. black pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup chicken broth
1/3 cup whipping cream (we use fat free evaporated milk instead to make it less fattening).
1 tbs. lemon juice
¼ cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Add the carrots and let them simmer for 1 ½ minutes. Add the snap peas and simmer for another minute. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the vegetables to a bowl. Now cook the pasta in the boiling water according to the package directions. Drain the pasta well.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook them, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add the carrots, peas, salt, pepper, and garlic and continue cooking for another minute, stirring often.
Stir in the chicken broth, scraping the pan to loosen any browned bits. Then stir in the cream and lemon juice and cook for 1 min. add the pasta and grated cheese, stirring well to coat. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the parsley. Serve the pasta warm. Makes 4-6 servings.
1 ½ cups (about 6 oz.) baby carrots, trimmed
2 cups (about 7 oz.) sugar snap peas, or any other green vegetable (we like broccoli).
3 cups (about 8 oz.) uncooked penne pasta
1 tbs. olive oil
32 or so (about 8 oz.) fresh or thawed peeled shrimp
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. black pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
¼ cup chicken broth
1/3 cup whipping cream (we use fat free evaporated milk instead to make it less fattening).
1 tbs. lemon juice
¼ cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Add the carrots and let them simmer for 1 ½ minutes. Add the snap peas and simmer for another minute. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the vegetables to a bowl. Now cook the pasta in the boiling water according to the package directions. Drain the pasta well.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook them, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add the carrots, peas, salt, pepper, and garlic and continue cooking for another minute, stirring often.
Stir in the chicken broth, scraping the pan to loosen any browned bits. Then stir in the cream and lemon juice and cook for 1 min. add the pasta and grated cheese, stirring well to coat. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the parsley. Serve the pasta warm. Makes 4-6 servings.
5 comments:
Thanks for the tips! I'm gonna try this recipe out. I have been challenged at home to cook more. Aaron usually cooks.
Good tips. My tip is to have your daughter watch Snow White. She watches it all the time and eats an apple while she watches it. (She doesn't realize it's a poison apple in the movie.) I don't know, I have a girl who loves fruit. The only foods available to her that she can access herself are fruits, low fat string cheese, and soy milk. Since those are her only choices, that is what she picks. And I have a husband who won't let me buy her sugar cereal. So we eat bran flakes together in the morning.
Seriously, no wonder you look so great.
I am going to have to try the green smoothie, ASAP. I have a really hard time getting Gracie to eat her veggies. I have a hard time getting her to eat anything worthwhile, really. I just bought a cookbook called "The Sneaky Chef" that helps with adding all kinds of nutrient dense foods into things kids will really eat. Gracie will eat fruit until the cows come home but I have a really hard time getting her to eat veggies unless I hand feed them to her. I'm trying these recipes. Thanks, T!!
I have always admired you and your healthy habits! We try really hard to eat well, but I feel like all my recipes are so boring! Thanks for the tips! I need to come pick your brain for more of your yummy recipes! Got any ideas for little ones with not many teeth? Dylan love veggies, he's kind of different than most, I guess. One thing he really likes is frozen peas!
A funny thing about that show...Shaq's BMI actually classfies HIM as obese. So I guess what you said about health is more than just looks is right! (Or in his case, his weight, I guess!)
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