Rating:

0.0 (0 votes)

As a self-professed food addict yet time-strapped mom, I get pretty excited over any new ideas to help me serve my kids healthy food - especially when those ideas streamline the meal prep process!

To that end, I found a really cool website that offers a ton of valuable ideas to make mealtime more practical and tasty for your family: www.feedourfamiliesblog.com. Gina Rau is truly a mom who's made mealtime healthier and she has some awesome tips on her site. Some of my favorites:

Her 'Eat A Rainbow' concept - basically, strive to eat as many colors from the rainbow at each meal. My absolute favorite tip she offers is to assign each child a color when shopping. So, if your daughter is assigned red for a particular trip, she has to try to find red veggies and fruits she likes to add to the cart.
Prep for breakfast the night before. Set the table, set out dry goods and non-perishables (cereal, bread, some fruits) and even set out lunch gear. This will take all of 5 minutes yet can really make breakfast feel easier, especially if you're like me and enter the kitchen each morning in a bit of a fog!

ALWAYS keep prepared fruits and veggies on hand for snacks. Set out sliced veggies while you're cooking dinner. BONUS points if you have healthy dips on hand - pureed avocado, hummus, peanut butter, even balsamic vinegar.
Always needed: lunch ideas!! She suggests:
-Almond butter (or peanut butter) and banana sandwiches,
Veggie hummus wraps (just shred the veggies instead of slicing them, it makes them smaller and less obtrusive), or my favorite, the snack lunch.
Try a snack lunch: include lots of cut up portions of food that kids can assemble themselves or eat in bites. Include crackers, cheese, cut up fruit and veggies, hummus, peanut butter, lunch meat (strive for nitrate free if possible) or left-over meat, pasta tossed in sauce or olive oil...you get the idea.