Purely Pureed

In the best case scenario, good nutrition starts from day one...If eating from the basic food groups is a way of life, there will be less resistance to it. A child who is offered a wide variety of foods from his first bite is more likely to accept a new food than a child who has been allowed to fall into the rut of eating only a few things. It is important to introduce foods more than once...tastes mature. Recently in my daycare, when I offered a different fruit choice to a to a two-year-old who would not eat cantaloupe several months ago, she insisted that she wanted some cantaloupe, and moreover, ate a generous portion. Tastes mature...

The challenge of cooking healthy for children walks a delicate balance between concealing the nutrition so effectively that the children don't know they are eating 'the vegetable,' and making the children familiar with 'the vegetable.' I usually go for somewhere in the middle...Hide some, and let them see some. Then, even if they choose to boycott some of the food on their plate, they are still receiving adequate nutrition.

My methods are just that...methods. I'm not going to provide actual recipes. I don't use recipes for most of my cooking anyway. Rather, I will explain my techniques, and you can adapt them to your style of cooking, and yours and your family's preferences. Here goes:

- Your food processor is your friend. Whether you are a "from scratch" cook or you are opening a jar of spaghetti sauce or a can of soup, add some pureed vegetables to bump up the vitamins. Adding pureed veggies to homemade meatloaf or meatballs is a great way not only to increase nutrition, but flavor and moisture. Puree some peppers, onion and mushrooms and stir them into tomato sauce when making homemade pizza...kids will learn what tastes good on a pizza and not pick off the veggies. Pureed veggies can be mixed into lots of things...sloppy joe filling, taco meat, casseroles...Be sure to match appropriate vegetables with the food...I'm not proposing pureed broccoli in the tacos!

- Sauces and dips are also your friend. Let a child choose what she would like to dip her celery or fish stick in...ketchup on a carrot stick! - while it may seem revolting to you, your kid is eating a carrot, right?

- Seasoning is your friend, too. A little touch of salt, chicken boullion, even sugar on cooked veggies will make them much more palatable to children.

- Of course it's not just the veggies the children don't eat enough of...Meatloaf or meatballs is a good place to throw in some wheat germ or oatmeal for additional whole grains.

- If your child won't eat whole grain bread, try this compromise...for a sandwich, try one slice whole wheat and one slice white. If you serve it white side up, he or she may not even notice, especially if it is grilled. Cinnamon, peanut butter or jelly also make good camouflage for whole grain bread.

- If the kids aren't fans of brown rice right off the bat, try mixing it half and half with white rice.

- As for getting kids to eat more protein, it is helpful to pair it with something they already like. Try stirring extra cheese, ground beef, chicken or ham into macaroni and cheese.

- It is a mission of mine to teach children that the word chicken is not automatically followed by the word nugget. I not only cook a variety of foods, but familiar foods in different ways. The best way to teach kids about food's many different incarnations is to allow them to observe the preparation from a safe distance. Some of my daycare children's favorite times with me are in the kitchen. I think it takes away the mystery of what ends up on their plate and connects them to it at the same time. Of course we use the food as "food for thought," talking about what each item is, where it comes from, and why we eat it.

Here are some of my general standards for encouraging a pleasant dining experience and a healthy relationship with food for all:

- Cook one meal for everyone. You are not a short order cook! Provide at least one representative from all the food groups, and you have accomplished your mission as the cook.

- For anyone under the age of 5, a plate is prepared with a little of everything offered. Once everything has been at least tasted, more of something may be taken.

- Anyone who utters "yuck" or any indication of distaste for the food must leave the table until the rest of the diners have finished.

- Even babies eat what the family eats...in most cases there is no reason for buying expensive jars of baby food! With very few exceptions a baby can have a pureed version of what the rest of the family is eating. Before a baby begins eating proteins (around 8 months) you can reserve some vegetables from the family meal and puree or mash them to an appropriate texture. After starting proteins, there is no reason a baby can't just get a pureed version of the same meal. This is a fantastic way of getting baby to get used to flavors and textures. It must be "jarring" (ok, pun sort of intended) for babies who've been fed tasteless jar food for months to suddenly be fed real food, complete with spices and actual flavor. If this transition is more gradual, they learn to enjoy real food.

- Thank the cook...he or she has shown you a generous act of love and caring by preparing a meal for you.

Hopefully these suggestions will help the children you cook for learn to enjoy eating lots of healthy foods, and just enjoy the lovely experience of eating!