With limited products and produce available in the market these days, we understand that it can be difficult to consistently come up with healthy and tasty meals for your whole family to enjoy. It can even be more challenging if you have little picky eaters at home who only say yes to fried chicken or mac and cheese.
The good news is there are a lot of ways you can incorporate healthy eating into your family’s diet using ingredients you already have in your pantry. Take it from these kid-friendly recipes from seven amazing moms:
Ella and Jacob’s Cheese and Tomato Omelette
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and mom Shiloah knows this too well—making sure her kids always start their day with a meal fit for champs. Their favorite? Cheese and tomato omelette! This recipe is super easy to make and is sure to keep them full until lunchtime so you have more time and energy for learning and play. (S. Ma, via Messenger, April 20, 2020).
Ingredients
2 eggs
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp milk
1/2 cup diced tomato
1/4 cup cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Procedure
1. Heat oil in a pan and fry the tomatoes for about 2 minutes. Set aside.
2. Crack the eggs into a bowl and beat well with a fork, adding the milk, salt, and pepper.
3. Heat the rest of the oil in a pan and pour in the egg mixture.
4. When it looks nearly cooked, sprinkle the tomatoes and shredded cheese on one side and fold the empty half on top of the other.
Toffi’s Pizza Rolls
Here’s a sure merienda hit for active kids like Toffi: pizza rolls! Mommy Raquel shares adding more vegetables and putting hotdogs and layers of cheese will make your regular pizza roll healthy and appetizing. This is also her way for her son to get the nutrients he need even from a simple afternoon snack. (R. Sycip, via Messenger, April 29, 2020).
Ingredients
4 slices of sandwich bread
1/2 kilo hotdogs or ground beef
minced vegetables (red and green peppers, tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, potatoes)
oil
cheese
eggs
breadcrumbs
tomato sauce or paste
salt and pepper to taste
Procedure
1. Trim the edges of the bread with a knife and flatten until thin using a rolling pin or a bottle covered in cling wrap if you don’t have one.
2. Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce and place the toppings (hotdogs or beef, vegetables, and cheese) on one side of the bread slice.
3. Roll the bread and seal completely before dipping in a bowl of whisked eggs and dredging in bread crumbs.
4. In a deep pan, heat oil and place the breaded rolls to fry, turning them as needed, until golden and crunchy. Drain oil before serving hot.
Kai’s Fish Nuggets
Did you know? A serving of fish in a week is essential for a child’s growth and development. So if your kid loves fast food and is not used to eating fish like Kai, then this clever and easy recipe by mommy Melca will be your new bestfriend. Who says nuggets can’t be both tasty and nutritious? (M. Samson, via Messenger, April 29, 2020).
Ingredients
2 eggs
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
onion
garlic
cheese (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 kilo fish (cream dory or tuna)
oil
tartar sauce (optional)
Procedure
1. Combine the first six ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Stir in the fish and roll into one-inch balls with your hands.
2. In a skillet, heat oil and fry the fish nuggets.
Lucas’ “Krabby Patties”
If you’re tired of saying “Eat your greens,” here’s a wise tip from Mommy Elaine: Disguise veggies your kids hate in their favorite meals. In this case, her son Lucas doesn’t really like broccoli, but he’s able to eat it when it’s in his burger patties, which he likes to call Krabby Patties. Just make sure that you chop them finely, so that your kid won’t be able to tell they’re there.
If you don’t have broccoli, you can also use other vegetables like cauliflower, squash, or celery. Another thing we like about this homemade burger patty is that it’s a great freezer standby. You can easily fry it even while frozen! (E. Reyes, via Instagram, April 19, 2020).
Ingredients
1/2 kilo ground beef, lean
1 small garlic, minced
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 potato, finely chopped
1/2 cup broccoli, grated
2 tbsp soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Procedure
1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well with your hands. You can add any vegetable you like, as long as it’s finely chopped.
2. Form into mini patties and set aside. Store the rest in the freezer, separating each patty with cling wrap or a cookie sheet.
3. Heat oil in a pan. Cook patties for around 5 minutes on each side.
4. Serve with burger buns or with rice.
Marley’s Banana Bread
One of Mommy Mich and four-year-old daughter Marley’s favorite bonding activities during the quarantine is cooking together. Their go-to: baking banana bread! It’s not just enjoyable for kids, but also a great opportunity to teach them about nutrition. This recipe is a practical way to use up overripe bananas, too! (M. Roque, via Messenger, April 20, 2020)
Furthermore, having kids help in food preparation actually boosts their morale and gives them a feeling of accomplishment. This is especially important during this time when kids may be suffering from stress due to the effects of the pandemic.
Ingredients
4 large overripe bananas (mashed)
1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1.5 cups flour
Procedure
Combine all the ingredients and bake for 20 to 30 minutes.
Zoe’s Fried Caulirice
Did you know that the sugar intake the American Heart Association recommends for kids per day is limited to just three teaspoons? Yes, you read that right! So if your child is exhibiting some changes in mood and energy, then this might be due to all the sweets they’ve been consuming—and no, we’re not only talking about chocolates and candies here. Their favorite white rice, for one, is also high in sugar.
For rice lovers, here’s a healthy option that uses cauliflower as a substitute. Mommy Lorraine likes to level it up by tossing in some bacon or spam to make her daughter’s favorite fried rice. Perfect for breakfast, this recipe is so good your kids might not even realize they’re not eating the real thing. (L. Depusoy, via Instagram, April 20, 2020).
Ingredients
1 cup cauliflower florets, shredded
bacon or spam, diced
1 egg
garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
basil and oregano (optional)
Procedure
1. Cook shredded cauliflower (caulirice) in 1/2 cup water and let it simmer. Let the water dry up. Set aside.
2. Saute garlic, bacon or ham, and add the beaten egg.
3. Add the caulirice and mix well. Season with salt and pepper. You can also add herbs and spices like basil and oregano to taste.
Luna’s Peanut Butter
Even if you serve the healthiest main dishes, but fail to watch what your kids eat for snacks, then all your efforts are just going down the drain. As a rule of thumb, snacks should be rich in protein and fiber to keep your child full for longer.
Vegan mom Danika likes serving Luna her DIY peanut butter for her afternoon snack. By creating her own sandwich spread, she says she gets to control the amount of salt and sugar her child consumes and make sure that her daughter only eats what’s good for her body. (D. Nemis, via Instagram, April 20, 2020).
Ingredients
2 cups dry roasted peanuts, skinned
1 to 2 tbsp honey or any sweetener of choice
salt to taste
oil
Procedure
Combine all of the ingredients in a blender, and blend until you get your desired consistency. If your peanut butter is a little dry, add a few drops of oil and blend it some more. You can also add cacao powder to turn it into chocolate peanut butter.
Now that you have more nutrition-packed food ideas, it’s time to get cooking! When serving these meals, you can also give your child a glass of Enfragrow A+ Four to help support their nutrition and help boost not just intelligence but all 8 signs of brain development with proper nutrition and regular use. By preparing healthy dishes with love, teaching your kids good eating habits early on, and setting a good example in what you eat yourself, you’ll be able to help them grow up well, and maintain a healthy lifestyle even when they become adults.
