Finger food suggestions...

[sophiesmom]

DD is almost 11 months now, and she all of a sudden has completely rejected jar food and her baby cereal. I'm looking for any ideas for 'regular' food for her. Plus, is it normal for them to start rejecting veggies at this age? I can get her to eat wheat toast, pancakes, biter biscuits, cheerios, etc. (it seems like she really likes carbs). She'll also eat cheese, yogurt and diced fruit. I'm just concerned about her not eating her veggies.. Any suggestions or advice would be great!

[suzska]

My son seems to go through phases were he won't eat certain fruits or veggies. He does seem to prefer the veggies cooked in something (like carrots in beef broth or soup). He also seems to like when beans or chicpeas are cooked in something--my husband will eat chicpeas pretty much straight out of the can, but Evan doesn't seem to like them as much that way. Evan takes after me in that he won't eat cheese. Evan does like his carbs, too. He really like the Gerber Cereal Snacking Squares and Veggie Crackers. At least they have some vitamins added. I have trouble getting Evan to eat meat mosts days. He will have a few bites of my hamburger, but he's not too fond of diced meat these days.

[egoldber]

Sarah also goes in phases with her veggies. She used to hate peas, but they are now her favorite. Green beans used to be popular and are now out of favor.

I have had good success with sweet potato as a finger food. If you buy a whole sweet potato at the supermarket, microwave it for about 4 minutes (2 minutes, rotate, then 2 more minutes), a medium sized sweet potato will be soft enough to eat, but not mushy. She LOVES this. Bananas I can only get her to eat if I HOLD the banana while she bites off pieces. Any veggie or fruit with a slippery texture, she doesn't like to hold.

HTH,

[luvbeinmama]

Most kids reject veggies at differing stages. Sometimes they will pick up later veggies they reject at first. I would try to get her to eat a wide variety of fruits in differing colors. This will help her get the different vitamins she's missing from the veggies. I've heard some moms say their ped. told them that they can get all the vitamins they need from fruit as well as veggies. And keep trying the veggies. She may suddenly start eating some, and you never know unless you try. My son was rejecting cantaloupe all winter, but now is really liking it. And he rejects broccoli sometimes, and eats it sometimes. Green beans are usually accepted, but peas are rejected out of hand. Baby carrots cooked soft in apple juice concentrate & cinnamon are usually one of his favorite veggies (nice & sweet).

[ct]

My pediatrician told me not to worry about my DD's veggie intake. He said the only things you get from veggies are fiber and vitamins, both of which you can get from a variety of fruits and other foods. He said to keep offering them and she'll eat them when she's ready. Luckily she enjoys fruits. My DD also dislikes meat (except processed meats like sausage, lunchmeat, etc. - blah). However, she LOVES nuts (I know, I know - I'm a terrible mother for giving my kid a choking hazard :)!) I buy cashew halves/pieces (they're cheaper than whole and keep me from breaking them up myself) and mix them in with dried cranberries (she hates raisins) to make her own little protein mix!! She's a bit older though (21 months), but has been eating them since she was about 16 months or so (when she got her molars). I found it very frustrating when my child first went to table foods. It seemed like she just wasn't getting enough to eat. I finally relaxed though and now know that I am offering her nutricious food which she will either eat or won't and there is no sense in me getting worked up over it. Best of luck to you...

ct

[sophiesmom]

Thanks for all the advice. I've been keeping pretty sane about it, but in the back of my mind I worry that she's not getting the right amount of vitamins. Since my last post, the new 'successful' foods have been pancakes, cinamon raisin toast ( picking around the raisins) and mac and cheese. She is loving the Gerber graduate stuff, diced pears and apples, and the snacks.

Still a huge no to veggies, will try the above suggestion for making carrots. Tried ravioli and pastina in diluted chicken broth, didn't like any of that! I even tried apple carrot juice, she picked up on that right away and threw the cup down right away!

Also want to try to make her some healthy types of mini muffins, and maybe sneak some veggies in them! :-)

[JakesMom]

I think the veggie muffins are a great idea. My DS went off veggies after a while of peacefully eating them, and it's been a similar struggle -- the doc isn't worried, but we feel like lousy parents for not getting him to eat them. My DS's faves are & were:

* Lenders Mini Bagels
* Dried corn, carrots, peppers, etc. -- they come in little plastic tubs at some regular grocers and at Whole Foods
* Graham crackers, Goldfish
* Cereals -- he loves shredded wheat squares
* sometimes he'll eat julienned veggies if he can dip them in dressing (red peppers, green beans, zucchini, halved cherry tomatoes, etc.)

I've tried "candied" carrots; no dice. He only likes potatoes if they in french fry form (sigh). We did recently discover these chicken teryaki rice bowls that we buy at Costco -- there aren't too many chemicals in them, and they have a lot of string beans, carrots and broccoli pieces. Jake goes nuts for these; he'll eat anything but the chicken. So we give this to him pretty regularly.

I personally think it's time for things like zucchini bread...!

JakesMom
Chicago