STARTING NOW…
It’s high time I dedicate time to writing this down. My family and I have been on an amazing journey since 2011. Beginning with food, many things have changed in my life, not only am I feeling more alive (including more energetic, lost weight), but I have also squashed some lifelong emotional barriers that have bogged me down… and I didn’t even realize they were there before! And as this new ME springs forth, many have asked me about what I’ve done. Well, this blog will attempt to capture this story and hopefully offer you some helpful tips for your personal journey too!
As I draw from the recent questions posed to me, I’ll begin with this one for all my mom friends…
What do you feed children on a ‘paleo’ diet?
I have a challenging (read: “picky”) eater in my youngest one who has Celiacs disease and should not eat grains, dairy, processed sugar, and legumes, but we’ve found some ideas for breakfast and lunch that help. I’ve discovered that if I rotate these throughout the week, she is more open to eating. If you have some other suggestiongs, I’m all ears! Especially if they involve more vegetables!
Breakfasts ideas for kids:
- Plain greek yogurt (if DF, then coconut or almond yogurt) with hemp hearts, paleo granola, or fruit
- Almost-Oatmeal – could add chopped apples on top
- Pancakes (many grain-free varieties out there – plantain pancakes are what we use a lot). Top with maple syrup, almond butter, jelly, yogurt, fruit, …
- Meat (bacon, sausage, dinner leftovers)
- Eggs and meat
- Eggs and veggie
- Sweet potatoes, mashed with apple juice and salt – coconut and/or granola on top. Yum! OR as ‘hash browns’ with some meat
- Smoothies w/ protein & spinach added – for on-the-go mornings.
- Crepes – many recipes. Our favorite is tapioca flour/coconut milk. Fill w yogurt, fresh fruit, almond butter and jelly, OR for lunch, fill with lunchmeat or chicken.
- Muffins or Scones – try plantain muffins
- Donuts – yes, doughnuts! Wonderfully healthy donuts! Ours is a rendition off this original doughnut recipe.
- If your little one will go for stir-fry (meat and veggie), do it!
- Casseroles like ‘Sweet potato Apple Hash’ or ‘Sweet Pot Sausage Egg Spinach Casserole’
Lunch Ideas for Kids:
Ideally, at every meal for your child, you want a meat, veggie and carbs. Think “color”! Strive for this, but understand that this may not always happen with small children. Many times our lunches can be quite heavy on the carbs and too light on the meat and veggies, however we keep striving!
- Pancake sandwich
- ‘Super Quick Bread’ sandwich (recipe from Paleo Indulgences cookbook – using almond flour and coconut flour)
- Almond Butter and Jelly on apple slices (this one when I’m desperate)
- Lunchmeat wrap – turkey wrap with carrots, celery on inside
- Lettuce wrap – lettuce wrap with lunchmeat/Daiya “cheese” on inside
- Paleo tortilla wrap – ABJ or lunchmeat/lettuce inside
- Capello’s wrap – Capello’s is brand name for the only grain-free lasagna pasta I know. This makes an easy (if a bit more expensive) wrap over lunchmeat and veggies. We do not cook it at all. It comes soft.
- Hot dog – read ingredients carefully. I have used King Sooper’s ‘Simple Truth Uncured Beef Hot Dogs’ (no soy, but does have ‘evaporated cane syrup’) or I found these at Costco a few times: uncured High Plains Bison dogs.
- Grassfed burger w/ oven-baked sweet pot fries, some green veggie
- Soup – easy favorite is butternut squash with or without sausage (I add soups here for completeness, but my little one does not like soups…yet.)
- If they like a green salad, then salad with chicken on top, or some other type of protein.
- Tuna or chicken salad. These make great fillers for those wraps mentioned earlier.
I hope these ideas help you. I don’t have very adventurous eaters in my younger kids, yet when I reflect back to where we have come from… well, there is progress!
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