Most families juggle busy lives: flexible work schedules, after school activities, squeezing in everyone’s exercise sessions and social life and looking after pets and extended family.  Mealtimes can be rushed, expensive take away and eating out happens more often than desired, and that balanced plate where kids learn to eat their vegetables can be a struggle to make magically appear.  Even in the chaos, there are plenty strategies you can put in place to help everyone eat well and enjoy mealtimes when you are together.

 

Shopping

• Shopping on the same day each week can give a welcome comfort to the household routine.
• Check your cupboards and fridge to create your list and stick to your list!  
• If taking the kids, make it a challenge to get the products as fast as possible on the list (of course whilst staying safe!) and time it to see how fast you can get the shopping done.
• Teach the kids how to read food labels looking at fibre, sugar and fat content of processed foods.
• You may even want to choose a box delivery for fruit and vegetables from your local farmer, FIG, PEG, Box Divy, Farmer’s Pick, Good and Fugly, Funky Food Co to make your weekly shop quicker at the supermarket.  

 

Meal Planning

• Meet up as a family and plan meals for dinner. Kids enjoy having their voices heard when it comes to family meal planning and it can make them more likely to try other people’s options if they feel everyone is trying their options.
• Ensure you plan meals that everyone likes at least one part of it and plan for adaptions. eg cook at least 5 vegetables so most people enjoy at least 2-3 types each meal. Offer bread if rice is not enjoyed, offer an omelette or can of beans if fish is not enjoyed.
• Most families enjoy a 2 weekly meal cycle that switches up each season. Keep these lists so that next year you can simple cook, eat and repeat!
• Add a column for who’s turn it is to cook and clean up each night to spread the load.  Plan what nights will be a meal you can cook in bulk so you have leftovers the next day (lunch or dinner), or even to freeze for a future week when you know life will be crazy.
• In the meal plan include some build your own meals.  Placing food in the middle of the table gives kids the control and independence they enjoy to learn to eat difficult to eat foods like vegetables. Try some different combos yourself to role model eating new foods too.
  • In sandwiches and wraps try spreading avocado or hommus
  • In tacos, add finely sliced cabbage, grated beetroot or carrot
  • Make rice paper rolls with wombok cabbage and shallot
  • For home-made pizza try left over roasted pumpkin or zucchini
  • Have a go with sushi with cucumber, avocado and grated carrot
  • Give a vermicelli noodle salad a go: Simply pour boiling water over the noodles, then let everyone put the different salad ingredients of their choice and the different protein options: nuts, tofu, boiled egg or meat, and choose a sauce or dressing.

 

 

• When planning meals schedule time into the day for food preparation. Some days you may want to prep some or part of the meal in the morning before the school run or work commute, or in the afternoon prior to going to kid’s sport.
• Involve the kids as much as possible as early as possible to build their cooking skills.
• Delegate jobs for everyone so many hands make light work.  Jobs for kids are:
  • Preparing part of their lunch box each day, e.g. for Crunch and Sip
  • Bringing food out of the cupboard or fridge or fruit bowl
  • Putting food away when you come home from the shops
  • Harvesting herbs or vegetables
  • Making a salad, tearing lettuce leaves, snipping shallot, and stirring.  When ready moving onto chopping up the ingredients
  • Serving everyone their food on the table
  • Setting and clearing the table
  • Wiping the table clean
  • Drying the cutlery and putting it away.
• Putting on some funky food music can also inspire ‘playing’ and eating the vegetables- check out The Vegetable Plot, The Formidable Vegetables and Teenie Tiny Steevies.

 

Embrace scratch dinners

• Be a Surprise Chef and use whatever leftovers are in the fridge to make a soup, casseroles, frittata or omelette.
• Think of any kind of leftover on toast, easy baked beans on toast, a sandwich or wrap or a cheese and tomato toastie with salad.
• A Ploughman’s plate is a great idea, cheese, bread or crackers, veggie sticks with a vegetable dip
• Leftovers from the fridge or freezer could include some savoury mince on a jacket potato, toast, or spaghetti.