My Baby Won’t Eat Vegetables! Tips to Tempt Your Little One
If your baby won’t eat vegetables, it can certainly make mealtimes difficult.
What's more, you may worry that your little one is missing out on the important vitamins, minerals and nutrients necessary for good health!
But it IS possible to tempt an unwilling baby – and here are some tips to help you incorporate these valuable foods into your baby’s diet…
1. Instead of water, try cooking your baby’s vegetables in homemade beef stock or chicken stock.
2. Try topping a dish of cooked vegetables, whether cut-up or pureed, with grated cheese. Many babies appreciate this subtle difference! Alternatively, you could try serving your baby veggie pieces with a cheese dip!
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3. It may sound unappetizing to you, but many babies enjoy a little pureed fruit stirred into their pureed veggies. Remember, babies have no idea which foods are supposed to “go” together – all they know is what they like and dislike!
4. If your baby is ready for finger foods, offer him a plate of cooked vegetables to feed to himself right at the beginning of his meal. He will be more hungry then… and more likely to give them a try!
5. Stir pureed veggies into your baby’s favourite pasta sauce or soup – he won’t even notice all those wonderful extra vitamins he’s consuming!
6. Don’t overcook your vegetables! In addition to losing their texture, they will lose their colour AND their goodness. To help encourage your baby to eat vegetables, you need to make sure that they’re both appetizing and visually enticing!
7. A good trick for older babies is to sneak grated pumpkin, squash or carrot into your homemade muffins!
8. When preparing mashed potatoes for your baby, use sweet potatoes instead of white. They are nutritionally superior and an excellent source of beta-carotene.
9. Just because adding salt to baby food is not recommended does NOT mean that his veggies need to be unseasoned! Find out more about using garlic, herbs and aromatic spices to liven up your baby’s meals.
10. Lead by example – eat lots of veggies yourself, in front of your baby and with a big display of enjoyment! Your enthusiasm may be infectious… and he just might follow your lead!
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