A lot of parents find it difficult to plan a weekly menu for their kid's meals, which is why they can skip it all together. What they don't know is that planned meals have more chances of being healthy as opposed to unplanned meals.
Creating a menu to follow can be easy if you are systematic about it. For starters, you should create a chart or a table where you can write the meal plans out. A small whit e board in your kitchen can work well, since you can just erase the contents each week. You can also print out an empty chart which you can fill in and change weekly. You can stick this to your fridge for easy access. When you write things down it can be easier for you to see what you have, what is lacking and where you can add variety.
Once you've done that you can start with a single meal. Do all breakfast meal plans first then follow it by lunch and dinner; or whatever you feel like as long as you work on one area at a time. As you think about what to put other ideas may come to you so it will be best to start with one type of meal at a time, so your mind is set on one thing.
As you plan each meal, to make sure that you cover each area, think about what the food contains. If you serve lean meat with a vegetable side dish, then that covers proteins and vegetables. If your meal is lacking in something then you can try and make up for it. If you have meat and vegetables then you will need some fruit and dairy. You can make up for this by serving yogurt with fruits for dessert. Just remember that a balanced diet does not necessarily have to be all in one dish. You can always add something to balance things out.
Another thing that a lot of children complain about when it comes to eating meals is having the same food all the time. Mapping out your kids' meals can help you avoid serving the same things over and over again. If you serve chicken for lunch then you may want to serve fish or pork for dinner. Try to serve something different each meal to avoid having your kids grow tired of things.
A good thing to do is to rotate the things that you serve a pattern like chicken, pork, fish and beef can work well. You can also have special days such as pasta Fridays or international cuisine week-ends. This gives your children something to look forward to.
Below is a two day sample menu:
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
Snack
Day 1
Granola and Fruit Bowl
Milk or Fresh Fruit Juice
Cheesy Chicken Quesadillas with Guacamole
Melon Slice
Water
Whole Wheat Pasta with Tuna- Tomato Sauce
Mango Crumble
Water or Fresh Fruit Juice
Fruit Men
Day 2
Spinach and Cheese Omelet
Bagel or Biscuits
Milk
Minestrone Soup
Toasted wheat slice
Apple
Water
Super Chicken Caesar with Fancy Grilled Cheese
Banana Cake
Water or Fresh Fruit Juice
Fruit Juice Popsicles
Now that you've created a healthy menu, the next thing you have to do is figure out the tricks on Teaching Children Healthy Eating how to get children to eat healthy food! Learn them by clicking on the blue link!
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