Catchy Tune Will Inspire Kids to Make Healthy Food Choices

Here in Canada we are just wrapping up what is known as the Victoria Day Weekend which is traditionally a kick-off to summer. It is also called the May 2-4 weekend.  Historically it was created to celebrate and remember Queen Victoria's birthday.

I live in Muskoka, which is cottage country and one of Canada's most sought after vacation destinations.  We are surrounded by lakes and forests, only an hour from either Algonquin Park and Georgian Bay, 2 other local world renowned adventure and holiday destinations.

Holidays seem to go hand in hand with adventures like camping and hiking for many people.  Our lakes are very busy in the summer with paddlers, skiers and sailing enthusiasts and one of the favourite dinners here in cottage country is the hamburger, usually accompanied by corn on the cob and a salad and often followed by pie and ice cream.  When made at home these family dinners can be a wonderful treat, but dinners such as this can be a slippery slope to obesity, heart disease, high cholesterol, etc. if not balanced through the week with lighter fare.  Don't set your family up for obesity.  Make dinners like this a special treat.

Enjoy this video.  I did.

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KIDS CAN COOK

Every family has its favourite meals…pasta, pizza, a casserole.  I'm going to share with you the recipe for a meal that we have about once a week in our house.  The perk is that most kids, if they are over the age of 4 can probably make it.  All you have to do, as the parent, is provide the cooked meat you want on it if you want meat for the protein.  But you could use canned tuna or salmon, store bought pre-cooked chicken, tofu or cheese.  You don't have to use meat if you don't want to.  I use the term "recipe" loosely because there really are no rules…except maybe one, use fresh vegetables and fruits.  We call it the "Grouse Grind Salad" because when I served it to my family members visiting from West Vancouver, BC, they said the restaurant at the top of Grouse Mountain, where the Grouse Grind trail/hiking path ends, provides a very similar meal for their patrons.

Here is the list of ingredients.  Note the substitutions!

Start with a handful of greens…spinach, red leaf lettuce, kale, romaine (no iceberg lettuce)

If you have some red cabbage dice a bit of that up too

I dress my greens and toss them before putting them on my plate

My husband builds his and then tops it with his favourite dressing or yogurt

Add any veggies you like…sliced carrots, celery, tomatoes, radishes, cauliflower, broccoli (I pour boiling water over my broccoli pieces and then chill them)

Top with raisins, cranberries, any pepita, sunflower or other seeds or nuts you like

Top again with orange sections, pineapple, strawberries, diced apple, whatever you have…or not

At any point you can add some protein…cooked meat, cheese, fish, tofu

If you want a grain with it you could have a whole grain slice of bread or a roll.

Ta da…dinner is done, and you could do it as a family or a team.

A four year old could do most of this and would likely love to do it…and then would eat it. If you teach them about nutrition in childhood and aren’t afraid to let them create healthy meals like this with you then you will be providing great nutrition education for your kids and will be well on your way to developing a family book of healthy, good meals.  Note, this is a very filling meal…if you fill a dinner plate you will have trouble eating it all so I suggest you use a salad plate or bowl.

KISS - Keep it Super Simple

I'm kind of a back to basics gal who doesn't like to make things harder than they need to be.  So when it comes to keeping kids healthy I like to teach them to just play, without a whole pile of electronic gadgets, to use their imaginations and to eat ordinary real food.  In my experience, convenience foods are not always a healthy choice and over the years I have learned how to make feeding a busy family as simple as possible.  Since I believe that kids' health is pretty much the responsibility of the parents or caregivers I have always found it easier in the long run to set patterns really early in life.  Daily activities and healthy food for the whole family is a great foundation.  Why would you go to the trouble of buying great baby food, maybe even organic baby food for your infants, and then turn around and give them convenience foods when they are no longer infants. So follow through with the foundation you are setting for your little ones by eating that way yourself and feeding the rest of your family the same way.  It may take a little getting used to and some changes and organization but it is possible to keep your whole family as healthy as possible with real food and great family activities.

My suggestion is to pick a couple of times during your week, maybe 15 minutes after each meal or a couple of hours on the weekend, to do some food prep.  Pre-cut some real food like veggie sticks and have a healthy dip ready to go with it.  When you cook a healthy casserole, and you can make a few changes in many of your family favourites, make twice as much and freeze one. If you cook a bigger meal on the weekend cook it with leftovers in mind for a couple of nights later. Include older children in the food prep in the house.  This is how they will learn so they will have an easier time of making better choices as they grow up.

My energy is at a low spot after work or at dinner time so I don't like doing a lot in the kitchen at that time.  Convenience foods have never been an option in our house, however, making a quick salad to add to a leftover dish I can handle.  It's healthy and fast. When I make homemade soup I make HUGE amounts and freeze it in meal sized containers.  Pull it out in the morning and just heat it up at dinner, add a whole grain roll or bread if you like, and/or a salad, or veggies and dip and sit down and eat together.

I have found ways to keep it super simple so my family learns the basics of healthy eating and how to make it happen.  You can too.

You are all worth it.