My little Buttercup has become quite adept at eating. In fact, she's no longer interested in the morsels that are made exclusively for her. She wants what's on my plate. That's fine by me because it means that I've got one fewer meal to cook. Meals of late have been chicken or fish or vegetarian and always things that can be cut up into smallish chunks. She loves pasta. She loves cheese. Fruit is better than vegetables, but even broccoli gets eaten these days. It's every mother's dream, right?
So here's where it gets tricky. Husband and I want to drop some pounds and move to a healthier lifestyle. You know, that whole setting a good example thing. This means that we're shifting to lower fat meals but active critters like Buttercup need the calories. Now I'm on the quest for menus that meet all our needs without resorting to cooking three separate meals multiple times a day.
What do you think? Is this possible? How do you make a meal that has flavor, that can be eaten by toddlers and meets a wide range of caloric needs? I'm researching this seemingly impossible combination, and I'm starting with you. What sorts of healthy meals did/does your young family enjoy?
4 comments:
Great pic of the offspring. What a cutie. I don't have any suggestions, but being only a few short months behind you I will be keeping a keen eye on your progress.
well, if you have your kid eating broccoli, you've already achieved the impossible, so i'm sure you'll do just fine with this next challenge too!
the only thing I thought of is to give her much of what's on your plate too, but then maybe just throw some additional high-fat (but low-prep) stuff like cheese clumps, yogurt, etc.
P.S. Don't ask me what the "etc" includes - I couldn't think of anything else : )
It definitely is possible. You might make sure there's extra grains or carbs for your Buttercup, in addition to what you and your husband are eating.
In our house, I tend to avoid meat as much as possible (I'd love to go totally vegetarian, but there are moments when I want a nice, juicy burger), so I make a meal for all of us, but only purchase enough meat for the husband and son.
Also, it is mostly about portion control in shedding pounds. When you measure out the 2 ounce serving per person from a box of pasta, it is smaller than most people are accustomed to making.
You can also make sure Buttercup gets plenty of snacks during the day to keep her energized! And when she's enjoying something high-calorie, you can grab a yogurt or fruit or something lower-cal for yourself.
Just some ideas. :)
Mark - Sounds like a plan. I have other recipes for you to try though. ;)
Karin - Yeah, maybe that's the way to do it; higher fat snacks but lower fat main meals.
Wendy - I'm there with you! I would prefer to eat the good stuff, just smaller portions but Husband prefers quantity. As he's got 70 or so pounds to lose and I've got 10, we're trying to cater to his needs. I like your idea of the higher calorie snacks and lower fat meals that we can all enjoy.
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