Table Food Hacks for Toddler Meals

It seems each stage with my Little Man brings a new challenge. We are all in on table food. Sometimes I will still carry a lingering tub of baby food with us out to dinner in case we are throwing a tantrum or not in to table food at that meal, but we seem to be in a bit of a rhythm when it comes to feeding table food to our growing toddler.

One thing I still struggle with, since it’s the response everyone gives at this stage, is always “just feeding him from my plate.” I like flavorful food and I like spicy food and those are not always the best for my little man. And, I’m not committed to just not eating them. Also, I try to always make sure he gets a protein, vegetable, and fruit whenever possible. I’ve watched so many friends raise kids over the years and I love seeing them develop a love for those healthy choices based on the healthy choices they were offered at the very first stages. So, I’m trying my best. And, fingers crossed, so far he LOVES the green stuff most.

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Toddler Food Menu:

Here’s what a typical day looks like for us and then I’ll list out some more specifics below.

BREAKFAST:

• Hulk juice – green smoothie food pouches
• ½ of an egg frittata and or ¾ baby banana pancakes
• 4-5 strawberries or half a fruit cup
• Operation fill him up: freeze-dried fruit, more pancakes, more fruit, a few puffs or fruit melts
• Milk or water are offered

LUNCH:

• Lunch meat
• Handful of mixed vegetables – or leftover vegetables
• 4-5 strawberries or half a fruit cup
• Operation fill him up: leftovers or something off my plate, more fruit or vegetables, freeze dried fruit, yogurt bites
• Milk or water are offered

SNACK:

• Anything in my magic basket on the counter, that’s just random snacks we are trying at the time
• Toddler Snack Mix – mix and match freeze dried fruit and cereal
• Homemade lara bars
• Baby snack bars
• Banana Pancakes
• Milk offered
• ideas from Trader Joes

DINNER:

• Protein – something we are having if its ready, or lunch meat
• Handful of mixed veggies or something we are having for dinner
• 4-5 strawberries or half a fruit cup
• Milk offered
• Operation fill him up and keep him occupied: more of anything we had for dinner, clean out his basket in the fridge, more fruit, freeze dried fruit, a few baby crunchers

BEDTIME:

• Milk cup offered

At 13 months, we are still in the process of transitioning off the bottle. I’m doing everything I can to offer milk and food throughout the day so he needs less at night. But he is still waking up for a bottle or wanting one early in the morning (way before mama is ready to get up for the day!). Any tips or hints for transitioning off the bottle are welcomed.

Now, let’s talk through what that schedule practically looks like with what’s in my fridge, freezer, and pantry.

Toddler Table Food Ideas and Tips to get your kid eating more fruits and veggies

• Hulk Juice (aka green ice cream) – I started this back when I was making a little bit of homemade baby food mixed in with Gerber tubs. This past summer, my husband broke his ankle and had surgery. I did research and saw that potassium-rich foods were what we needed for bone healing so I prepped green smoothie mixins for our freezer. He was not a fan of the smoothies, so I have a freezer full of food I need to use – insert HULK JUICE. As Little Man gets older and learns to drink from a straw, I plan to have smoothies for him most mornings. I know it’s a way I can get fruits and veggies in him at the beginning of our day and I can sneak in a few extra antioxidants, mixins and vitamins whenever possible. Basically, this is just a thick smoothie I can feed him with a spoon. Its spinach and kale-based with whatever else we have around here. Usually, that involved bananas that I let go bad, but they are at their peak of sweetness as they turn browner and they kinda turn in to a liquid mixer for the smoothie. I also use a lot of frozen tropical mix and any fruit that’s going bad. I’ll make this mixture about once a month with all the stuff in my freezer/fridge and that’s the flavor of the month. I do have a “bullet” tray that I freeze some in, but I usually pour it into 4 “weeks worth” size Rubbermaid tubs. I freeze 3 and save one for the current week. I also have a bonus antioxidant powder that I mix in that just gives a bonus of fruits like acai berry that just keeps our immune systems high (which is always welcomed during this flu and stomach bug season!). I call it Hulk Juice so when he starts asking for it, he knows it will make him grow big and strong like a superhero!
• Frittata – When I’m not being lazy, I make Mr. McKinney Breakfast Egg Sandwiches in the morning, but as of late, I’ve been throwing the Jimmy Dean version in with my Walmart Grocery Pickup. One day while looking for a more healthy choice, I came across the Jimmy Dean egg frittatas. They come in a little pouch or two, but I pull one out and microwave it for 40 seconds. It’s just about right. The top half is still a little cold and the bottom half is hot. I cut the muffin-sized frittata in half and little cubes for Little Man to enjoy. If I didn’t do other things for protein, he could probably have a whole one each day for breakfast. I get the one with Turkey Sausage and veggies, just because I’m not sure the preservatives in the other meats, but he LOVES these things! Another option could be to make a big part of my Southwest Egg Bake on Sundays and cut it in squares for the week and freeze the extra. When I get my act together I’ll go back to making those. I just know I’m not the kind of mom who is going to get up each day and make a pan of eggs. All the things I do and make to love my people, I’m just not there yet!
• Fruit choices (this applies to all meals): the choice of the week, and most weeks, is strawberries so I just buy a carton each week, but try to mix it up throughout the day. I was cutting the strawberries in cube pieces, but we had a fruit cup out at lunch one day and they cut them in 4 pieces from the top to the point and I noticed he held and ate them better so that’s what we do now. I also use water or juice only fruit cups. Yes, the little plastic ones like you put in lunch boxes. I could do canned, but I’ve been trying to find what he likes before I open a whole can. He is great about tidbit sized pineapple and when I can find pineapple and tropical fruits that seem to be his favorite and I like that is had a variety. Mango has been another great option for us. We tried mandarin oranges early on and he was not a fan. He is a textures kid like his mama, so I try them again when they are in a fruit cup or this past weekend, he ate pieces of little halo oranges. I’m always mixing it up and trying to help him develop a flavor for lots of things and reintroduce it after some time has passed.
• Lunch meat – I’ve chosen to use Hillshire Farms Carved lunch meats (the white packages). They claim no nitrates and while that means they spoil faster, I know it means he is getting fewer chemicals and preservatives in his food. I’ve talked to my husband who is a poultry meat man and the preservatives on the other meat that we all eat are not harmful, it’s just the difference of his body still developing and not being at a stage to process all that. Plus why not keep it as pure as I can as long as I can. I just tear 2-3 pieces up in little manageable pieces and he eats them up. I’ve learned that the chicken lasts the longest, then the turkey, then the ham. I think he likes the turkey best, but he will eat what is in front of him.
• Baby Banana pancakes – this is a trick my sister taught me. She is a baby a year older than mine and we learn a lot from her!  But, you take a banana and 2 eggs and either hand mix them or put them in the blender. This is another trick I do to use up bananas that have gone bad. It’s also a way I’ve been using up extra baby food. I will mix and make several at a time and then freeze them. They thaw quickly and are easy to just pull out of the fridge and tear. Just yesterday, I put 2 bananas and 1 cup of pumpkin puree from my freezer in the blender with a little cinnamon (no sugar) and 8 eggs. I blended it all together and then I use a shallow omelet pan and make 3 pancakes at a time. They are usually about 4 inches wide. I scrape the foam off the top or mix it in because it makes a flimsy first couple pancakes. I make these on low, 2 or 4 setting on my stovetop. I use one of our dinner plates to the left of my stove and let each set cool as I’m making the next. Then I stack them up and package a week’s worth in one Ziploc bag in the freezer. Now that he is older and eating only table food, he can eat at least 3 each morning. Again, I just tear these in pieces like the lunch meat and he just grabs them and piles them in. This is an easy Sunday afternoon or evening activity while I’m cleaning up the kitchen and then I’m ready for breakfast for the week (or sometimes 2). With this snack, you are looking at egg (protein) and a fruit. 2 ingredients only. If you use a tub of baby food instead or in addition to the banana, its 2 eggs per 4oz. baby food tub.

Operation Fill Him Up | Toddler Snacks and Food Fillers

• So, as we are loving using our 16 teeth, anything crunchy is fair game. He loves to crunch. So, if this is another way I can get some fruit and veggies in him, I go for it.
• Freeze dried fruit has been a big hit. You can find some varieties in the baby snack food section, but I usually get the ones on the aisle where there are raisins, etc. Often there are some up in the produce or deli section on the big shelves that has nuts, and trail mixes and a smorgasbord of other things. But, he loves the crunching. Make sure you are grabbing freeze dried and not dehydrated. They are not ready for the chewy and gummy texture of air-dried fruit.
• Fruit melts – there are so many brands and flavors and options here. But little man loves these. The ones he loves most are the Parents Choice brand Orchard and Tropical Fruit. They are not yogurt based and when you turn over the package, you will see the great list of full fruits and proteins with a tiny commitment to pectin and ingredients needed to hold them all together.
• This past weekend I decided to try him with a “bar” type snack. I thought it would be easier to transport and another way to get new flavors to him with grains involved. I spent way too much time on the baby snack aisle at Target, but there were so many choices. I finally landed on one that claimed “fiber and protein” packed. We have poopy problems sometimes so I thought these might help. Plus, they eat like a fruit cookie. I tried one for after nap snack the day I bought them and he loved it. After looking at it, its not much different than a lara bar and the other kind were similar to a Nutrigrain bar. I may be trying in the next week or so, to make some homemade bars and I’ll share those recipes.
• Crunchy things – I call them baby Cheetos, but the snacks that come in tubs, he loves and I just try to look for options that are mostly veggie based instead of always going for apple cinnamon or mac and cheese. Again, plenty of time of sweets and those nutrition foods, I want him to develop those preferences and tastes.
• I just keep a tub on the table next to his highchair and all the snacks we are eating at any one time are in there. It helps me not have too many choices out and it’s easy to move away if people come for dinner. My husband is also super hands on so it keeps him from being overwhelmed when he knows that’s what he can pick from at any one time.
• I love going down the baby aisle at Aldi and Target any chance I get. Walmart is our default and usually has what we need, but I can count on Aldi and Target to have more organic or healthier options as well as unusual food choices or of flavors.

Tips for Eating Out with Toddlers (and not loosing all your santity)

• I’ll admit, I’ve not mastered this yet. We are learning this stage, so I’ll take tips too.
• When possible I’ just order something, or my husband, or the people I’m with just order something we plan to feed him.
• Find out if the restaurant has a fruit cup and what it consists of. That’s a great side option to order
• When possible, plan ahead. Bring your little a lunch box with meat, or fruit, or stuff you know they will eat.
• Be prepared to look for a high chair with clasps that actually work. Seat the kid of out of the walkways when possible. Take turns eating so one can feed and occupy the baby and the other can enjoy their meal.
• Take sticky mats for the table so you can put food down and not worry about how clean things are, or how clean you will leave them. Be prepared that this stage will just be messy. Keep face wipes in your bag or purse. There will be food on the floor, learn to tip well and apologize. Clean up what you can, but it’s ok.
• And, if they want something on your plate or the table and it won’t hurt them, let them have it. You will enjoy your meal so much more, and so will the people around you.

Bonus ideas for feeding Toddlers

• We are holding off on foods like popcorn, weenies, grapes, raisins, and pickles because of the choking hazard. While I’ve watched all the Heimlich videos, I’m just not ready to put my first aid college class to use. It’s just not worth it. All of those are foods we will probably wait until he is 3 to eat.
• I try to limit sweets. Just because we need to limit sweets. But he will have plenty of time to eat cupcakes and candy, so why not develop the other flavors first and learn how naturally sweet fruits can be and we can make those a treat
• This list changes daily. I try to keep a general rhythm, but sometimes I linger too long at the grocery store and find new things. I talk to other moms or observe what they are doing and incorporate what I learn when I can.

I encourage you when you get a chance and can, taste the foods your kid is eating. It will help you know how to flavor, or not flavor for him. And, it will help you learn the flavors she is developing. I like most foods, so if you don’t this may not be a good option for you. But, keep mixing up the options you are feeding your toddler. Feed them what you eat and give them choices. Let them learn to eat a variety of foods. Be slow to introduce sugars and carbs. They will eat plenty of those.

What are some of the food lessons you are learning as a parent? Is there a tool that taught you what you know? Do you have a funny experience with one kid that changed what you did with the next one?