what to feed a 20 month old?

[caedmyn]

I've just started baby-sitting a 20 month old who eats typical processed junk...her mother says she pukes if she drinks too much milk (although she still gives her dairy) so she drinks soy milk. Blech.

So I'm going to try to feed her healthier. My 12 month old doesn't eat much of anything so I can't give them the same things. I was thinking about trying oatmeal or eggs for breakfast, and veggies and fruits for snacks. What can I do for lunch? Cheese and yogurt are probably out with her dairy allergy (even though she eats them at home). She can't have nuts, either, because of my DD's nut allergies. She really doesn't eat a whole lot. Any suggestions?

[pampered_mom]

The most recent edition of "Wise Traditions" had a great article on feeding Toddlers. If you don't get it, let me know and I can try and condense what's written...

[caedmyn]

Originally Posted by pampered_mom

The most recent edition of "Wise Traditions" had a great article on feeding Toddlers. If you don't get it, let me know and I can try and condense what's written...

nak
don't get it

[ConsCathMamma]

http://wss.nourishingconnections.org...%20Recipes.pdf

Someone posted this and I thought it was helpful!

[Nikki98]

Will she eat cut up fruit with a fruit dip, hummus and some veggies-good for you types of finger foods? Homemade crackers with preserves, natural turkey meat slices, - Sorry if this isn't to helpful (I don't know what to do w/o dairy ).

[Tcarwyn]

I run an in home ( organic daycare and this is what is on the menu for us. Two of the kiddos just turned 2...

breakfast:eggs with sauteed brocolli or other veggies, ezekiel toast with butter
oat porridge ( sometimes with coconut milk instead of dairy), nuts ( I know those are out) and dried fruits

snacks:fruit, yogurt, raw veggies with some sort of dip, baked oatmeal, peanut butter cake, nut flour cookies ( could make those with whole wheat, just a touch of honey etc), coconut milk pudding, smoothies

Lunch : monday soup ( any kind), tuesday sandwiches ( often grilled cheese, but alos left over meatloaf etc) with raw veggies, wednesday veggies and meat ( peanut sauce) over rice, thurdays veggies and meat ( and cheese) over pasta ( either brown rice or the ezekiel stuff, I dont like it but the kids do...)

Hope that helps

tanya

[pampered_mom]

It was the "Growing Wise Kids" by Jen Allbritton, CN in the Winter 2006 edition. If you can get your hands on the article it's actually really well written. I have a 23 month old and often feel a little bit unsure of what to feed him so this article was a wonderful surprise! Here's the high points:

• According to Mary Enigh, PhD, natural dietary fats should provide approx 50-55 percent of calories in a child's diet from birth to two years.
• Sources of fat: butter, egg yolks, met fat, coconut oil, whole raw dairy products, olive oil, avocado, nuts and seeds.
• Soaking/sprounting grains, legumes, and seeds is even more important for children under 36 months b/c the enzymes to digest grains are not necessarily fully functional.
• Veggies best tolerated include squash, zucchini and root family foods. Leafy greens can be introduced, but should be steamed or cooked with a generous amount of butter.
• According to Tom Cowan, M.D. ("Feeding our Children"), "...because children have a relative paucity of the enzyme that converts beta-carotene into vitamin A, children younger than five years generally do not do well with vegetables."

To calculate the amount of fat needed/day in tablespoons use the following formula:

(number of calories x 0.50)/9 = total grams of fat for the day

total grams of fat/14 = tablespoons of fat per day

So for example:

1500 calories (for a child age 1-2) X0.50=750
750/9=83 grams of fat
83/14=6 tablespoons

Sample meals for above calculation:

Breakfast

1/2 cup soaked oatmeal
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 cup blueberries
1 teaspoon cod liver oil
4 ounces raw milk

Snack

medium avocado with salt
kombucha

Lunch

1/2 cup grass-fed meatloaf
1/4 cup fermented sweet potatoes
4 ounces raw milk

Snack

half of a banana fried in 2 teaspoons bacon fat
4 ounces full fat yogurt

Dinner

1 cup cream of veggie soup
hash browns fried in 1 tablespoon cocnut oil or lard
1/4 cup raspberries

Some practical suggestions:

• If it's difficult to get toddlers to eat veggies consider: blending veggies into bone-broth based cream soup; sauteing chopped cabbage, onion, garlic and carrot bits into your morning eggs; zucchini rounds sauteed in butter with a touch of salt; shredded carrots, zuchini, chopped red peppers, carrots and onions into meat dishes like meatloaf and sloppy joes.
• Use the yogurt dough recipe to make crackers (poss with a touch of sweetener). Try cutting them into animal shapes to replace animal crackers.
• Make arrowroot based cracker bits - makes a great cheerios replacement.

[caedmyn]

OK, that's given me some ideas...natural deli meat, maybe sprouted tortillas or crackers (if such a cracker exists), rice pasta with tomato sauce...at this age she probably doesn't need a whole lot of variety!

[quietserena]

Originally Posted by ConsCathMamma

http://wss.nourishingconnections.org...%20Recipes.pdf

Someone posted this and I thought it was helpful!

Thank you for this!

[UUMom]

I take care of my sister's babe who is 19 mos. He likes:

Sweet potato, avocado, brown rice, raw cheese, apple slices, oatmeal (plain! lol), yogurt, chicken, turkey, soups of all kinds, stews, almond butter on pita...I dunno, can you say "everything"?

Of course, it's in very teeeny tiny amounts (a couple of bites at a time). But he likes to eat!