what's in E's plate?

my husband is vegetarian. i'm not. he was brought up that way. i wasn't. he asked that our children be, too. he had good arguments and well, given the amount of decisions he had taken thus far, i gave him this one. beyond protein intake and iron consumption, my main goal with my children and food was to not have picky eaters.

our table rules are simple:
- sit properly at the table.
- it's ok if you want to use your hands.
- sing at the table if you feel inclined as long as you keep eating.
- we understand if it gets messy. (enter gypsy, the dog/floor cleaner.)
- always try everything atleast once.
- never force anyone to eat anything. (we don't want tears/drama.)


so far, so good... we've managed to get our 2-year old to eat and try (and love!) just about everything we've ever put in front of her: green beans, broccoli, brussel sprouts, quinoa, strong cheeses, spinach, omelettes, mushrooms, eggplant, lentils, hummus, squash, quiche, onions, eggs cooked any way you can think of... some of her favorite things are olives and avocados!

i know, i know... we don't always have time. we don't always have inspiration. we don't always have the energy. as much as i can't stand me a child who only eats canned pasta, sometimes we do a simple mac'n'cheese (with a little butternut squash puree hidden in the mix...sshhhh!!! good for E's belly and mommy's conscious!) cause i just don't feel like going all out.

here is another example of easy yet healthy pasta:

whole wheat pasta with a homemade sundried tomato pesto and sauteed zuchinni.

side salad of tomato and cucumber

(dessert: yogurt with maple syrup or homemade fruit jam.)

sounds complicated but frankly, i whipped this up minutes before she sat down. cooking can be simple if you allow it. have fun with it, try new things. i've found that pinterest has been an amazing tool for finding ideas - you have a few awkward ingredients here and there (the day before groceries is always awkward), type in what you have in the search toolbar and BOOM! it has yet to fail me... i'm writing this as i make a super simple sweet potato-cauliflower soup, oven-baked "fried" pickles and a veggie risotto. (YES, all those at once...and all three were found on pinterest!)

bon appétit!

stay tuned for another "what's in E's plate?" coming next week...