Whether you're trying to incorporate more plant-based dishes in your child's diet or just attempting to comply with your child's compassionate plea to not eat the animals, there are many easy, healthy and delicious vegetarian meals that kids will enjoy. The increasing popularity and widespread acceptance of a vegetarian diet also make it easy to find suitable meals while on the run.
Features
Most kids, whether they are vegetarian or omnivore, already eat many vegetarian meals. These include peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, macaroni and cheese, pizza, quesadillas, grilled cheese and egg sandwiches. Work with these natural choices to introduce fiber-rich and nutrient-dense vegetables or fruits. Instead of jelly, add sliced banana or cucumber to a peanut butter sandwich. To cheesy dishes, add chopped zucchini, bell pepper, red onion, spinach, mushroom, sprouts, pea shoots or broccoli. Increase the proportion slowly to allow your child to become accustomed to the new tastes and textures. Introducing new foods as part of a dish the child already accepts is the best way to develop new preferences, according to the British Journal of Nutrition.
Examples
To help move your child away from relying on cheese for protein, look for recipes that include beans, soy or nuts. Nuts make an easy snack, but you may want to purchase single-serving packets if you're worried about the child's caloric intake; nuts contain about 200 calories per 1/4 cup. Make peanut butter and jelly more interesting by switching off with cashew butter, almond butter or some other nut butter. Instead of a high-carbohydrate snack of chips, pretzels or cookies, try apple slices smeared with nut butter. Getting a child to eat bean dishes may be more challenging. Begin with mild hummus--chickpea spread--sandwiches. If that meal is a hit, you can start experimenting with other bean-based spreads. Simply throw the beans in a food processor, add favorite seasonings, some liquid, maybe some lemon and salt, then blend. Bean spreads are great on toast, with crackers or chips and in wraps. You can also try adding beans or lentils to pasta dishes, rice dishes, scrambled eggs or potatoes.
Substitutions
Many meat-based dishes popular with kids can be made with tofu, tempeh or seitan, a meat alternative made from wheat gluten. Many companies use these ingredients to create vegetarian lunch meat, bacon, sausage, burgers, hot dogs and taco filling. Tempeh, a fermented soy bean product far meatier than tofu, works perfectly in tacos, sloppy joes and sandwiches; crumble and brown and use just as you would ground meat. You can also grill, sauté or toast it, or add it to stew or stir fry.
Considerations
To ensure your child develops a taste for the spices that will spruce up vegetable dishes, slowly introduce new spices to her favorite meals. Try taco seasoning, Italian seasoning, mild curries, smoked paprika, cumin, cilantro or dill. Using individual spices instead of mixed seasonings can help you and your child figure out the flavors she definitely does not like. Keep in mind, however, that a child may need to be exposed to a new flavor 10 to 15 times before she accepts it, according to the European Union Food Information Council.
Tips
Adding vegetarian meals to your routine--whether or not you choose to completely abstain from animal products--is a great opportunity to explore new foods and recipes. Involve your kids in this adventure by inviting them to help pick out new items, to plant a garden, to choose a recipe or to help prepare the food. Kids who are involved in the food selection and preparation process are more likely to try the new foods once they hit the table, according to PBS.org.
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