What’s your child’s/teens favourite meal? Need ideas for fussy eater

[Lovemusic33]

Looking for inspiration. Dd1 is a very fussy eater with lots of sensory issues around food, I’m really struggling as she’s gaining weight which effects a medical condition she has, she’s a teenager and stubborn but I have managed to add a couple vegetables to her diet after many years of her refusing to even try anything. Her diet mainly consists of bread and cheese, nothing in a sauce, mainly dry carbs, she doesn’t like meat, doesn’t like veg so it’s pretty tricky. I have got to the point where I’m just going to cook her things a and hope she tries it (and not offer a alternative). So I’m looking for ideas of what I can’t try that’s not going to cause a huge meltdown, so nothing with too many flavours and nothing that takes a lot of chewing.

So what’s your kids favourite meals?

[Blondie1984]

Can you give an example of what she would have in a typical day?

Do you think she would try risotto? That doesn't take a lot of chewing and you can "hide" a multitude of things in in

Have you asked your GP for a referral to a dietician? They would be able to help you and your daughter experiment with new foods and ensure that her diet isn't lacking any key nutrients

[Ricekrispie22]

A plain frittata (or flavoured mildly with cheese) would be good for protein if she doesn’t like meat.
Cheese bread pudding - these are the two best recipes recipes.sainsburys.co.uk/recipes/leftovers/cheese-and-tomato-bread-and-butter-pudding and realfood.tesco.com/recipes/savoury-bread-and-butter-pudding.html
Toad in the hole with veggie sausages
Halloumi burgers
Cheese pancakes
Secret veggie pasta bake www.ocado.com/webshop/recipe/secret-veggie-pasta-bake/23305 or hidden veg macaroni cheese
Egg fried rice - small pieces of egg and very finely chopped veg

[Weenurse]

I love my air fryer, so breaded chicken tenders.
Frittata.
Would she cook with you?
I found my fussy eater was willing to try more if she cooked it.

[shellysheridan]

Does she like cheese sauce? Will taste familiar if she likes cheese but a different texture. Could have with pasta?

[Lovemusic33]

Her diet is basically a cheese sandwich and packed of crisps for lunch with a innocent smoothie (the only way I can get fruit and a bit of veg into her), in the evening she will either have pizza, made with a pita bread tomato purée and cheese, served with home made wedges or she will eat a fish cake and chips. That’s basically all she will eat, the occasional sausage but other than that no meat, no vegetables and only a bit of fruit. If I try and add things to the pizza she won’t eat it, even a tomato sauce other than purée.

She won’t eat any sauces though yesterday she tried parsley sauce which caused a lot of tears and fuss. She has tried macaroni cheese but doesn’t like the texture (likes the taste).

So last night we tried a fish pie which she didn’t like, but she did give it a go.

I’m going to try the macaroni cheese again.

In the last few weeks she has started eating roasted parsnip and a few slices of carrot which is a huge step for her.

I have taken her to the gp many times and been told to “let her eat what she likes” but she is now overweight due to the fact she lives on carbs and cheese, she doesn’t eat a huge amount.

[Lovemusic33]

She cooked with me last night, I thought maybe seeing what was going into her meal would help but made no difference. She says the issue is textured rather than tastes.

[Lovemusic33]

She’s tried rice and couldn’t swallow it (due to texture)

I like the sound of the cheese bread pudding.

She has tried a omelette and quiche but didn’t like it, she says eggs only belong in cakes 🤣

She really is hard work, she knows how much I worry about her diet and lack of fruit and veg. I eat almost anything and eat healthily during the week, this means I’m cooking 2 separate meals each day. I worry about her health, it’s not great, she doesn’t exercise much due to her being in pain with hypermobility but by not exercising and living on cheese and bread she’s just gaining weight and her joints becoming more painful.

[Neverwrestlewithapig]

If she likes smoothies, would she like soup? There are so many recipes & a great way to include veg.

[Yorkshiremum17]

Would she have salmon with mash potato (deconstructed fish cake) and carrot.

Pasta with the tomato sauce you would normally put on the pizza, topped off with cheese. If she will go with this you could gradually add hidden veg into the tomato sauce.

Have you tried giving her raw veg instead of cooked if its a texture thing, if she liked the cheese sauce how about trying carrots in cheese sauce and move onto cauliflower in cheese sauce.

Have you tried every week putting something new on her plate and start by just asking her to touch, then lick, then nibble, then bite. No pressure for her to do so, but reward if she does.

Will she eat nuts, dried fruit, purees. Does she like dipping things, so would she try dipping crackers or carrots into cream cheese.

Finally have you spoken to her about the importance of a healthy diet, how it affects your mood, your skin, your bones, your weight. I think sometimes we expect our kids to know stuff, but if you never actually tell them how would they know?

[Yorkshiremum17]

Just seen your update about she knows how much her diet worries you. Youre giving her a lot of power in that. How easy is it to wind mum up? Don't eat any of the stuff she's like me to! In the nicest possible way, back off a bit and stop letting her know how much this worries you. If you're more chilled out so might she be.

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

Hypermobility shouldn't stop her from exercising OP. I have it, my sister has it. I my sister manages a 10 hour shift on her feet and then walks the dog and goes to the gym sometimes too. She just needs to be motivated to find an exercise that suits her.

I feel your pain though. We have an Uber fussy dd. What I don't do though is cook different meals.

She gets a multivitamin & mineral supplement and if she's not happy with what's on offer, she cooks something different. She's 12 so easily old enough to cook.

I do cook some meals that I know she will enjoy though, for example I usually do pizza at least once a week.

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

Oh and her favourites are pizza, chicken nuggets and chips, homemade lasagna, roast dinners and oddly some vegetarian fajitas.

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

How old is she OP?

[Discoballs]

I have a fussy five year old. I've had some success by introducing foods that are similar to other ones he likes e.g. he likes chips, so we tried sweet potato chips. He likes sausages so we tried chicken sausages. He likes cheddar and chips so we tried halloumi fries. He likes cucumber so we tried radishes. That kind of thing. Slowly broadening horizons.

[Lovemusic33]

She doesn’t just have hypermobility, she has hypertonia (fluctuating muscle tone) and her hips and legs are pretty crooked, we have been back and forth to the hospital and physio but it seems to be getting worse, she can’t even walk up stairs some days.

She’s 16, she has Aspergers and SPD.

A few weeks ago was the first time she ate anything that remotely represented a roast dinner, a sausage, Yorkshire puddings, a couple slices of carrot, roast potatoes and parsnip, I almost cried.

Tonight I’m cooking roasted veg (parsnip, carrots, sweet potato and potatoes) with a pita bread pizza as a compromise.

My other dd is sat here eating raw carrots sticks like they are sweets, she also has ASD but no issues around food.

[Rosehassometoes]

What about trying other crunchy breadcrumbed foods like potato croquettes, different fish cakes, schnitzel, mozzarella sticks.

Or cheese fondue- could dip in bread, but also try pieces of meat, roast spuds etc.

Quasedillas- fry 2 tortillas with cheese inside, rest of you could add extra things.

Pitta, wedges and homemade donner kebab.

[Lovemusic33]

She eats mozzarella sticks and any other type of cheese in bread crumbs, that’s my problem, I want to steer away from cheese and bread so giving her cheese in bread crumbs doesn’t really solve the problem 🤣

[anon2000000000]

Blended soup, spag and meatballs with the sauce blended down, baked potato with cheese on the side.

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

I’ve never heard of hypertonia before, that sounds horrendous. And I totally get that you nearly cried when she ate some resemblance of a roast dinner.

Are you getting any support? It sounds as though you’ve been dealing with a lot and for a long time

[Lovemusic33]

We are not getting any support, I keep taking her back to the gp, we keep getting referred back to the hospital only to be told “nothing can be done “. I’m sure her poor diet isn’t making her issues any better . Last week she was sent home from school because she was in so much pain, I worry she’s gaining weight and her mobility is getting worse.

[JiltedJohnsJulie]

Have you tried asking for help it's regards to her diet and mobility issues in the SN section? There are sone wonderful, experienced MNers in ther who may know more x

[AtleastitsnotMonday]

If she eats sausages and Yorkshire puds then make toad in the hole but add chunks of parsnip and carrot into the batter. I’d try butternut squash and sweet potato too.

[StillSurviving]

Sweet corn fritters? Basically like a savoury pancake with the sweetcorn locked in so you have to eat it ? I put ham in too. Often give my kids grated cheese on top, but you could skip that.

[thestuffofnightmares]

How would she be with pesto do you think? I tend to make it with a leftover bag of salad leaves, oil, a bit of cheese and any sort of nut you like- chuck everything in a food processor and blend until it's as mushy as you like. Then use it on anything you fancy- usually spaghetti for us! Xxx

[goingoverground]

I feel for you, having been through this. The GP's advice is actually not that bad. Start with what she likes and try to find a way to give her what she needs calorifically and nutritionally from that. It doesn't matter if it is the same menu every day if it is nutritionally adequate. If she only eats a few types of fruit and veg, serve all of them every day.

If she likes cake, would she try savoury muffins with vegetables/bran? Soup might work if she will drink smoothies. If she doesn't like it warm, try soups that are served cold like gazpacho. If she likes parnsips, she might like swede, butternut squash or pumpkin. You can puree carrots, parsnips etc so you could try substituting them for potato in things fritter/fishcake/pie type things. M&S do a range of crispbakes like fishcakes but with other ingredients eg mince, bacon etc. If you want to reduce carbs, maybe try the very thin arabic flat breads instead of pitta bread to make pizza. Does she eat jelly or ice lollies? If she is overweight, they don't have very many calories but you can make homemade ones with fresh fruit puree. If she doesn't mind the taste of fruit but dislikes the texture, she might prefer frozen fruit or cooked. Mashed fruit has more fibre than a smoothie but is a similar texture.