Do you give your toddlers pudding?

[NapOfTheDamned]

I don't, never have, but see many people do a proper pudding on the what's for toddler tea thread.
It takes forever for DS to eat his food as it is, and he gets fruit for snacks and yoghurt for breakfast with dry cereal and yet more fruit and toast but I never ever do puddings for lunch and tea because DH and I don't ever have them and I don't see the need, I would rather he ate extra savory stuff because there's more good things in it.

Am I depriving him? Should I other making crumble and custard and what have you, just for him? I don't bake and am a bit wary of sugar which most pudding seems to contain, although he has the odd scone or toddler biscuit when out and about and as I said, fruit and Cheerios are always on offer.

[InSPsFanjoNoOneHearsYouScream]

I only give him a yogurt after dinner and one after tea.

Only small pots but he loves them.

[Pascha]

Sometimes he gets a biscuit if he's eaten all his dinner, otherwise only if we are having something. Its rare though because we tend to save puddingy stuff til later in the evening.

[AppleAndBlackberry]

You're really not depriving him! There's no need for any sugar in the diet it's just empty calories.

[Sirzy]

DS has to have a yoghurt after tea to have medication with but he rarely has anything else.

[NapOfTheDamned]

Thanks for reply. What is the official thinking with offering puddings? Is it because it's a good way to give fruit and yoghurt and milky things, or a reward to get them to eat savory, or tradition,or a good way of getting extra calories into them, or what?

[AppleAndBlackberry]

Oh and mine don't really get pudding unless they've had a good go at dinner and are still hungry. Even then it's generally fruit and/or yogurt.

[JarethTheGoblinKing]

DS has all sorts of rubbish . Teacakes, chocolate fingers, chocolate yoghurts etc. He does have sensible things the rest of the time, and he really does love his pudding.

He's a skinny toad though, so reckon he needs the extra calories.

[BlingLoving]

As part of my ongoing campaign to get a good meal into ds so he sleeps well, he does sometimes get a small pudding. A small yoghurt or half/ one third of a toddler pre-made custard or dessert. But certainly j wouldn't be doing special puddings.

If we are out/ with friends he might get some of what everyone else is having and he loves the raspberry sorbet at pizza express.

[JarethTheGoblinKing]

But then DS is almost 5... when he was younger he had yoghurt mostly.

[NapOfTheDamned]

So if DS is strolling about eating apples and pears and has cheese on everything and a cup of warm milk with supper plus BF whenever he wants it, we are covered and do it need to start breaking out the custard?

[JollyJack]

We usually have a cold lunch, so DS has everything on one plate, e.g. pitta bread, humous, carrot and apple or bread, cheese, ham and pear.

At tea time he has two courses. Once he has finished eating his main course he gets either a yogurt, some fruit or a biscuit. Sometimes he gets 2 out of the 3!

[JarethTheGoblinKing]

Pots of custard, mini crunchies, mars bar ice creams... terrible really

[NapOfTheDamned]

Should read don't need, not do it need,this blardy iPad wil be the death of me.

[JarethTheGoblinKing]

Sorry, am not being helpful. I'll bog off now

[coldcupoftea]

Most days my 4yo and 2yo have pudding- usually yoghurt or fruit, sometimes an ice lolly, sometimes jelly. Occasionally at weekends I will make a 'proper' pudding, like apple crumble.

[CaseyShraeger]

First toddler - no, virtually never. Now on third toddler and yes, quite often, if the other two are having one. Sigh. So many good intentions fallen by the wayside...

[TomDaleysTrunks]

Nope no pudding here other than yoghurt or fruit. Occasionally custard and fruit but that's about it.
Lunch tends to be sandwich/ humus and veg/ scrambled egg yog and fruit. Dinner is often just a large-ish portion of main.

[kernowmissvyghen]

No, we don't really do puddings either - I occasionally do some stewed apple as a toddler pudding, but mainly when they're under the weather and not eating much- I don't add any sugar though.

However I could not live without afternoon tea, and make scones etc fairly often, so I definitely don't feel like I'm depriving anyone of anything!

[RubyrooUK]

DS sometimes has home-made custard with fruit (once a week maybe). A couple of days, he'll have a yoghurt. Mainly a cut up apple or strawberries. Depends if he has eaten a big dinner or not. If he's eaten a lot, I don't bother with a pudding mainly. He's just two and this seems to work so far.

[cbeebiesatemybrain]

Ds has either fruit or fromage frais after lunch and dinner.

[MadamGazelleIsMyMum]

Yes, toddler DD has a yoghurt, or fruit, or jelly, or rice pudding, or sometimes a biscuit or a bit of apple cake, or a lolly, which she loves.

[NapOfTheDamned]

I think I should be trying harder to introduce DS to the exciting world of food.
At the moment he eats well but boringly and very slowly.

Breakfast is buttered toast with marmite, dry muesli and yoghurt, fruit.
Lunch and supper are meat (sausage, burger, mince) with potatoes and broccoli.
Cheese grated on everything.
Sometimes tuna jacket potato with cheese or a cheese and spinach omelette. Sometimes ham and cream cheese pitta bread. Or cheese and oatcakes.

Fruit - blueberries, melon, apples, pears, strawberries.

He doesn't like chicken, or any kind of shredded meat, just minced, or pasta, rice, squash, green beans, mange tout, peppers, carrots unless raw, mushrooms, rice, celery, tomatoes, salad, noodles, peas, sweet corn or anything apart from meat, tuna, potatoes or broccoli really. So I cook him his own boring stuff and then we have exciting things like ribs or chilli later.

I just feel sorry for him sat in his high chair eating the same stuff every day although he seems happy enough.

[Mintyy]

I don't have any toddlers any more but, no, I never made them a special pudding. If we were all having pudding on a special occasion then yes of course. But, no, no one here eats pudding or dessert regularly. The dc either have fruit, yogurt or nothing most days.

[Springforward]

Yes, but it was mostly nicely presented fruit and yoghurt really, with a biscuit, or ice cream or something-with-custard two or three times a week. He's built like a racing snake so I've never felt any real concern about this tbh.