to be sick and tired of cooking for my dcs.

[moodlumthehoodlum]

They have morphed into very fussy eaters, and it is nightmare preparing a meal that both will eat.

They are still little (3&4), but its blardy dull constantly having to think about what the next meal is, and then when I do cook it, having it whinged and moaned at.

I know there are bigger things to worry about in life but its a pita.

ok. moan over.

Oh yeah, school dinners are great-dd wolfs down the whole thing, even in front of me (I supervise dinner times). I try and re-create it at home et voila, the nose is turned up! Just been to the supermarket and spent an inordinate amount just so I would know she would eat it-this can't continue-she eats what I give her or goes without!

lol, looks like this thread has really taken off. Very creative cooking ideas!!! I think I read a person (anyone) changes their taste every 7 years or so. As long as they get vitamins and minerals (daily requirements) a person can eat the same thing every day (except they need roughage). The taste buds dictate what they like but not what they need.

FWIW my sister was an extremely fussy eater as a child and now she's a real foodie! She maintains that you reach a point in life where eating out becomes a social thing which you want to join in with. From that, your tastes evolve and mature.

That said, she still tears her hair out sometimes with her DD...

i have to say i'm firmly in the 'that's what's for dinner and if you don't eat it you'll go hungry' camp here.... i have been known to bribe them with the offer of something nice afterwards if they eat the food on their plate though

it's not the not liking cetain food that irritates me, it's the refusal to try something at all that sends me into a red fog.... that horrible whingey 'i don't like it' about something they haven't tasted that i spent ages making because i thought they'd love it (sweet potato a classic example..... dd loves potato and loves sweet things but won't even try sweet potato!)

our staples atm seem to be;

casserole, usually beef done for about 5 hours on a low heat with loads of veg in it and served with baked spuds
pasta with mushroom goats milk sauce
pasta pesto for dd and pasta carbonara for the rest of us (milk intolerant)
mushroom risotto
breaded chicken thighs (spelt breadcrumbs) and homemade potato wedges
spag bol
chicken curry (coconut milk based) and rice and naan bread for me and dp
homemade burgers and chips
pork fillet roasted with potatoes and other root veg and served with gravy
sausages (the lidl bratwurst as they're wheat free) and mashed spuds and slow fried red onions
and regular 'i don't know what to cook' nights which usually result in ready meals for dp and me and scrambled eggs of free from fishfingers for the kids

To the OP: My advice is to carry on presenting these nice foods to them they will one day want to try it and will ask you "Why havre you never cooked that before, it is my favourite food" your menu sounds Yummy.

The other day my dd1 (2.8), ate:

1 triangle of toast and marmite
a small handful of cashew nuts
half a boiled egg
some grapes, banana and a biscuit (at playgroup)

when i asked her what food she likes (i know, it was insane to ask her!) she said, 'I don't like food mummy, I like bread and more-marmite'

I still cook tea for us every night, but have been trying so hard to make food she might like that I've forgotten what we used to eat! I am going to have a go at meal planning, and in the meantime make sure she has a good multi vitamin, because she really doesn't seem to want to eat anything. Its nice to hear people say that they do get over this.