feeding young children better on a budget

[wonderif]

i want to start feeding my children better, i have one with special needs who is fussy and the other is just a strange eater.

i am sick of processed food but they dont ever seem to eat what i put down to them.

the only two dishes they weill eat home cooked our Pasta & Stew

any other suggestions and ways to make child friendly and purse friendly.

you can make anything with pasta - and stew is delicious at this time of year - bulk it a bit with lentils (they won't even notice, i promise) and very yummy. vary by picking different veg - adding squashes or swede?

pasta can be varied a bit by turning it into a 'bake' type affair with sweetcorn/ peas and tuna - you can crumble a packet of crisps in the top for a crunchy topping apparently... and get lots of veggies in that way. but pasta is easy to vary in a healthy manner - just use a tin of tomatoes and add whatever you know they like - much better than jars of sauce with added salt etc. use whatever herbs you like and when the spring comes, get them to grow their own fresh herbs and 'cut and come again' salad leaves. basil etc is dead easy to grow in a pot on the kitchen windowsill from seed, even if you haven't got any outside space.

really just check out what is seasonal in the veg department (therefore cheapest) and add it to either stew or pasta as appropriate.

i buy those mahoosive tins of chopped tomatoes and cook basic sauces every couple of weeks (just a regular marinara with onions, garlic and herbs) and then freeze it in small bags. i can just grab a bag and add whatever to it when i need to - v easy.

what do they eat that is proccessed?

Good Q - you can make homemade burgers (bulk up with lentils??), pizza, chips (wedges), make it fun with a little pot of ketchup for dunking etc.

oh yes, we use the homemade mega sauce for pizza topping too - again add whatever veg they like/ you have around.

I bought a few of the meat joints on half price offer at Tesco and froze them. I cook them and slice up for roast dinners in little portions and freeze them cooked then you just need to do some veg and pots etc. Very coast effective but need the initial money. I make yorkshire puds which is a bribe for the kids to eat the vegs!

thanks just getting a chance to reply, they wont eat veg for me, love their fruit, bananas, apples, strawberries blueberried, clems, pineapple, but veg is a no go area.

processed stuff, chicken dippers, fish fingers potato waffles etc

eldest will eat plain boiled rice with some red sauce, she is very set in her ways with food as it autistic.

they have just started to eat more meat for me was beginning to think they would both never eat red meat

can you not hide veg in the 'red sauce'? (assume this is tomato based) i know quite a lot of families with children with disabilities of all sorts and sometimes hiding is possible (you'll need to whizz it so that it has no lumps, but sweet veg such as carrots etc is quite easy to hide this way)

given that they like potato/ fish gingers, i'd try getting them to make some home-made fish and potato cakes type thing. you can use whichever fish you can cheap, or even tinned tuna, and they are easy enough to do - quite fun for kids to help make. kids who help make dinner are often more inclined to eat it too. (not sure how your dd is with sensory/ touch - sometimes it can be a good therapy for kids with sensory issues too - dd2 has gone from being unable to touch anything flour/ goop to being ok. ds has always been the opposite and requires a lot of sensory input from his food, so he's a born chef, really. it's still a pita that he has to touch everything on his face before he eats it, but you can't have everything ) mine like to make the fish cakes with peas in too, but again, if you try it a few times without, then maybe you could add peas, sweetcorn or broccoli later.

we've had our share of food issues. dd2 has cerebral palsy and was born with no gag or swallow reflex, so she was ng tube fed, then veeeeeeery slow to be able to manage any texture at all. we had lots of problems with aspiration and regurgitation. she's had a feeding issues trained slt since birth, which has mostly kept me sane, but i sacked the dietician after the first appointment. she is now more or less able to eat a normal diet. ds1 has as-type issues (but odd/adhd - no definitive dx) but again, is now more or less able to manage (there are some things he won't countenance, but perseverance has mostly paid off. at one point he existed on watermelon and cheese for about six months)

what about lasagne? if they like pasta and red sauce, and are getting on okay with meat, again you can puree carrots etc and hide very successfully in the bolognaise layer?

generally, i think as long as you are happy that they have a reasonably well balanced diet (and you say they are eating meat, some carbs and lots of fruit) then with kids with issues you really don't need to worry too much. so maybe just try and find one acceptable healthier option and lose one of the processed variety - even try and replicate it with no added salt/ preservatives etc?

lol at fish gingers - sounds like sushi - i meant fingers, obv.

Thanks mad woman great ideas will try new year and a hopefully a better diet for everyone.

making on fish cakes is a great idea will have to try that

madam death stare thanks yes the pasta sauce is great idea

I do lots nof home-made chicken dippers, fish fingers, fishcakes, etc. My toddler and baby are also veg phobic, so I found a great recipe recently for home-made chicken nuggets with hidden goodies - whizz up couple of chicken breasts, 2 peeled and cored apples, large onion and large carrot with seasonings and any herbs you fancy. Makes a nice paste which you then make into little patties, flour, egg and breadcrumb. I shallow fried to brown and finished off in oven. This amount made at least 30 small nuggets, veg totally undetectable but really moist and tasty. I felt happy serving these up just with ketcup!