Give him what he likes! 3 snacks to help children develop a balanced diet

What should I do if my child has a picky eating habit? Many children have the bad habit of being picky eaters. They prefer meat and less vegetables, and have a particular preference for high-calorie foods such as fried foods and sweets, which can easily lead to nutritional imbalance and obesity in the long run. Parents who are worried about their children's picky eating habits may want to cater to their children's preferences, start with their favorite foods, cleverly combine healthy ingredients, and make low-calorie and nutritious healthy snacks, such as berry muffins, brown rice dumplings or cranberry vegetable rolls, to cultivate good habits of healthy eating in children.

Dessert demonstration: berry muffins. (Photo taken from Taipei City Xinyi District Health Service Center website)

Eating high-calorie foods may cause obesity in children, which is harmful to their health

The World Health Organization points out that children who are overweight or obese in childhood are more likely to develop chronic diseases earlier and more easily than ordinary adults in adulthood. Too much high-calorie and low-nutrition food in the environment, convenient urban transportation, an increase in the types of static entertainment, and a sedentary and lack-of-exercise lifestyle may all lead to childhood obesity. Especially in terms of diet, many overweight schoolchildren can eat a lot of the food they like, but when they see the food they don’t like, they immediately show that they are unwilling to try it. The bad habit of picky eating often makes parents distressed.

How to improve children's picky eating? Chef teaches you DIY

In order to establish a healthy and high-quality diet concept, the Taipei City Xinyi District Health Service Center combined the expertise of Taipei City United Hospital nutritionist Chen Bofang and well-known hotel chef Huang Guanming to design a healthy snack recipe based on the three principles of "natural, whole grains, and fruits and vegetables." Starting from the food that children like, healthy ingredients such as asparagus, lettuce, bell peppers, nuts, etc. are cleverly added to the dishes to make the dishes colorful, fragrant and delicious, so as to cultivate children's good habits of not being picky eaters and having a balanced diet.

【Berry Muffin】 (1 serving, about 97 calories)

◆ Materials:

1. 1 muffin: 12g low-gluten flour, 10cc milk, 10g egg, 0.5g baking powder, a little salad oil.

2. Ingredients: 30g strawberries, 18g blueberries, 1 mint leaf.

◆ Method:

1. Mix milk and eggs.

2. Sift the low-gluten flour and baking powder, then add into step 1 and mix well.

3. Preheat the pan, apply salad oil evenly on the surface, pour in the pancake batter, bake until the surface is golden brown, and serve.

4. Finally, decorate the baked muffins with fresh berries and mint leaves.

◆ Tips from nutritionists:

Fresh berries can increase your fiber and vitamin C intake. Blueberries help memory and learning. Strawberries and blueberries are rich in anthocyanins, which can be antioxidants. Make your own healthy muffins, replace syrup and cream with the sweetness of natural ingredients, reduce the intake of artificial additives, and eat healthier.

Dim sum demonstration: brown rice dumplings (left), cranberry vegetable rolls (right). (Photo taken from Taipei City Xinyi District Health Service Center website)

【Brown rice dumplings】 (1 serving, about 96 calories)

◆ Ingredients: 40g brown rice, 10g diced tofu, 5g edamame, 5g corn kernels, a little sesame seeds, a little seaweed.

◆ Method:

1. Mix the brown rice with diced tofu, corn kernels, edamame kernels and sesame seeds.

2. Place the mixed ingredients in a triangular mold to shape them, or pinch them into creative shapes, and finally stick them with seaweed.

◆ Tips from nutritionists:

Replace white rice with brown rice to increase dietary fiber, B complex and magnesium ions. In addition to being rich in fiber, corn kernels also contain zeaxanthin and lutein, which can protect the eyes. Dried tofu and edamame can both provide the protein needed for growth.

【Cranberry Vegetable Hand Roll】 (1 serving, about 47 calories)

◆ Ingredients: 1 piece of half-cut seaweed, 10g alfalfa sprouts, 12g carrot strips, 10g cucumber strips, 8g fungus strips, 4g cranberries, 10cc yogurt.

◆ Method:

1. Wash the vegetables and blanch them quickly in hot water. Cut carrots, cucumbers and fungus into strips.

2. Blend the dried cranberries and yogurt in a blender.

3. Place the seaweed on the palm of your hand, wrap the vegetables in order, and pour cranberry yogurt sauce on it.

◆ Tips from nutritionists:

Vegetables are not just leafy vegetables, but also cucumbers, fungus, and carrots. Use dried cranberries and yogurt to make your own sweet and fragrant cranberry yogurt sauce, replacing mayonnaise and artificial fructose, increasing protein and phytochemicals, and enhancing the flavor of food. Cranberries can also be replaced with fresh nuts.