Veg heavy meal ideas

[HKateH]

My LO is a fruit fiend. He'd live on fruit alone if I let him. I reckon he averages four different kinds a day and am trying to add more veg to his diet to match - some days it's only one or two portions in comparison to the fruit!

Here's a meal I made for him today. I served it with salmon but it'd go with anything I'm sure! Sort of based on Colcannon:

~Mashed potato (with whole milk, unsalted butter, black pepper and plenty of mature cheddar)
~Sautéed vegetables: cabbage (shredded), broccoli (small pieces), red onion (sliced), carrot (grated) and spinach (shredded)
~clove of garlic

Mix it all together when cooked and serve! My LO has been BLW so eats it with his hands or feeds himself with a spoon but this would also be great for spoon feeding with lumps (I think - I really don't have a clue about spoon feeding!) I made a huge batch and froze a load of portions.

Feel free to add your own recipes!

 

[MindUtopia]

We do a lot of broccoli or cauliflower cheese, plus soups or curries that have lots of veg in them (I'm primarily a vegetarian, though do occasionally eat fish, so we eat a lot of veg in our house). I find that sometimes my daughter is resistant to veg if it's just steamed or sauteed (she's also a fruit fiend!). But if it's in something else, like a veg curry or the other day I made a black bean chili with quinoa (so had onions, garlic, tomatoes, sweet potato, sweet corn, etc.) she'll happily scoop that up with her hands and eat it. Also, veg soups, think carrot and coriander, broccoli and stilton, with bread are good. We also found that peas, sweet corn, and sweet potato are just sweet enough that she'll eat them plain.

 

[the why bird]

That sounds tasty.

Along the same lines, how about bubble and squeak? Just roughly mash together any leftover cooked veg with a little mash, form into little patties and fry until the outside gets golden and crispy. Use spray oil if you can because they can absorb a lot of oil and get greasy

Falafel - blended up chickpeas, onions, dried apricot (optional) and some mild spices, form into little balls and bake in the oven. So yummy with a yogurt dip and slices of cucumber and tomato.

Stew - I do carrots, swede and green beans with either cubed beef or chicken thigh fillets and there's a million variations in how you can season it. Just cut the veggie chunks to whatever size your little one manages best.

Vegetable curry - pretty much any veg you like, cauliflower, spinach, mushrooms etc, add a small amount of mild curry paste, tinned tomatoes and coconut milk.

Risotto is always good for adding veggies too as well. Butternut squash is a popular one in our house, but mushroom or spinach are also really yummy. If risotto is too much work, try cooking some orzo in low-sodium chicken stock and when almost all the liquid has absorbed, stir through a bit of cream cheese to make a fake risotto in less than ten minutes. If you're doing it this way though, best to add ready cooked veg or something that cooks very quickly since there won't be time for squash to cook into it.

 

[Etoiles]

Our DS also does not eat all veggies but seems to eat them if I make a big pot type meal and then he will eat them happily.

One of his favorites is this lentils with sweet potatoes and kale. He loves this dish. I don't add salt or the spicy elements to it.

I also make a veggie lentil spaghetti sauce which he loves with a few pieces of whole wheat pasta.

Also one of the few veggies he will eat plain is avocado. He enjoys that one just sliced up. He also enjoys squares of butternut squash with cinnamon.

 

[the why bird]

I make a vegetable sauce with tons of veggies in, blend it until smooth and then pour it over pasta or use it as the base in a curry or chili. My toddler will eat veg, my husband will not, so this is how I get veg into him!

I usually do:
Onions
Carrot
Red Pepper
Spinach
Butternut Squash
Mushroom
Leeks
Any other vegetable left in the fridge
Cut everything into small chunks and boil until soft. Add 1-2 tubs of tomato passata. Blend into a smooth sauce. You can add whatever seasoning you like but I usually don't. I freeze it up in small portions and then when I use it I add some Italian herbs to make a pasta sauce, or spices to make a chili etc. I keep it pretty thick too, so I know everyone is getting 1-2 extra servings of veg.