When it comes to food, my goal as a mom is to hear my kids say “Yay! Broccoli!” as often (or even more than) I hear them say “Yay! Donuts!”
How do you get your kids interested in eating foods that are healthy for them? We’ve been told for years that we should engage our children in selecting and preparing the food that we eat, and I’ve seen first-hand that when I discuss with my kids what’s actually in the food that they eat, they’re more likely to make healthy and diverse choices.
I don’t know any more adventurous eater than Andrew Zimmern, the host of The Travel Channel’s Bizarre Foods show. He shows no fear as he travels the world eating delicacies that some of us might not even consider edible, but Zimmern celebrates food and his adventurous spirit is an inspiration to my kids. In his new book Andrew Zimmern’s Field Guide to Exceptionally Weird, Wild & Wonderful Foods (Feiwel and Friends, $15), he celebrates food and keeps it interesting—which is what we expect from him!
Children might show a greater appreciation for their Brussels sprouts after reading A–Z of Dangerous Food by Rebecca Sinker and Victoria de Rijke (Tate/Abrams books, $11), a bite-size volume that features an alphabetical listing of edibles from the exotic (like durian fruit, which is dangerously smelly or crocodiles—it might eat you before you eat it!) to the every day (ice cream—which can contain dangerous bacteria).
We might tell our children not to play with their food, but Editor Stephanie Maze and Photographer Renee Comet of Healthy Foods from A to Z (Moonstone Press, $16) did not follow similar advice when creating their book. This book features over 100 images of healthy food faces, featuring a wide variety of foods with names in both English and Spanish. The authors encourage your children to play as well, with instructions for creating your own food faces, 10 additional healthy food projects and a table of fun facts on 70 healthy food items, from almonds to yogurt.
