Feeding a family is not easy.
Feeding a family and staying on top of everyone's health goals is even harder.
For this reason, many families seek help from health professionals who can help them make the right nutrition choices for everyone at the table. This is where we come in. Our Family Friendly Meal plans and whole food 21 day reset are designed to work with families.
Here are 5 tips for creating successful meal plans your family will love
1. Include Healthy Versions of Classic Kid Foods
Try and balance both comfort and variety to keep both kids and parents happy.
When it comes to meal planning for families parents want fast, easy meals their kids are actually going to eat. It’s tough to predict what kids will eat from one day to the next of course, but in my experience, they like foods they feel comfortable with: pasta, pizza, and tacos. I like to change it up every week which is why new weekly meal plans work so well!
I also find meals that can be deconstructed are great options because kids can pick and choose what they want to eat. Bowls and sheet pan meals are perfect for this. I like to kid-test our family friendly recipe options with my own family.
My kids like Nutrition Planz healthy take on Pizza we serve it with a side of salad or cut veggies.”
2. Don’t Skip Out on Treats
We always like to incorporate healthy treats that the whole family will love.
It is so common for people to think that in order to follow a healthy eating plan, they can never enjoy a sweet treat. If people feel like they are missing out when following a meal plan, it is not going to be sustainable long-term. At Nutrition Planz we have so many options for sweet, nourishing treats that fit well into weekly meal plans
"Who doesn't love chocolate? We all do in our Family! In this easter weekend issue we have included a Healthy Chocolate recipe special And while I don't think that you need to rationalize or insist on sweet treats having a healthy component, lots of these these do! We have some chocolate recipes with hidden veggies surprise ingredients such as - sweet potato and cauliflower! Don’t fret though as they still taste super delicious !”
3. Get the Family Involved With cooking
It is so helpful if you can get the family involved in the cooking process. Children are much more likely to want to try new meals that they have helped to create
4. Choose Meals that are relatively quick and easy to put together
Busy Parents are often wanting healthier family meals but are busy and time-poor
That is why we always consider the time involved in food preparation, taste preferences, and recognizable recipe-ingredients easily found in the grocery stores. Lots of our recipes are 30-minutes or less with simple ingredients that require little preparation.”
4. Let Them Choose
Keep things fun in the kitchen by scheduling a “choose your own meal”
"When meal planning for families, it's all about finding that balance between healthy variations of the standby favorites and mixing it up to offer those new options that help them expand their particular little palates. Once a week at dinner, plan for a 'choose your own adventure' meal!
If there are two vegetables, two proteins, and two starches/grains on the table (and maybe a dressing or a dip for extra flavor!) and you ask them to pick just one of each, you are giving them autonomy and helping them learn how to build balanced meals. Sheet pan dinners are great for this, you can cook everything at once in two big pans and pop it in the middle of the table for a fun themed night!”
5. Get the Kids Involved Early
Encourages kids in the kitchen as soon as possible
"It’s important to consider their age when delegating what tasks they can help with when it comes to meal planning, but over the age of 4 is a great time to get them started. Regularly seeing images of vegetables will make it much easier, in the long run, to get kids eating clean with the rest of the family."
