Okay, ice cream is every kid’s favorite, right?!
Before I gave birth to baby girl Roma, I made a list of Luca’s favorite foods and meals, just as a “quick sheet” for me to help meal plan and also, just in case I had a complicated birth and was in the hospital for longer than planned, our family and nanny could make him his favorites!
Now, I have this great list of ‘go-to meals’ for Luca. If you’re looking for inspiration for your little ones, perhaps this list will help give you some ideas! And it may be helpful just to build a list if you’re feeling discouraged about the variety of your little ones’ diets – building a list may surprise you and show you that they do eat pretty well!
Note: These are just Luca’s slam dunk favorites, this isn’t a list of all the foods we offer him. We offer him a much larger variety, but this is what he continues to love. Basically, anything with marinara sauce or smothered in almond butter!
Breakfasts
- Blender muffins (he loves spinach and beet, especially) with fruit
- Oatmeal with bananas, blueberries, almond butter and hemp seeds
- Vegan Pumpkin Oat Muffins (recipe here) with fruit
- Yogurt with banana, blueberries, and almond butter
- Waffles (love the Van’s brand) with almond butter, hemp seeds and fruit
- Scrambled eggs with toasted bagel and Kitehill vegan chive cream cheese and fruit
Snacks*
- Literally fruit of any kind
- Yogurt with fruit
- Toast with almond butter or butter
- Crackers (Annie’s brand is his favorite)
- Rice cakes (with and without almond butter)
- Oat bars (we love the Little Duck Organics brand)
- Applesauce with hemp seeds and buttered toast
- Organic Valley mozzarella string cheese (usually served with a clementine)
- Almond butter sandwich with thinly sliced banana or strawberries
- Thinly sliced raw carrots
- (Recently/seasonal) – dried okra snacks from Trader Joe’s
- Energy bites
- Green smoothie (recipe here)
- Ice cream – hey, it’s a fun activity and a source of protein, fat, and calcium!
*Check out this post for more snack ideas.
Sides
- Roasted sweet potatoes (with cinnamon or paprika, roasted in olive oil)
- Roasted purple sweet potatoes (with cinnamon or paprika, roasted in olive oil)
- Roasted butternut squash (with cinnamon, roasted in olive oil)
- Dr. Praeger’s Spinach Littles
- Roasted carrots (roasted in olive oil with cinnamon)
Lunch*
- Broccoli grilled cheese
- Chicken quesadilla
- Mozzarella and spinach quesadilla
- Veggie tots from Inspiralized & Beyond
- Chicken nuggets (we love the Applegate gluten-free variety)
- English muffin pizza
* These can also be served as dinner.
Dinner*
- Turkey or chicken meatballs with buttered toast and a mozzarella string cheese
- Mac and cheese (sometimes he won’t touch it and sometimes he loves it!)
- Ditalini pasta with chopped spinach and marinara sauce
- Brown rice with chopped steamed green beans and marinara sauce
- Turkey bolognese (served with a side or as a casserole with brown rice, topped with mozzarella cheese)
- Simple Mills pizza crust with chicken sausage and broccoli
- Cauliflower gnocchi from Trader Joe’s in marinara sauce
- Chicken sausage and broccoli chickpea pasta
*These can also be served as lunch (especially when leftovers!)