Baby Bites® was the answer to our prayers. By the time it was published, Joshy was just about to enter kindergarten. Because of the Baby Bite steps, his diet had dramatically changed. His daily food battles had already ended. What he once considered to be “yucky” became “yummy.”

I have just returned from a stay with my grandchildren, Joshua, Zachary, and Angel. I flew out to California to spend time with them while my daughter and son-in-law were in Europe. It’s the first time I’ve been alone with the grandkids since Baby Bites® was conceived. The Baby Bites steps were designed for Joshua.

Joshua’s turning seven this month and is finishing up first grade. He’s quite grown up. While I was there, he received the annual class citizenship award for displaying six pillars of good character (trustworthy, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship).
Joshy now says “Green food is yummy!” Basil is especially tasty and it smells sooo good, too.

Unless you’ve had a picky eater, you will have difficulty understanding how far Joshua has come! The drama is missing at the table. No more tantrums. No more defiantly throwing food on the floor. No more pleading or bargaining or bribing or threatening in an attempt to get him to eat.

The Baby Bite steps are all about multi-sensory learning. Food is appreciated. It’s color, texture, aroma are all discussed. Food is touched. There are no obnoxious remarks made about what’s served. The steps integrate multi-sensory learning with whole foods and positive discipline.

Today, Joshua eats most things without a second thought, although he didn’t love my chili. We all have a few things we don’t like to eat. It’s okay, as long as it’s only few things. There are no special dinners made for him or his brother and sister. If an item at dinner isn’t eaten, then they can eat more of something else already prepared. That night we had salad with our chili. So, Joshua ate small bites of his chili with a lot of salad. After the meal, fruit was served for dessert.

Later that week, I came up with a new recipe for the kids, using a mango found in the refrigerator: Mango-Chicken over brown rice. It’s very simple and when you have already cooked brown rice; it takes only a few minutes. Chicken broth and mango are added to browned chicken pieces, then cooked for a just a few minutes. ( Click Here for my recipe.) The mango melds with the stock, giving it a delicate sweet taste.

At the table we played a game to see who could discover the secret ingredient. My granddaughter, Angel, had remarked the day before that she didn’t like mangoes, so I didn’t want to tell her right off what she was eating. We were all enjoying the chicken dish as they tried to identify the secret ingredient. Angel, who usually has a discerning palate, thought for sure it was peaches. Zachary thought it might be bananas. Joshua made several guesses. Then, you could see the light blub turn on…he correctly identified mangoes as the secret ingredient!

For info about the free Baby Bites Ezine, Click Here.

For a synopsis of Baby Bites: Transforming a Picky Eater into a Healthy Eater, Click Here.

Kate is exhausted from all that’s on her plate!

1) The first strategy is to incorporate brown rice into your meals. Brown rice contains eight essential amino acids. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein and we produce all but eight of the twenty-two amino acids needed for health.

Brown rice makes a nutritious foundation to many dishes and casseroles. Rice is gluten-free and easily digestible; it’s a good choice for infants and people with wheat allergies or digestive problems. Brown rice has five times more vitamin E, three times more magnesium, and provides twice the fiber than white.

The obvious downside for using brown rice is that it takes about 45 minutes to cook compared to the 20 minutes (or less) for white rice. You can compensate for the additional cooking time by preparing more brown rice than you need at one time. Brown rice keeps nicely for at least five days, covered in your refrigerator. Make enough Brown Rice at one time to supplement several meals during the week.

2) Another time-saver is to grill chicken breasts in quantity and then freeze in individual packages. Defrosted grilled chicken pieces can be shredded for quick addition into salads, tacos, and casseroles, or served as the main course when you’re tight on time. If you can’t grill a chicken, purchase an extra rotisserie chicken when you’re at the grocery store.

Freeze extra chicken pieces individually or freeze enough pieces together for a family meal. Pull out one of your gilled chicken packages the night before you need it, or even on your way out the door in the morning. Let them defrost in your refrigerator.

3) Don’t wait until Easter to boil lots of eggs. The last strategy is to hard-boil eggs once a week. Eggs are God’s perfect food, as they contain nine amino acids and are one of the few foods containing vitamin D. The egg protein is of such high quality that all other proteins are measured by it.

Unfortunately, eggs have been given a bad rap. There’s another myth that eating eggs will give a person high cholesterol. Dietary cholesterol doesn’t automatically raise blood cholesterol. Unless you already have high cholesterol, eating a few eggs a week won’t alter your cholesterol levels.

People routinely discard the yolk, the part containing the cholesterol. When you throw out the yolk, you’re throwing out the vitamin D, needed for calcium absorption which builds strong bones. We also get vitamin D from the sun, as UV rays from sunlight trigger vitamin D synthesis in the skin. Eggs are packaged sunshine, especially valuable during the winter months.

Hard-boiled eggs make protein-filled fast breakfasts. Eggs make dinner in a hurry possible. For those nights when a chef’s salad is the quickest means to dinner, include sliced or crumbled hard-boiled eggs for added nutrition. Also, hard-boiled eggs travel well in lunchboxes and make a healthy snack.

For more Time-Savers in the Kitchen, Click Here.

For a synopsis of the Baby Bites book, Click Here.

Don’t know what kind of sandwich to make without nitrate-filled luncheon meats?

You can make delicious sandwiches for a school lunch or for a picnic. Be sure to pack with an ice pack. Not only are these sandwiches nitrate-free, but they’re less expensive than processed meats!

This recipe makes 4 sandwiches and works equally well for egg or chicken or tuna salad sandwiches.

These sandwiches are made using the same method:

1½ cups of either chicken (you may use canned chicken), 12 ounces chunk light tuna, or 4 hardboiled eggs. Finely chop the eggs, chicken, or tuna. In a mixing bowl, add ¼ cup each chopped celery and ¼ cup green onion or onion, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, ½ cup mayonnaise, 2 teaspoons mustard, ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper

Spread the mixture on four slices of toasted whole-grain bread. Top with sliced tomatoes; place a second piece of bread on top.

Mmmm. Tasty and nutritious

You can feel good when you make these Italian Chicken Sticks, because they’re baked, not fried. These are guaranteed to please, not only your kids, but the gang when they come over to watch the game. Even the most picky eater will love these Italian Chicken Sticks! They’re also good to make ahead and heat up for when you have to eat and run.

1. Preheat your oven to 500 degrees.

2. Put three slices of whole wheat bread in a blender; pulse until you have fine crumbs. Pour the crumbs onto a cookie sheet and place in the oven to toast, while it’s heating up. This will take only a few minutes, don’t over toast the crumbs.

3. Measure into a small bowl ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, 1½ teaspoons of dried thyme, basil, and oregano; ½ teaspoons of garlic powder, salt and pepper.

4. Cut 3 boneless chicken breasts into ½ inch strips. Remove the bread crumbs from the oven and mix with the cheese and herbs. Dip the chicken strips in olive oil, then dredge in the bread and cheese mixture. Place the chicken strips in a single layer on a baking sheet, for extra crisp chicken pieces, first place a wire rack on the baking sheet.

5. Turn the oven down to 375 degrees and bake for about 20 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink. Serve with marinara sauce for dipping.

It makes my mouth water, just thinking about these yummy chicken sticks.

Throw together this quick and easy casserole with refrigerator leftovers and items from your pantry. Left-Over Casserole will bring out your hidden chef, because you’re creating a new recipe each time you make it.

Begin by opening up the refrigerator to see what’s there.

Saute one onion; ½ chopped pepper (green, red, yellow or orange); ½ cup chopped celery and 1 large minced garlic. (Optional a couple of chopped tomatoes, 1 can of drained artichoke hearts, and/or sliced mushrooms.)

Then add any of the following: 2 to 3 cups cups already cooked, chopped or sliced, left-over chicken or turkey or roast beef; add 2 cups of already cooked brown rice. Heat through and serve.

Turn Leftover Casserole into Leftover Hash

Omit the brown rice and substitute 3 or 4 cooked whole potatoes. Slice the potatoes and brown in olive oil. Then add the sauteed onions, green peppers, celery and garlic. Mix in the cooked turkey, chicken or beef and heat.