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I'm thinking of things that DD can have for dinner and wondered if things like fish fingers, chicken nuggets, crumbed vegetable fingers and things like that are ok for a 13 month old? She always steels our hot chips so would a plate of chips and fish fingers be ok for her age sometimes?
I think so but that is just me. Are you making your own or freezer bought? Look for the ones without artifical colours, flavours or preservatives - there are quite a few good brands out there now. Oven bake or grill to reduce fat and sounds like a winner to me... we might have the same tonight
It depends what camp you are from ;) Some people believe those foods aren't fit for any human consumption especially children. I however am not from that camp. As DS was a late eater I can't recall when he started having the occasional nugget or chip, but I daresay it was closer to 2. But each to their own, really its just what you are comfortable with :)
When DS went through a meat refusal stage at about 13 months all I could get him to eat was fish fingers...that was when we introduced them. I like the Sealord brand, they look like actual fish fillets were used in making them as opposed to fish mush.
I try not to let him have them more than once a week.
I am fussy about chicken however and I make my own crumbed chicken strips and freeze them raw - then they are ready to go.
I keep meaning to do this with fish but we don't have a decent fish shop in my vicinity.
We get freezer foods and DH & I eat them a lot (bad I know). I'll try that tonight, that way she can have what we're having
yep, i think sometimes....maybe with some peas and corn, brighten the plate up a little....;)
mmmm I am from the fish fingers, chicken nuggets are not real food camp...
I have made my own fish fingers lots though and chicken strips. I make my own breadcrumbs in the processor and buy free range chicken or fish fillets and cut into strips and crumb. Kids like to help with this - messy but fun!
I am a food puritan though - I resolve to teach my kids about preparation, where food comes from, what it contains. So I realise that to some I may be a food nazi (even to me sometimes!:redface:)
I don't believe that these are real food and I personally would leave them out of the diet completely.
I make fish cakes crumbed and crumbed chicken tenders instead. Both my girls love them
I'm with Flowerchild on this one. I have a big issue with preservatives and sodium in their diets, and the bought fish fingers are often high in mercury and contaminants. The only time my boys have eaten fish fingers is at a friend's place. And only once! I have made chicken nuggets at home occassionally (and put pureed brocolli in the crumb mixture LOL!) and they have liked that, but it's easier just to crumb whole chicken fillets and they love that too (with or without the brocolli!).
But in terms of readiness for finger foods, at 13 months she is more than capable of eating finger foods. By that age both my boys were eating the same meals as us. One of the goals of introducing solids is to have them eating the same meals as you as early as possible, as this promotes great eating habits down the track - they get used to a large range of textures and tastes. And of course it also makes life much easier!
If I'm giving Hannah Nuggets etc, I like to give them to her with a plate of vegies. (she'll often eat all of the vegies and leave the nuggets!) It makes me feel less guilty ;)
i'm with Flowerchild and MantaRay. I don't give my ds anything like that unless its homemade. You can't really be sure what is actually in those "fish" fingers and "chicken" nuggets.
What about some nice fresh fish fillets or chicken tenderloins with a parmesan crumb, just process some day old bread (we use wholemeal) with some herbs and fresh grated parmesan cheese (not fake parmesan), dip fish/chicken in flour, then egg (use water if you can't use egg), then dip into the crumbs, bake in the oven until cooked through! simple and you know exactly whats in it too. my ds loves his chicken done this way.
Just check the packs for preservatives, artificial colors and favours etc. I cut these out of my DS1(2) diet 2 weeks ago and hes a completly different child. If you read all the packs of food that your consuming you'd be amazed at how much junk is in them.
HTH
Me too - there's not a whole lot of chicken in a nugget!:
personally i prefer to make my own, they arent a lot of work and are more wholesome... that said he has had a few chips here and there if we are out having dinner and they come with our meal (moderation and all that). i just dont like really processed foods (like nuggets etc)
But if you want to do it so many people do and i am sure there are some brands better than others.. and adding heaps of veg on the plate liek Jaz and MBear suggested will offer more balance and i bet you find she eats lots of the veg too - the flavours and colours are so attractive to little ones.with chips if you want to give them (althoguh i usually bake wedges instead) give a veg puree as a dip or hummous raher than tomatoe sauce, that is also a way to get some good ness into them!
It's very easy to make your own chips in the oven. I just cut potatoes up into nice thick chip shapes, brush them with olive oil and bake them in the oven just as you would do with roast potatoes. I have a fan forced oven and they are ready in about 20 minutes.
I guess I'm kinda in between camps here. I do cook most our meals from scratch. Only very occasionally do I resort to something like fish fingers. And I mean maybe 4-6 times a year. I don't believe an occasional fish finger is going to do her much harm, but there are much better and tastier choices. And guess what, DD loves home cooked food much better than these convenience foods anyway (well, with the exception of chips, she loves those).
I don't feel bad if she has some of those vege chips (the ones you buy in the "health food" section in the supermarket) or even normal chips. Because I know it's not a daily occurence. She's just as happy munching on a carrot (I know, not reccommended at her age, but she's fine with it), celery or some cashew nuts. I guess I'm lucky that DD is happy with healthy choices. But I don't outlaw the occasional "naughty" snack.
DD started eating table foods pretty early. i think she was about 6 1/2 months old when she sucked the meat of a pork rib. Of course she couldn't have everything from our plates straight away, but she got whatever was suitable. For example when I made bolognese, I cooked some Risoni Pasta for her while we ate it with Spaghetti.
If we are running late with dinner, I often just cook some veges up for her so she can eat before we do. Like red capsicum, peas (frozen), broccoli, green beans. She loves snacking on these and it is just as easy as cooking some fish fingers.
I also made a habit of freezing meat in small portions, so if I needed a quick meal, I could just get a small piece of lamb fillet and grill that for her while the veges cooked.
And if I made something that she particularly liked (like Ratatouille and mashed potato), I often froze leftovers in ice-cube containers to use up another day. Actually, I still do that.
Sasa
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Dannielleabella
i ate nothing but weebix and iced coffee at one stage, PND was so bad i was incapable of putting together the most basic meal. So yeah, we all feel guilty about food in the box from supermarket, but if it keeps you alive, it's better than nothing. Sometimes you just do what you do, to get thru.
One thing at supermarket you can give your child guilt free, is the Rafferty's Garden vegies in the tube. NO additives or preservatives. They also make meal stuff. So much healthier than the baby tins and jars stuff.
making it all yourself, from scratch, of course that's the ideal, but in my case, it was just about survival.
we are all just doing the best we can
i like reading belly belly, cos it inspires me, to aim for more than i can currently manage, but we are not all at the same place.
i am buying "homestyle" individual veggie quiches for my two year old's dinner, at the Woollies Deli section (2.40 each) becuase i don't make them from scratch myself. But learning to make a quiche is a goal of mine.
i wanted to show you my support. *in my clumsy way)
:yeahthat:
I can't see the wrong in giving your child that. Sure, sure preservatives, artificial colors, sodium and favours etc I get that, I really do. But it's not like you are going to give only fish fingers morning, noon and night for 17 weeks!!!!!
Yes it's ideal to make it yourself, but even though we are all superwoman inside, does not make that you can do EVERYTHING yourself. You do what you can with the time you have. Full stop.:
making it all yourself, from scratch, of course that's the ideal, but in my case, it was just about survival.
I have only recently started to make stuff myself.
I'm sure she'll enjoy her fish fingers. (better than no fish at all)
ETA - dd loves her hot chips .. blown cold off course, but goes nuts dipping them in tomatosauce (storebought) and then feeding herself.
I work full time and have done since DD was 4 months old...I don't have time to make things myself. I'm just after a quick simple thing that she can have that's the same as what we're having rather than giving her something different.
I personally dont give MJ fish fingers or nuggets, however in saying this, if we have fish and chips (occasionally) MJ will share my fish that has been grilled and she has some of the chips, we ask for them to be unsalted, chips come out for me and MJ and then DH salts the rest.:
Once in a while isnt going to be halmful, however these things (personally) i would use as an emergency, but even then i have some homemade food that i will just defrost in the m.wave and she has that with pasta.
Gigi - i learnt to cook Quiche after having MJ... i needed something that was quick easy and cheap - i can give you step by steps for a very very simple yet tasty quiche.
We had it for dinner tonight and MJ is taking some to FDC tomorrow for her lunch - great cold.
Danni, i know that you probably resort to the frozen stuff as you are working full time and the last thing that you want to do is cook a meal, but if on a day off you load the freezer up, then there is always something there that is just as quick as Fast food.
Last saturday we had Snitznels (sp) we bought some Veal already tenderised and thinned and some chichen breasts that we tenderised ourselves, coated them in crumb and then cooked them up. We also bought enough so that we have 6 others in the freezer so that we can have it another night. MJ has a fillet done the same way, just cut into fingers once cooked.
Dont know if this has helped...
:)
DB, I really hear you on that. It can be so exhausting and facing the kitchen at the end of the day KILLS!
You can get away with fast foods, but making them yourself is sooo easy, I promise! A quiche is EASY to make and they freeze well. I make 3 in a day and freeze 2.
Own chicken nuggets - bash some chicken breasts flatter cut them into chunks or strips, dunk them in flour, then egg wash then into a mixture of breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, pepper and a dash of cayenne pepper. Then freeze. They will be ready to chuck in the oven just like the bought ones!
IF (and it is soooooo worth it), you can score a couple of hours without bubs (hubby can take her out) on the weekend, you can make a few batches of nuggets and some quiches, portions of spag bol sauce etc. It is sooo much cheaper and the peace of mind that comes from knowing there is always food ready when you can't be arsed is priceless!
I HATE preparation, esp when I am tired, but if you add 10 more mins to do double the quantities, its worth its weight in peas and carrots. Speaking of which, steaming frozen vegies take about 5 mins and bubs will love feeding herself with beans and carrots.
I know you didn't want recipes but you can eat really well AND really fast! xoxoxoxo
Danniellabella, as I mentioned, i don't think giving a 13 month old fish fingers and chicken nuggets occasionally is going to harm them. So don't feel guilty about it
(and just so everybody knows, i never meant to imply that I'm super-woman. The mountains of washing in the laundry clearly show that I am not. But I have always enjoyed cooking. It's cleaning that I neglect. And DD never liked any of those "baby foods", not Rafferty's Garden either. So I didn't have the option of not making it myself.)
I don't know what you and your DH eat most nights, but at 13 months, your child should be able to eat most table foods. We love steak and salad for example. I just cut the steak for DD up quite small. Same with cucumber and tomato. Maybe add some cheese.
Lasagne can be cut up, too. Most pastas will be fine, actually. The larger ones like bow-ties can be cut into smaller bits.
Stir-frys should be fine, too.
Meatballs are great, too. Or Rissoles. You can get a bag of mixed frozen veges and serve some of that on the side.
Baked Beans. Sometimes I add a fried egg to that for some extra nutrients.
minestrone soup is also a good one
If you get a roast chicken, she can eat some of that meat, too.
Sides could include some chopped up beetroot (from a can), frozen peas and corn, tomatoes, cooked carrot, potato or sweet potato pieces, pureed spinach (i like to add some garlic and cream)
I don't know what kind of foods your daughter has been used to so far. Obviously, if it has been pretty pureed, introduce the chunky stuff slowly and with caution. But even without molars, kids can eat that type of food, as long as it's soft-ish and the pieces are small.
Just trying to think of some more table foods your daughter can share. Whether you make these things or buy them ready made is up to you.
And i totally agree, it is sooo much easier if your child can eat the same foods that you are eating. I also found that DD ate a lot more when having dinneer WITH us. So we try to do that most nights. Of course it doesn't always work out (some nights DH and I don't eat until 9pm), but she's definitely much more interested in her food (and in trying new things) when she's not eating alone.
Sasa
OH heck no, hun, sorry ... I did not mean it like that!!!! I only mean that we are ALLL superwoman, some of us just are plain lazy (that is me sticking my hand up here) and some of us are really, really busy!!
Just to add
I hated that phase where I had to make three meals (me - diet, DH - fatty and DD - kidsmeal)
It does get better. ATM we all eat the same
I would say, most of us are really, really busy.
And count me in on the laziness. As I said, cleaning is not my strength. I wish I could be a good housekeeper, but I'm not. As long as it's not a serious health hazard, I'm happy - lol.
By the way, i do totally take my hat off to mums like DB who work full time. DH and I have our own business but these days I only really do the books. And I can only imagine how hard it is when you come home from a long day's work and you want to spend some time with your kids. But at the same time, there are dinners to be made, lunches to be packed, clothes to be washed, kitchens to be cleaned. Then it's finally the weekend but I'm sure there's still more housework waiting.Oh, and you might want to spend some time with your spouse, too. And then there are friends and family. I honestly don't know how you do it. and I mean that from the bottom of my heart.
Sasa
Yep, my nights are busy.:
I get home and usually because DD is so clingy because she hasn't seen me all day I just give her tinned baby food rather than making her wait while I cook and getting annoyed with her because she's grabbing my legs and getting too close to the oven, besides, often we eat dinner at 6:30 or 7 or 7:30 and DD is hungry for dinner as soon as we get home from daycare at 5:45 because I've asked the day care lady to not give her any food after 4:30pm so I can give her dinner and spend some time with her. She has her bath at about 7pm and I try to get her into bed by 7:30/8pm. Then I have to get the washing hung out, pack her bag for daycare the next day, pack my gym bag (I have a gym at work so I go at lunch time everyday), make sure DH's shirt is ironed, unload the dishwasher from the night before and load the dirty dishes and run the thing, have a shower, have some idea of what I want to wear the next day, do a bit of cleaning, catch up on the forums and facebook, try to squeeze in a bit of reading, usually that's done during a toilet trip...my 5 mins alone :rolleyes:
Danni, I know you're having to take on a lot of your household load, but surely your DH can iron his own shirt?
A really, really quick & healthy meal is some cooked pasta (10 mins in the microwave - fill a microwave bowl with kettle-boiled water, chuck in some pasta and nuke on high for 10 mins) and stir through a tin of flavoured tuna, and some grated cheese. My Pip loves it. Another easy snack for toddlers is cooked pasta, cold. Cook some up and put it in the fridge, sealed. Just give it to Jazz to snack on. Fresh fruit is easy to cut up for her to snack on, and if you give her the food to nibble on while you're preparing the main meal, she'll really enjoy it - put her highchair in the kitchen and just pat her head etc each time you go past.
For really nutricious toddler frozen food, try organic bubs (that's the company name - google them) - they deliver to your home / work etc and are really good value.
Do what you need to to work full-time, enjoy your little girl and that's the main thing. Do it your own way, you'll work it out for you. :hug:
Danni you sound like my type of woman, I also worked full time
homemade really who has the time I tell you only SAHM's if they can do it good luck to them
as for the rest of us we are doing our best and if that comes in a packet of chips nuggets or anything else a couple of times a week then so be it
we do it because we want to / have to
want to be part of the working world
Hi Danni,
You are a Super-career-mum-woman. Obviously you are trying very hard to provide for your daughter's future. Having said that, my daughter is 10 months, I recently started feeding her homemade chips (fries). I peel the potatoes and chop them. She loves it. Of course I don't do that everyday but probably once a week. Have you thought about preparing food the night before? And perhaps store it in the freezer or fridge? For example, marinate chicken, fish or meat night before. You can serve it with vegetables, rice or pasta. Whatever tickles your fancy? You can do that instead of ironing your husband's shirt, unloading the dishwasher. I understand you want to spend time with your DD but 30 minutes of cooking something healthy and nice for her is also good. I think its fine feeding her nuggets, fish fingers, etc.
DS has eaten chicken nuggets, fish fingers and everything else thats bad for him, but to be honest im happy to give him those foods because at least i know he is actually eating something!!
and like someone said (cant remember who sorry!!) its not like you are giving it to them morning noon and night.
Dont feel bad xx
Just to add, MJ eats EVERYTHING that we eat, curries, quiche, pasta, lasagne, roast etc et.
If i am working (this week 5 days) i use the evening and part of the other day to make up extras.
The other day (when i got home from work) i made a white sauce (butter melted in pan, stir in flour then milk) added cheese and tuna, i also at the same time boiled veggies til they were quite soft (not the best for nutritional value by hey they veggies) then chuckedn them in the pot with the tuna etc etc and mashed them up.
Cook some spag/pasta and serve over, MJ loves this and so does DH who is a big foody.
I made a huge batch, so not only did we have it for dinner, but i cooked extra pasta, stired the sauce throgh, chucked it in a dish, sprinkled with cheese and tada, pasta bake for another night (plus a smaller one for the freezer too)
I know you are busy, maybe Matt can help a lottle more so that you can all have a nice meal, even once or twice a week, it doesnt have to be gourmet, quiche, pasta bake, spag, but its healthy and you can have it together..
:hug: dont take any of this as criticism hun, you are doing a great job
Preparing a big batch of meals on the weekend was how I got through working full time with three children on my own, and it wasn't that hard in the end.:
DB, that bloke can iron his own bloody shirts!
those foods are fine in moderation (if you buy them from a supermarket )
BUT i make my own guilt free and so cheap and i dont care how much he eats of it !!
chicken breast / Fillet of fish - cut into cubes
eggs - cracked and mixed in a bowl
PANCO - japanese bread crumbs (in the supermaket in the asain/ bread crumb isle (about $3-4 a box)
and then dip in to panco , dip in to egg , dip into panco .
place on a baking tray spary lightly with oil and 15 mins in a pre heated 200 - 250 oven and your done !!!
so easy and cheap ... just add sauce ..
you can reaheat in the oven to keep them crispy.
i take them to shooping centres and reheat in the parents room so ds can have nuggets for lunch !
no $7 happy meal for 3 measly nuggets !!
I agree, I would always prefer cooking a meal over ironing DHs shirts. He can do that. And he can also unload the dishwasher while you bath DD (or the other way around). You're both chipping in to bring home the bacon, so you can both chip in when it comes to running the house. You are not super-woman. You don't have to do it all and sing a song while doing it.
And putting a steak in the pan while boiling some veges seriously doesn't take any more time than putting fish fingers and chips in the oven. If you don't want to fuss with crumbing chicken strips, you could just put some lemon pepper (or my favourite, piri piri seasoning) on them and stick them under the grill or into your oven. They don't need to be crumbed.
I spend less than 15 minutes on about half of our meals during the week (the other meals are a little more time consuming, but it's rarely more than 1/2 hour. Pasta sauce is good, because it just bubbles away while you do other stuff. Same goes for stews. I know a lot of people who work full time and they just put stuff in the slow cooker in the morning and when they get home, the house smells like food!
And I also agree that just as with boxed convenience foods, you can make the freezer your best friend. I always cook for about 10 people (when making things like Pasta, Curries, Soups, Stews etc.). Most goes into individual containers for DH to take to work, but I also put about 2 dinners into our freezer to have over the next couple of weeks. So if I can't be bothered or am running out of time, I always have a TV dinner waiting for me. And as mentioned, freezing food for DD in ice cube trays makes it really easy to quickly reheat something for her. Actually much quicker than cooking chicken nuggets. Only takes a minute or 2 to reheat a few ice cubes worth, then add another couple of minutes for it to cool a little.
If she's so hungry when she gets home from day care, how about giving he a little snack? Or some milk to tie her over? I often give DD some fruit or a few cheese cubes in the afternoon. Not too much to spoil her dinner, but just enough to give her a little "entree". Or a handful of sultanas?
Cooking doesn't have to be time consuming, tedious and boring. Nobody expects gourmet 3 course dinners every night. And it doesn't have to be every night either. Maybe a couple of times a week to start with.
And you know what? You could even ask DH if he could cook one day a week.
It seriously saves soooo much money.
Sasa
Get a packet of dry french onion soup and use that instead of breadcrumbs. Sprinkle it over chicken fillets then fry - so EASY and it makes you look like you worked harder than you did ssshhh!
lulu - YUM ... i know what im making for tea ... there is a packet of FOS in the cupbaoard .. mm i want to make it now :lol:
i hope i didnt sound judgemental - i also work... cooking is my thing and i am a bit of a foodie... my house looks like a bombs hit it most of the time... and i have a cleaner!
what i wrote is my opinion, i think once in a while is fine but it isnt for me... you have some ideas here if you want them that dont take too long... you also have some people who do the same as what you suggested so i guess it comes down to what you think is best for YOUR family - not what we all do...
i hear you on being time poor and the guilt that comes with it all - so dont beat yourself up...