By Ilaria Chan
For most of us, the concept of preparing nutritious meals for our toddlers is usually at odds with our busy schedules. After all, “nutritious” meals sound like they require preparation from scratch every day right?
As a busy mum who’s also juggling a full-time career, I am always on the lookout for recipe hacks that do not compromise my son’s nutrition. Here are a few of my favorite, quick-to-make, but healthy and nutritious, foods for our growing toddlers:
1.Quesadillas: Quesadillas are quick to make, easy to feed, convenient to reheat, and allow us to throw in several healthy ingredients in one go. I usually choose whole wheat tortillas, and add in cheese, fresh vegetables (such as tomato, carrot, sweet potato, spinach, corn), finished with a protein (chicken, ham, beef).
2. Sweet potato fries (best with air fryer): Sweet potato is a tasty superfood (good source of Vitamins A, C & B-6, fiber and potassium) that most kids love. I usually toss freshly cut sweet potatoes into my air fryer (lightly coated with olive oil) and serve it with healthy ketchup (I use True Made Foods or Yo Mama’s ketchup that contain no added sugar). Only takes around 12 minutes!
3. Meat balls: I love making meatballs because I can tick off all the nutrition needs in one ball. I usually mix 2 proteins (lean turkey with beef or pork), add in eggs, any kind of vegetables (peas, carrots, corn, sweet potato, kale, spinach), iron-fortified baby cereal (to help bind the meat ball), whole milk, and my choice of herbs with a small amount of salt and pepper, then bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes until fully cooked. The beauty of meatballs is that you can easily freeze and prepare in large batches to save time. Kids love eatingthem and they are easy to break into smaller pieces in the future for spaghetti or sandwiches.
4. Garlic fried rice: Fried rice is another crowd favorite that allows us to throw in all the ingredients we’d want our child to consume and still guarantees a delicious meal. I usually use brown rice, generous helpings of garlic and onion, turkey bacon, lean beef, or ground turkey, eggs, peas, carrots, and even kimchee. For those of you who have toddlers with a gourmet palate, adding in dried seaweed flakes or sesame on top can take your dish’s umami to the next level within seconds.
In addition to the dishes I mentioned above, I usually stock my home with whole milk yogurt, cheese, whole wheat crackers, and lots of fresh fruits such as blueberries, strawberries, oranges and grapes so that my toddler can self-feed during snack time. I know that our children’s eating habits are at the forefront of our priorities, and hope the recipe suggestions in this article can be helpful to you!
Ilaria Chan is the chairwoman of an international think tank. She also serves on the boards of humanitarian NGOs, venture capital and real estate funds, and is a frequent keynote speaker at tech and investment conferences around the world.