Please Pass the Grey Poupon

Grape tomatoes, olives, eggplant parm, feta cheese, quiche Lorraine, couscous, wild rice & roasted veggies, Thai shrimp & rice noodles, sushi, Starbucks Skinny Vanilla Latte (decaf) and for dessert…….. 2 gummi bear vitamins, 2 graham crackers & a sippy cup of milk?

Confused?  The list above is foods that my twins enjoy eating.  Some in fact, like the grape tomatoes, are actually an obsession.  Surprised? I thought you might be, let me explain.

One of my passions is cooking, or should I say food.  I grew up with the typical 5 to 10 standard meals most everyone did in the 70s.: spaghetti, fried chicken, meatloaf, pot-roast, burgers, tuna casserole, etc.  I didn’t learn to cook until I got out on my own; then I went mad experimenting & learning. So it’s taken a few years to hone my skills, but I believe I’m a pretty good cook.  And the best part is that I love doing it! 

My goal was to share my passion with my kids and expose them to the culinary delights of the world.  Why should a 2 year olds’ palate be dumbed down to mac ‘n cheese when they can equally enjoy pumpkin ravioli with Gorgonzola sauce? And mine devour it every time I make it.

I believe children should fit in to your life, not that you should arrange your life to fit your kids.  So I knew from day one that I would be cooking one meal in the evening and they would be eating it.  None of this adult food & kid food stuff.  Beyond the exposure that I wanted for them, I also wasn’t about to waste my time in the kitchen every night fixing two separate meals. 

 So, how do you develop a sophisticated palate in a 2 YO? Well, you start from day one.  The first day you introduce food.

1. Remember KISS – Keep It Simple, Stupid – when introducing baby food, go with the basics and start with veggies. I didn’t necessarily go organic, because it’s not always necessary. But with twins I purchased frozen veggies (sans salt) and pureed away, freezing portions. When I wasn’t in the mood to be Martha Stewart, I purchased the basics.  Never fall into that trap of souffles & casseroles & desserts – look at labels.  It’s just a bunch of sugar & filler starches.  Babies need to learn to appreciate the taste of a basic ingredient for what it is on it’s own.  I think marketing has decided to ‘trick’ the moms and offer us options that appear to be more grown up in their names & design.  But in reality it’s just a bunch of mush for the baby.  They develop taste buds over time and thus taste over time.
2. Go Slow- It can take a baby or even toddler up to 30 times to develop a taste for a new food.  Keep offering small bites of anything new.  They will most likely refuse at least half a dozen times initially. Never push or force anything.  You can instill a will-full rejection of new items out of spite.  You don’t want to do this.  Sometimes there will also be texture issues, which my Jacob had.  Those things come up.  They can be worked through over time.  I would suggest the advice of a pediatrician, speech pathologist or occupational therapist. 
3. Out with the Old, In With the New – Introduce new foods that may be questionable with an old standby you know they like.  As they become more familiar with the new food you can replace the old food completely.
4. Create Mini Chefs- If you involve them in the cooking or prep work, they will be more likely to try the food.  My kids have been in the kitchen cooking with me since they were 18 months old.  And they love it! Just make sure it’s ok with your guests first if your kids are going to cook when you have company because they really don’t adhere to great hygiene rules – they do a lot of double dipping.  But that’s ok!
5. REMEMBER YOU ARE THE PARENT- THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT POINT….You do the grocery shopping, you control what they are exposed to and what they consume.  For example, when the kids started eating solids, I purchased grape tomatoes instead of grapes.  My kids developed a taste for tomatoes. They had never even had grapes until the tomato addiction was well established.  Given the both as an option, they will choose the tomatoes over the grapes most of the time. 

Here’s a sad little bit of reality. I recently read about a study in ‘that’ magazine or on ‘that’ site (sorry for lack of reference) that discussed how young kids were tested on good healthy foods on preferences of eating.  Same healthy foods – one meal on plates, one brown bag or something, one is McD’s packaging.  Toddlers as young as 2 consistently preferred McD’s food over other options even though it was the same.  They did various trials, but you get the point.  Marketing is driving our toddlers taste buds and I personally don’t like it.  

So here are 2 additional FACTS & POWER POINTS to help you on your journey to developing a sophisticated palate. 

• YOU ARE THE ADULT, DON’T CAVE. You have the power. You have the control. If you have been fixing them a separate meal to appease them, you can stop. It will be ok.  Follow the technique above & remember the points below.
• CHILDREN DO NOT HAVE THE CAPACITY TO SELF STARVE.  This is a fact – ask your pediatrician. It may seem so, but they will eat when they are hungry. Especially younger children.  They will eat what is available, I mean assuming you are not serving them squid or something.  So if they do not eat what is offered at 6pm. Wrap it up, put it in the frig and pull it back out at 7pm, etc., etc. Trust me, my kids have sat at the table at 9pm before eating dinner and it was what I served at 6pm.  This can be a battle of wills.  You will be tested.  They know how to play the game and can raise the stakes higher than you ever expected. 

Please keep in mind.  If they go to bed without their supper, tens of thousands of children facing horrendous poverty do so every night and yet they survive. (You can help them too @ Compassion.)  My kids have done this. They did not die of starvation or dehydration. I promise I’m not a mean mommy, I just refuse to let them eat only graham crackers & milk for dinner.  This was a very long night, a test of wills that tested my patience. But they ate like champs in the morning.   

There are very few things in this world that give me as much pleasure as eating a great meal, drinking great wine and being with great friends. The reality is not every every child is going to like quiche or sushi – heck, most adults don’t.  But developing the exposure, willingness to try new things, a taste for food and culture beyond chicken nuggets & hot dogs is so important to me. 

We live in such a fast paced, microwavable world.  I just think we need to instill the ideals that food is to be tasted, each bite is to be savored, a meal is to be lingered over. 

So, you do have any great ideas on how to develop a sophisticated palate in a toddler? Let’s hear them….

This post is a part of Watercooler Wedsnesday & WFMW.

PS. On a side note, my son did get a sip of my latte one day behind my back, now he begs for it.  So on a rare occasion, I will let have a few sips of decaf.  Does that make me a bad mommy?  It’s just a battle I choose not to fight. Oh well!