Healthy, simple meals and snacks your kids will love

If there's one thing I've learned about being a parent and trying to help our child have the best start at life through a nutritious whole foods diet, it's to keep it simple and to get creative. I recently heard a quote from one of the blogs I follow that every parent should hear: "There is no such thing as a perfect parent. So just be a real one" (Sue Attains). We all want the best for our kids. But there is nothing more important that spending quality time with them and focusing more on being present than being in the kitchen for hours trying to make everything from scratch. Coming up with easy recipes and meals to turn to is vital and some of these will be homemade while others may not be. I thought I'd take a moment to share some of the recipes and meals that have become a staple in our son's diet and where I find some of my inspiration for easy, simple meals:

Our favorite, simple meals and snacks:

-Morning smoothies and smoothie bowls: I adore smoothie bowls, as does our son. A classic one I make is a tropical one with spinach, mangos, banana and pineapple with water. We're also big fans of the Magical Ice Cream Smoothie bowl recipe in the Oh She Glows everyday cookbook and the chocolate one from her cookbooks as well. Next on our list is this mermaid smoothie () which seems like a lot of fun.

-Quesadillas: I've made quesadillas with whatever I have handy in the fridge. A new one we recently came up with is mashed up white kidney beans mixed with mashed up butternut squash and apple sauce which ends up making a nice little spread on the inside of your quesadilla, topped with cheese, folded and cooked to perfection. Black bean quesadillas are also a big hit.

-Make your own pizza: Kids love making their own pizza and I find it opens them up to putting a few veggies on pizza that they wouldn't eat otherwise. Pizza dough isn't too hard to make but for an even simpler version you can use English muffins or pita bread.

-Oat stacks: Mix a mashed up banana with oats and some nut butter, add in chocolate chips or dried berries, and some superfoods (chia seeds, hemp hearts, flax, etc.) and cook in the oven at 350 F for 20 minutes.

-Banana egg muffins: mix a mashed up banana with two eggs and some fresh berries. Pour in mini muffin cups and cook at 375 F for 18 minutes. One of the simplest muffin recipes around and a good protein boost.

-Fiesta bowl: Cook a batch of brown rice and serve with all the toppings (fresh salsa, black beans, corn, guacamole, sour cream, etc.) for the whole family to add what they want to their bowl.

-Big quinoa salad: Cook a batch of quinoa and let it cool down. Add lemon juice and olive oil and throw in either a mix of veggies (eg. tomato, cucumber, avocado, etc.) or fresh berries with cucumber and feta cheese. Look out for my Valentine's Day quinoa recipe coming out next week which is sure to be a hit.

Pasta primevera: A simple option that can be pulled together quite easily. I cook pasta and heat up a pan with olive oil to cook zucchini, broccoli, cherry tomatoes and anything else I may want to include and add in more olive oil and fresh herbs (thyme and basil are great options). Throw in the pasta and mix well and serve.

Stir fry with baked soy-maple tofu: I've included a recipe on this blog already, but I often will make a simple stir fry with soy sauce, sesame, brown sugar, etc. and cook vermecelli noodles with vegetables. I cut up tofu and bake it in the oven, mixed with soy sauce, sesame oil and real maple syrup.

Although all the recipes shared here are vegetarian, you can easily add chicken or fish or a protein of your choice to it.

My favorite places to find recipes for kids:

-Love Child Organics cookbook and website

-Weelicious cookbooks

-Little Bites cookbook

-https://www.babyfoode.com/

Involving kids in the process of cooking is even better and allows more quality time together. Not always an easy thing and certainly a more messy option, but one worth considering. I hope some of these recipes or websites inspire you as well to think of some creative options that could work for you and your family. What is your favorite simple go-to meal?