Helping Kids and Families Cook & Eat Healthier.

Happy Holidays: Tips for Successfully Dealing with Picky Eaters of All Ages

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The approaching holiday season means lots of entertaining and big meals. And with those things comes a multitude of preferences, allergies, and dietary needs from various guests. Whether your guests are young or old and whether they have to be picky about what they eat for medical reasons, choose to be for health reasons, or just have strong personal preferences, accommodating picky eaters can be tricky to deal with at the holidays. If dealing with picky eaters, allergies, and special preferences has you wondering what to do this holiday season, worry no more! Our holiday guide for dealing with picky eaters is here to help.

  1.    Set Aside Separate Ingredients. Your guests may not be able to enjoy every ingredient in some of your dishes, but there are typically some ingredients that everyone likes and can safely eat. For example, if you are preparing a chicken casserole, set aside some of the roasted chicken and veggies you are preparing anyway for a guest who doesn’t (or can’t) eat the dairy that will be added when you add milk and cheese to the casserole. By doing this you’ll be able to accommodate different needs without creating any extra work for yourself!
  2.    Make the Meal a “Build Your Own Meal” Bar. Instead of plating everyone’s meals, try setting out the different foods you’ll be serving in a buffet style bar setup. This will let a vegan friend pass on the meat and a child with a nut allergy skip the sweet potato casserole.
  3.    Ask for Help. If you have picky children, let them help you prepare the meal. Oftentimes pride in helping create the meal will lead to more adventuresome eating. If you have adult guests with particular preferences or dietary needs, ask them to contribute a dish to the meal. They will likely be happy to help, and you’ll both know they have at least one dish to eat at the gathering.
  4.    Include Labels. If you use any premade foods or ingredients, save the labels so that any guests with special dietary needs can check the ingredients to make sure they are compliant with their needs. Additionally, consider making labels with ingredients beside different dishes you make. This can be particularly helpful with a large crowd and will save you from answering the same question multiple times.

Author: Diana

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