Parenting Article:

Geoff Jansz shares his tips on how he gets his kids to eat healthy lunches

By: Geoff Jansz

In my work as a chef, I am an advocate of fresh healthy food. In my life as a dad, I am the same. Any parent knows how difficult it can be to get your children to eat, never mind eat healthily. It can take hours of coaxing and bribing to get the plate cleared. The dilemma becomes even worse once your children get to school age. You can put healthy food in their lunchbox, but you can't be there to ensure they eat it.

Over the years I have come up with a number of tips and tricks to make sure my children were eating enough fruit and veggies.

Most important is the lunchbox. Choose one that acts like a mini eskie as there is nothing less apealling than warm, sweaty sandwiches. I always include a juice drink which I leave in the freezer the night before. This helps keep the lunch cool and though the juice has defrosted in time for lunch, it will still be refreshing.

For sandwiches keep wet ingredients seperate. My kids always enjoyed the task of adding the sauce or tomatoes to their own sandwiches. I always added a helping of chutney instead of mayonaise as it reduced the fat content and upped the fruit content. In fact I snuck so much chutney into their food that in the end I created my own. The same goes for salads; keep the dressing seperate. Making homemade salad dressing is a good way to get your kids to help in the kitchen and can often make them more enthusiastic about eating salads.

Include veggie sticks as kids love a bit of crunch. Make a dip consisting of light sour cream mixed with chutney, hummus or avocado as this will also add much needed dairy to their diet.

In winter add small pasta shapes to a soup thermos for a filling and warming lunch. A hot meal can make a huge difference on a cold day.

There is one trick however that bypasses all of the others and that is the Lunch Pool. Work with the parents of your childs friends to create a lunch roster. One day a week you might make five packed lunches, but this will leave you free for the rest of the week. The children are also more likely to eat the lunch as they are having the same as their friends.

Get your kids involved in preparing healthy food from a young age and they will be set for life.

Check out some of Geoff's easy, delicious and healthy recipes!

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