How to Get Your Kids to Eat More Fruits and Veges

I feel pretty lucky.  My kids will eat steamed broccoli and carrots at dinner without a fuss.  Now don’t get me wrong, given the choice, French fries would trump the veges any night of the week.  But when it comes to getting them to branch out and try a larger variety of fruits and veges it’s not always an easy job.  So I tried to think of a more creative way to squeeze those important foods into their diet and for me it was  - The Juicer.

First off I will begin by stating that yes a juicer is a pain to put together and to clean.  But every time I start to feel overwhelmed about the entire process I take a look at all of the different fruits and veges I am getting into my kids with no fussing - and the added bonus is that they always ask for more.

I don’t have a secret recipe.  I actually call my juicing technique – The Kitchen Sink.  I try to make sure my refrigerator is stocked full of a large variety of apples, pears, grapes, lemons, grapefruits, carrots, and leafy greens like spinach and kale.  

I find the most effective way to juice is to wash all of your fruits and veges and cut them up into the appropriate size for your juicer before you begin.  Have them all ready to go and then juice away.  The secret I have found is to make sure you include a lot of familiar tasting fruits in with the more “exotic” ones.  For instance, my kids would rarely eat grapefruit, kale or lemons on their own but when juiced with apples, oranges, and grapes, they don’t even know realize they are getting all of the other foods as well.  

My typical juice recipe: 1 red apple, 1 green apple, ½ grapefruit, ½ lemon, large bunch of grapes, large orange, large bunch of spinach or kale, large bunch of salad greens,  3-4 stalks of celery, 2-3 large carrots, 1 pear.  You do not have to use so many different fruits but I figure if I am going to the trouble of getting the juicer out, I want to get the most out of it.  Although I wish I had the time to do this every day, I usually juice for my family 3-4 times a week.  Once you get into the habit, it’s not so daunting, and when I think about all the benefits my family is getting I feel it is worth all of the effort.