toddlermeals | The Snazzy Mom Blog by Arushi Garg

I have been lately posting a lot of stories on my Instagram of the popsicles batches I have been preparing for my son to be beat the H town heat. And as promised to all my followers who sent me so many DMs, here are the recipes to Vir’s favorite popsicles that are easy to make and healthy too!

It’s hotter than hot in Houston and so these nutritious and healthy popsicles end up as snacks and even sometimes as a meal on those hard days with a toddler.

The recipes are extremely simple and has almost 3- 4 ingredients max.

You need these 2 very important things to start with the process.

1) Ice Cream Mold

2) Blender

I planned a trip to my local grocer Kroger on the weekend to get all the fresh fruits, yogurt and ice cream molds. While shopping I came across the Brawny Tear-A-Square® paper towel! I cannot tell you how much I hate wasting paper napkins and tearing an entire sheet to just clean a little spill or to have to use as a napkin while feeding.

The award-winning Brawny Tear-A-Square® just solved such a huge waste problem for me, as the quarter sheet size works for both clean-up and as a napkin! Just the right size of paper towels a toddler can use. It is perfect for home use, picnics, barbeques, road trips, just anywhere. I highly recommend getting this product and trying it out. I wished I found them during Vir’s Birthday Party, I threw so many napkins out that just had a little bit of cake on it or were just left on the floor.

Below are my most recommended popsicles that you and your kids can enjoy. To make them interesting I added some layers with yogurt for a bit extra!

Strawberry, Blueberry Watermelon Smash

These are 90 % fruit and 10% yogurt for that extra zing. It helps balance your electrolytes.

I hate wasting food and fruit especially. A big watermelon sometimes at our home gets wasted and so I made sure I blend it with other fruits to get the taste, strawberries add some more sweetness and the blueberry adds the deep dark colors ( It can also make it tangy ). You can choose to add sugar or replace blueberry with lime for a zing. I didn’t add either.

Pour the blended mixture in ice mold upto ¾ till top and freeze for 3 hours.

After 3 hours use some store bought strawberry or vanilla organic yogurt. And pour it in the remaining portion of molds to fill up the rest and add a layer.

Check after a few hours. It should be ready to eat!

These are beautiful looking, tastes awesome like any other fruit popsicle in the market minus the sugar.

Mango Mania!

I had been wanting to introduce mangoes to Vir, he somehow hasn’t appreciated the fruit as much. I guess because it’s a bit tangy and not as sweet as alphonso mangoes.

So, I took 1 whole peeled mango, added 2 tbsp sugar and some whole milk to make it smoothie like and not entirely fruity. Please see how much sugar you need to add as some mangoes can be tangy.

Like above I poured the blended smoothie in ice mold upto ¾ till top and freeze for 3 hours.

After 3 hours use some store-bought vanilla organic yogurt. And pour it in the remaining portion of molds to fill up the rest and add a layer.

Check after a few hours. It should be ready to eat!

This was a hit, as Vir got excited about the yellow color. You can also add pineapple and make it a tropical smoothie without the milk.

Peanut Butter, Banana and Chocolate Pop!

This was a hit especially last week when my son was sick and wasn’t eating a lot. I tried to give him milk and he kept refusing it. So, I took his store-bought chocolate milk, add 1 tbsp of peanut butter and half banana and blended it.

You can add sugar too or even honey. I added 1 tbsp of sugar as the peanut butter had no sugar added to it. Taste the smooth mixture when you are done blending and add accordingly.

Pour the mixture in mold and added the rest of the banana pieces in the mold and set it to freeze. Check after 3 hours.

I had fun making these popsicles as they are super easy, healthy and flavorful. To beat the mess while cleaning up or just simply holding the popsicle Brawny Tear-A-Square® came to our rescue. The sheets are durable, strong and the perfect size! You can find them at a Kroger near you.

For the Tangy Coconut and Kiwi Kicker click here. I posted this a while back.

Tip: While removing the popsicles from the mold, make sure you run hot tap water on the mold to easily remove the popsicles.

Have a fantastic summer and do share with me your favorite popsicle flavor!

**This post is sponsored by Kroger as always, all opinions are mine**

XOXO

As a parent, sometimes getting your toddler to eat anything, let alone eat healthy can be very stressful! There are sick days, moody days, fussy days, some really happy and hungry days and this list could go on and on.

For me it is all about teaching my kid to love healthy foods especially fruits and vegetables, and some days we all need to have a backup plan. On my Instagram stories you will see regular updates of my morning latte cups and some days meals, recipes and food pictures of what I am offering my son.

I have been getting several questions from moms on my email and DMs on what I am cooking for Vir requesting for recipes of my favorite spinach and veggie loaded toddler meals. So in this post I am listing out few of my recipes that have worked for us and some great ideas for back up plans on feeding your picky eater.

Also you can check out my previous post that has a list of food items I offered my child as he started solids and a Free Printable with all nutrient information for different food types with nutrients information. Click Here

My son is 18 months old, and is still figuring out his taste buds, so I try to provide a balanced meal while including veggies in his favorite Pancakes, Pasta, Muffin , Stuffed tortilla and Soup. My tip if your toddler refuses to eat any veggies – SNEAK THEM IN !!! Some might think it’s sending a wrong message, but for us it’s a work in progress. There is ample time to develop my kid’s understanding of his food and I will like take as it goes. However, I am doing this to make sure he has a balance diet.

To sneak in veggies especially on those fussy days : Boil– Spinach, carrot, some kale and blend it. (You can add veggies of your choice depending on how you plan to use them.) Replace water with this mix in all the dishes like Pancakes, Pasta, Muffin , Stuffed tortilla and Soup

Toddler Approved Recipes!

Spinach And Banana Pancakes– Add boiled and blended spinach and carrot mix with Banana, oat flour and 1 egg to make healthy Spinach breakfast.

Veggies loaded Mac and Cheese/ Pasta– Sauté diced pieces of carrot, peas with onion and spinach in butter or olive oil. Add boiled pasta with desired pasta sauce. I add cheese slices in the pasta too, it never hurts to add more. Offering really small pieces of veggies is a good start and later moving to bigger pieces.

Veggie mix Roti/Tortilla- My son is not a big fan of stuffed breads , so I have started mixing the boiled veggies directly to the flour or you can use the blended mix as an alternative to water while making the dough. I recommend including beets and sweet potatoes too as they look colorful and are nutrient dense.

Veggie and Fruit Muffins- Fruit and veggie muffins have all of the elements to basically be a complete meal! I recently came across this great recipe on Pinterest and it has been a great success. It is loaded with lots of vitamins and minerals and fiber . Click here for Power Packed Fruit Muffin Recipe from Super Healthy Kids.com

Make a Dip Bar

In Dr Sears’ book, The Portable Pediatrician, he suggests serving all types of chopped vegetables and foods in an ice tray, with some yummy dipping sauces on the ends. Making it fun, colorful and full of variety can encourage little ones to eat more vegetables. Marinara sauce, ranch, Parmesan cheese, Coriander chutney are great to start with. I am currently offering steamed carrots , broccoli with Marinara sauce to Vir

Cook Veggies in different ways

Raw, Roasted, or Steamed has been a hit in our house. We all vote for baked and boiled as my son loves grabbing small pieces of sweet potatoes, carrots and peas. Seasoning the veggies is a winner in my friend’s house and I will be starting that soon too. Let me know what seasoning you use.

Beat the Veggies (Smoothies for the WIN )

Smoothies are a great (and easy) way to get nutrient dense fruits and vegetables into your kids without them really knowing it! Spinach, Kale, Beets and Fruit of course! The best part is that toddlers and kids think that smoothies are the equivalent of having a milkshake.We love the Banana+ Peanut butter+ Spinach+ Kale+ Milk smoothie. Tip : Start adding veggies slowly in the smoothie and get to the right amount of sweetness and taste. I started with small quantities of spinach and kale at first and once my son got used to the taste we added more.Check out this Toddler Approved Smoothie from one of my favorite blogger mom Ashley. I love the Jamba juice cup idea.

Butter them up

Young tongues are particularly sensitive to bitterness, and kids may instinctively repel from bitter foods. Masking the bitterness with butter especially for broccoli is working for us so far . “Everything tastes better with butter, especially vegetables. Try adding 1 tablespoon of butter per half cup of mashed sweet potatoes, green beans, broccoli, and cooked spinach to temper the bitterness.

Hope this post helps you get some veggies in your fussy toddler’s meal !! Please do share your tips and tricks and any great recipe .

Now, go get some broccoli and LOVE it