Discussion Board

I would love to chat with another mom who has experience with recipes her kids really like (kids who were more or less raised on a SAD diet) - not just kids who have never tasted it -- cause those kids are the lucky ones!!

I have 4 children ages 12 to 6 and although they are not complaining about the food, (most of the time) I want to be able to have our "favorites" like we used to have and I would hear them yum with delight. That doesn't happen much anymore. Unless its a smoothie, or a dessert (made McDougall)

Maybe because I allow them to choose for themselves when they are away from home-their palates are not as keen as mine.

So, my question is, how are you handling this food with your kids, can you share any dinner recipes your kids love? I buy Earth Balance and let my kids put it on anything they don't like ie. cornbread, pancakes, rice etc. and of course they put it on their toast. So I guess my kids aren't really FULLY McDougall - I guess I'm scared they will totally rebel....

Overall, I just want to chat with ANYONE transforming their whole FAMILY.

I'm lonely for support.

Thanks!

Jen

I was hoping to change my family but my husband only lasted a few months. My daughter loves fruit and veggies and potatoes and starches so she is mostly Mcdougall but not fully.

Our favorite foods are sloppy joes, taco salad or tacos, meatloaf, backyard bean burgers, chili, spaghetti, and tofu chicken nuggets. My daughter also likes the fake chreeze sauce with baked corn tortillas made into chips with salsa. My husband and daughter use smart balance light.

While I love the healthy veggie filled recipes my almost 4 year old likes the foods that look most familiar.

If you want any of these recipes let me know

I have been McDougalling for just over one year. My husband has now agreed to convert completely with me as well. He always liked the food that I would fix but he also liked to eat meat (when we would go out) and cheese/dairy (both in and out of the home). We have an almost 11 year old son and an almost 9 year old daughter. They have never eaten meat, but (unfortunately) they have a love for dairy products, and tunafish. They do like the "fake" meats, but because they are made from isolated soy protein, I have really cut back on those as well. I will probably allow these kinds of foods occasionally. To make our transition, starting at the end of 2007, I started removing some of the dairy products from the house (like ice cream treats). When the milk ran out I didn't buy any more. Same with the eggs. Today I took another pass through the cupboards and the fridge and removed some additional items. Over the past 3 weeks we have been feeding them meals comprised of McD friendly foods. We serve them whole grain pancakes, whole grain french toast, tomato soup (made with rice milk), whole grain pasta with sauce, vegetables, fruit, potatoes, garlic bread, minestrone soup, peanut butter sandwiches and salad (for one of them). They have always eaten whole grain foods so they don't object to whole grain foods, thankfully. Sadly, though, we have run our house a little like a short order kitchen, and have prepared food for the kids that they like, separate from what we would be eating. Now I am working to combine at least part of the meal into something that all of us have in common. I love to cook, so I am always wanting to try new recipes. My kids, however, just refuse to try anything new. That can get really hard some days because I know that they would really like what I have made, they just won't try it. Sometimes they will touch the new food and then take a little lick of what is on their finger. I tell them that they can't really taste the food this way and that they need to take a real bite, and if they don't like it they can wash it down with their drink. To no avail. My son also has a tendency to make others miserable when he is unhappy. Sometimes when he is served a meal he doesn't care for, we all end up listening to his complaints about it.

I can appreciate completely your fear that your kids will totally rebel. I, too, let them use a little earth balance. I have the same fears. I tell myself, though, that I am making these changes because I love them so very much and want them to be healthy for their whole lives. Despite the fact that they are both physically active kids - they both play ice hockey - they could stand to lose some weight. From Dr. McD's DVDs that I have been watching, I understand now that they are overweight from the dairy fat and high fructose corn syrup that has been in their diets. It will be hard to control what they do outside of the house - when they go to a friends house, for example. I am hopeful that with time their palates will change and these other foods won't have the appeal that they do now. I am trying to keep my focus on the long term goal.

I knew this would be hard, and I just keep telling myself that things will get better. I have ready many places that you need to put new foods in front of kids 20 times before they will try it!! (Can that really be true....20 times?!?!?!) And I also remember there were things I wouldn't eat as a kid and I had no rational basis for refusing to eat these foods! I guess its not so different with my own kids now. Funny how life is a circle like that!

I'm sorry I don't have any creative recipes for you to try. We are pretty much stuck on the plain and simple stuff for right now. I have decided to keep a journal of sorts to track what we are doing, what recipes we try, what they like, etc. It will be good to reflect back on (I hope) to give context and reference points to things later. I hope I can keep up with it, becuase I'm not really the journal writing type!

Every family is different, but if you have any success stories or tips, pass them along!

I'll just post a few of the things that my kids love. I have 2 boys, ages 12 and 4. Although they are not completely McDougalling...I'm slowly changing that and I'm just not making a big deal out of it. I believe they can simply eat whats in the house so there's a lot of things that I no longer buy. Anyway, here's some things they really like: fruit smoothies, banana/mango ice cream (just make it in the food processor), buckwheat pancakes with black raspberry syrup, hummus (used as dip and in wraps), vegetable soup, garbanzo stew, pb & j (I buy only organic peanut butter and jelly....no high fructose corn syrup, same goes with ketchup), potatoes of any kind fixed in any manner (we eat A LOT of potatoes), veggie stir fry with rice, whole wheat spaghetti with marinara sauce (I add peppers and muchrooms to the sauce), easy brownies, tofu chocolate pudding, sorbet, beans and rice. There's more but those are some of the staples in my house. Hope that helps!!

Over time, tastes do change, it is amazing. I can relate to the closed mind 'tasting method' of kids, and can remember being on the other side of it. You really have to work at keeping out of power struggles, while trying to get kids to expand what they eat. It is a slow process. Like setting up an environment where the door is open and no one will notice much if they decide to walk through it.

This repeats some of Sevie92's list: fruit smoothies, fruit, whole grain pancakes, whole grain rolls, pizza with ww crust and sometimes with vegan cheese, black bean burgers, raw carrots and sweet peas, ministrone soup, pb & j, potatoes, veggie stir fry with pineapple and rice, plain rice, whole wheat spaghetti with marinara sauce, pudding, vegan cookies.

I do I do!! How do you make a vegan meatloaf? I have tried to make lentil loaf in the past and was never successful. Also what fake meat do you use for your tacos and sloppy joes? I used to use Quorn but that was before McDougall. Thanks!!

Sure here they are

Black bean sloppy joes ( I think this is from dr's quick and easy cookbook)

1 onion chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/3 cup water
1 15 oz can black beans
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1/4 cup quick cooking oatmeal ( I use quinoa flakes because I cant eat oats)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon prepared mustard
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon chili powder

Put onion and bell pepper with water, cook until softened. Mash beans add remaining ingredients cook over low heat until heated thorough about 5 minutes.


My meatloaf recipe I use is marla's

http://www.vegsource.com/marla/lentil_rice_loaf.html



I love it and so do alot of my SAD extended family. The key I find to having it hold together well for me is I use my hand held mixer and really mash the lentils. It's a little crumblier than a regular meatloaf so I like to let it sit in the fridge for a few hours and let it stiffen sometimes especially for meatloaf sandwiches.

I hope you like them too

...your best bet is just setting a good example without forcing anyone. Make your food choices, and educate them on the health benefits. My fridge is full of Mcdougall food...I always have beand cooked, rice cooked and veggies and fruit handy. I still buy meat/dairy/cheese for the family, but their consumption has greatly reduced. when we run out, we run out....they eat their bean burritos without the cheese and have their pasta and rice without the meat ( I don't stock up on any of these items).

It is a process. Take care of yourself, don't harp...it has a way of rubbing off on everyone else

Thank you so much for your responses everyone! I'm sorry, we went out of town for 4 days and just got back - it was nice to read all the responses. I guess it just takes time - I'm not a very patient person, so this is hard for me.

I guess I am doing what everyone else is doing - making pretty much the same things. Some times the recipe doesn't go over well and we end up with pasta or gnoucchis for dinner - again. That's not so bad i guess. I just get discouraged sometimes because I want them to still love my cooking like they used to.

I am loving this way of eating and was at my goal weight by 8 weeks (after trying everything to loose 15 lbs) I have to remember that my kids aren't motivated to try & like new foods because their jeans are going to fit better. They are kids and they just want the food to taste yummy. I decided to start a website for beginning McDougall Families. I will post when it is ready. I want to include all the info for beginners. Including links to this discussion board and website. But mostly a place for REALLY good recipes and staples to keep on hand.

LJ - Can I have your recipe for easy brownies, & vegan cookies? not McD, right? Also Garbanzo stew? - if I post on my website I will credit you (want me to just put "LJ"?)

Autumn -
Can I have your backyard bean burgers, favorite chili, and tofu chicken nuggets recipes? What fake chreeze sauce do you use? same as above, I will give credit to you if I use on my website.

Thank you so much!

Hey Jen, the easy brownies are a McD recipe. They're listed in either the Nov. '06 or '05 newsletter. You just buy a Dr. Oetkers chocolate cake mix, mix it with one can of pure pumpkin, bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes. They are delicious. I also make a frosting with soaked, raw cashews and honey....I don't have exact amounts because I just sort of throw it all in the blender and add honey til I like the sweetness and add water til I like the texture. (I tend to cook like this all the time, I hate measuring). A tip on the brownies though, keep them in the fridge, they will last much longer.

My garbanzo stew is something I adapted from a McD recipe. I do that a lot because I hate recipes with more than 5-6 ingredients...just a personal thing of mine. Anyway, I cut up fresh potatoes, fresh carrots and maybe a small onion, top with a can of garbanzo beans. Put in a large pot, cover with enough water to cover all, throw some low sodium soy sauce, garlic powder and fresh pepper to season. Bring to a boil and then simmer until carrots and potatoes are cooked. This is great for leftovers too. I sometimes play with the seasonings, sometime adding a southwest seasoning or cajun....whatever you feel like, but the above is perfectly good and is always the staple recipe I use. (sometimes add celery or zucchini too...its so versatile!)

Let me get the links, none of mine are my original recipes just ones I have picked up here and there so you need to give credit to the authors, Im just the messenger . I'll get them for you.

My Chili is easy. Pinto and kidney beans, canned tomatoes, green peppers and onions, corn, tomato juice and taco seasoning. I dont really use measurements mainly I just decide on how it looks. I like it drained of liquid and topped on lettuce or poured on rice or a baked potato.

My cheese sauce I use is Road's End Organics Cheddar Style Chreese mix. We mix it with salsa.

Bush's website recipe-
Bush's Backyard Black Bean Burgers

2 cans (15 ounces each) BUSH'S BEST Black Beans, rinsed and drained
½ cup whole wheat or all-purpose flour
¼ cup yellow cornmeal
½ cup chunky salsa
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon garlic salt
Hamburger buns

Place beans in food processor; process until fairly smooth. Add flour, cornmeal, salsa, cumin and garlic salt. Process until well combined. Spoon mixture into 6 balls on a large plate and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 4 hours before cooking.

Heat barbecue grill or ridged grill pan over medium heat. Coat grill or pan lightly with oil. Form each ball into a 4-inch patty about ½-inch thick. Place the patties on the grill or in pan and cook until browned and heated through, 4 to 5 minutes per side.

Serve on hamburger buns with your favorite toppings.

For the tofu chicken nuggets I use veggie sue's recipe and dip my tofu in italian dressing. I use the water packed tofu instead of the shelf stable kind.
http://drmcdougall.com/forums/viewtopic ... en+cutlets

Uh Autumn...your chili was a MAJOR HIT with my family! Especially my carnivore hubby, he absolutely loved it! He talked about it at work, came home and said some friends of his at work wanted the recipe. Just wanted to share with you....VERY YUMMY!!!! Thanks so much for sharing that recipe.

Yeah Im so glad you liked it! Isnt it about the easiest dish out there? Its a staple meal of ours once a week and my american diet husband loves it too.

Your welcome

Yes, very easy. I had everything at home to make it except for the kidney beans, I just substituted some black beans. I think I also had to use tomato sauce instead of juice...just added some water. Very delish!

Its a very giving recipe. I also have bought the canned tomatoes chopped with the green pepper and onion in them and used that instead of the fresh.