Fruit and Veg; Made Very Simple

This is just a simple little thing that I learnt from watching a friend of mine who is a Mum of 4 and a Doctor (GP)

Kids tend to be hungry when they come home from school and from what ive observed with other families they often grab the

Before mine were at school I would sit chatting and watching her cut up a big platter of fruit for her brood. They would arrive home and there it would be sitting on the kitchen table- they would happily devour the lot and then (and only then) they were allowed a chocolate biscuit *grin* and then off they went to play.

 I have adopted the same strategy and now that all three of mine are at school it really works well. (and i dont even bother with the biscuit ;-)

The trick is to have a wide range of fruits and veg and try and introduce little bits of new things here and there.

 It also has to be nicely prepared so it is easy to grab and eat finger food.

 Apples peeled cored and sliced- oranges in 1/8 ths - bananas in chunks or slices (they get a bit slimy but the kids love spearing them with toothpicks)- watermelon, honeydew and canteloupe in chunks or slices - strawberries sliced in half - fresh peas in open pods - capsicum cut into very thin strips - carrots in thin strips too. (my kids hate celery - but this is good in strips too). You can also add dried fruits- pineapple, apricots, sultanas, and nuts (personally i serve these AFTER the fresh fruit is gone, with salada biscuits and cheese)

As I said - its a very simple trick- but its the timing which makes it so effective- I also often pull the same stunt first thing in the morning - when the kids come through there is some fresh fruit all prepared and cut up (sometimes just a couple of thinly sliced apples) sitting on the coffee table in the lounge that they can pick at it as they get dressed and before 'real' breakfast.

Enjoy :-)