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Help! I would like to find ways to sneak more nutritional food into the kid-like food I eat now. I have always had more of a sweet tooth so I'm down for fruit/veggie smoothies or mixing/puréeing veggies into things like spaghetti sauce.

Any ideas or recipes I can use? I'm starting work soon at summer camp with a lot of sitting around this year (I used to teach dance so I could easily work off bad food but now I'll supervising camp and aside from walking in late campers, I'll need better meals and snacks. Fwbf suggested FODMAP? Or something like that for those with IBS as I've had digestive issues lately but outside of a list of what (not) to eat, I don't know how to put food together. I'm not adventurous and I'm strapped for money so helllppp meeeeee

womenshealthmag.com, cookinglight.com and pinterest are your friends. Hop online and do some trolling. You'll find lots of good stuff

You can also try Prevention recipes.

You mentioned pasta sauce; I've gone one further. I put my sauce on spaghetti squash instead of pasta. I'm just eating another vegetable instead of the gluten and calories of pastas

Not that I need to eat gluten free, rather that I prefer it that way now. It's been so long that having the pasta makes me feel uncomfortable while the spaghetti squash helps my digestion in addition. I've gotten others around me doing it and loving it too.

I also found an excellent chocolate-banana-peanut butter smoothie or shake for breakfast that satisfies and tastes good too. You can PM me if you want more info or recipe.

Try to focus more on protein based foods, and stay away from simple carbs - Anything white, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes.

If you want chips, try to eat carrot chips, Or dried fruit chips like banana chips, you can buy or make these.

For snacks try nuts, almonds, pistachios, peanuts, etc. They are full of protein and healthy fats. When you eat the protein based foods you tend to be less hungry, and you keep your metabolism more at an even keel.

When you eat a bag of chips or pretzels, it's all carbs, your blood sugar shoots up, and then it drops equally as fast, and voila you get hungry again quickly.

Smoothies are great for breakfast.

Hard boiled eggs are quick and easy (if you like eggs).

Jerky is a great snack too.

Good luck.

Good advice from tushnurse. You might want to read the book "Grain Brain"

If you have digestive issues, you should try adding a digestive enzyme to your daily diet. I've recommended it to many people who have problems and it does help. You can get it at a health food store.

I shred or puree lots of veggies and put them in the ricotta (hidden with fresh basil) between layers of various pasta dishes.

For example, I might shred some zucchini and puree a half of an eggplant and mix into the ricotta with basil. Then when I layer it, my sons didn't even know they were getting extra vegies.

tushnurse gave some great advice too.

There are a buttload of websites and books too that can point you in the right direction.

I too use spaghetti squash!

I also used the past made from quinoa. It is gluten free, low carb and high in plant protein.

If you break down and eat simple carbs, try and eat a protein and another low glycemic carb with it. You will get full from the low glycemic carb and protein and won't eat as much of the simple carbs (or bad carbs).

DS3 is a picky eater. I trick him by hiding spinach in pasta sauces. I chop it very fine in the food processor and then dump it in, heat it up, and serve. It does change the color, I put a LOT in, but it doesn't change the taste at all. If you chop spinach fine enough it has virtually no flavor when mixed within recipes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0MZlwmpS5s

Pumpkin, sweet potato and carrots are all sweet - you can easily roast and mash them into any sauce. I also love making roast pumpkin smoothies - roast some pumpkin, toss it in the blender with a cobani and some cinnamon. It's like eating pie for breakfast!

Invest in a food processor and you can add peppers, leafy greens, and vine veggies like zucchini to just about any sauce too. A little parmesan (or your favorite hard cheese) hides a lot of flavors if you don't like them, without adding the calories that come with softer cheeses like cheddar.

ETA It will take some adjusting, but start thinking, "what veggie can I add to this?" with every meal you make. Soon you'll be dicing tomatoes and peppers into your mac and cheese, adding squash to your tomato sauces, layering spinach on your sandwiches, crunching carrot sticks with your nuggets, etc.

[This message edited by Amazonia at 10:02 PM, May 24th (Saturday)]