"They are much to be pitied who have not been given a taste for nature early in life." -- Jane Austen
School is
out and summer vacation is here! Three months
of outdoor fun time have arrived and parents everywhere are thinking about how to keep
the kids fed.
Here are five of my favorite
summer foods for Growing Healthy Kids:
1. Watermelon.
Teach your young nutrition detectives how to detect a “hollow”
watermelon. Ice the melon down in the
fridge overnight, then cut it up for several days of lunches. Cube some up, freeze it and use the
watermelon cubes to flavor some ice water!
2. Tofu egg salad. Mash up some tofu, mix with a little olive
oil mayo, dried mustard, a dash of turmeric powder, chopped celery, green
pepper, and sweet pickle relish. This
makes a great sandwich on whole grain bread or a summer salad on a bed of locally grown greens. Let the kids make this the night before so
the flavors can blend and they can have it for lunch the next day while you are
at work!
3. Fresh sliced tomatoes and sliced
mozzarella drizzled with balsamic vinegar.
Top with a spoon of fresh pesto if you have some!
4. Whole grain pasta salad. Add sliced grape tomatoes, feta cheese, and
grated zucchini to your favorite cooked whole grain pasta. Make a simple vinaigrette dressing in a glass
jar and shake these ingredients together:
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar,
squeeze of fresh lemon, some Pink Himalayan Sea Salt and fresh ground
pepper. One of my favorite pastas to use
for this salad is Dreamfield’s Rotini. Make
this on Sunday and the kids can have it for several days’ worth of lunches!
5. Frozen fruit smoothie. Try this combination for a real refreshing summer cooler: ½ cup pineapple juice, ½ frozen
banana, 1 cup frozen dark cherries, ½ cup kefir (or Greek yogurt), and 3 ice
cubes. Kefir is great for keeping
tummies happy!
In
gratitude,
Nancy
Heinrich
Founder,
Growing Healthy Kids, Inc.
