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10 Kid-Friendly Vegetable Recipes

December 12, 2016 by Lindsay 11 Comments

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Want to prepare vegetables for kids that they’ll actually eat? These kid-friendly vegetable recipes are healthy, quick and easy. Serve them as a side dish for dinner or for a healthy snack!

These Kid-Friendly Vegetable Recipes are healthy, quick and easy. Serve them as a side dish for dinner or for a healthy snack!

Hi friends!

Let’s talk about vegetables for kids. If you’re a parent, you’ve probably struggled to find vegetable recipes for kids…ie vegetables kids like and vegetables kids will eat! If you’re tired of serving vegetables that get thrown away, I hope this post will spark some ideas for you. 

We all know vegetables are important. They offer a wide variety of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. But when you find a veggie your kid will eat, it’s easy to fall into the habit of serving that and only that…because it’s easier than fighting with them to try something new or dealing with them spitting it out all over the place. But it’s so important to expose young kiddos to a wide variety of foods and flavors. My goal is always to try to serve them twice a day whether it’s at meals or snacks. Does that always happen? No. But I try!

To help myself out (and you!) I rounded up some kid-friendly veggie recipes that I’m looking forward to trying, plus a few of my favs from the blog. Hopefully you see something that sparks some new vegetable ideas for kids!

Vegetable Recipes For Kids

Green Bean Fries

My kids love french fries. And while he certainly prefers regular french fries or sweet potato fries, the similar shape and the crunchy coating on these green bean fries are sometimes enough to get him to eat a few. When in doubt, add ketchup. Added bonus- they’re fun for kids to help make!

Green Bean Fries via The Lean Green Bean

Rainbow Veggie Kabobs

Kids like fun food. Kabobs are fun. Added bonus – they’ll love helping you assemble these, which makes it more likely they’ll eat a few veggies along the way!

Rainbow Veggie Kabobs via Two Healthy Kitchens

Marinated Vegetable Salad

Add some extra flavor to the veggies with a marinade. It’ll make them taste less veggie-like, which kids will love! If your kids don’t like steamed veggies, try serving them raw in a salad like this! They may like the crunch!

Marinated Vegetable Salad via Iowa Girl Eats

Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes

These can cook all day in the crockpot and be ready to serve when you get home!

Slow Cooker Mashed Potatoes via Baked By Rachel

Easy Spinach Balls

Finger foods are fun! These balls are easy to make and if you serve them with a tasty dip, the kids just might look past the green color!

Easy Spinach Balls via The Lean Green Bean

Caramelized Butternut Squash

Kids like sweet. Most vegetables are not sweet. Caramelizing veggies adds a sweetness factor that will up their chances of being consumed!

Caramelized Butternut Squash via Yummy Healthy Easy

Melting Sweet Potatoes

When all other veggies fail, try sweet potatoes. Especially this way. They’re hard to resist.

Melting Sweet Potatoes via Dessert For Two

Maple Bacon Sweet Potatoes

Roasting carrots brings out their natural sweetness, which is enhanced with a little extra maple syrup. Pair that with bacon, which everyone loves, and these won’t last long on their plate!

Maple Bacon Roasted Carrots via The Lean Green Bean

Broiled Zucchini Pizza

Almost all kids love pizza! Swap the crust for some zucchini rounds, top with sauce, cheese and pepperoni for a home run!

Broiled Zucchini Pizza via Kalyn’s Kitchen

Veggie Nuggets

Do they typically turn their nose up at things like broccoli? These nuggets can be dipped in bbq sauce, ketcup, etc which usually helps!

Veggie Nuggets via Real Mom Nutrition

Did any of these ideas catch your eye? Pin this post to try them soon!

Kid-Friendly Vegetable Recipes

These Kid-Friendly Vegetable Recipes are healthy, quick and easy. Serve them as a side dish for dinner or for a healthy snack!

Does your kiddo have a favorite veggie recipe? Leave it in the comments!

Enjoy!
–Lindsay–

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Filed Under: Side Dish, Ingredient Round-Ups Tagged With: Carrot, Green Beans, Spinach, Zucchini

About Lindsay

Lindsay Livingston is a Registered Dietitian and new mom from Columbus, Ohio. On her blog, she shares simple, healthy recipes, nutrition tips, workouts and snapshots of her life. Follow her on Twitter @LeanGrnBeanBlog and Instagram @TheLeanGreenBean and be sure to subscribe via RSS or email so you never miss a post!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Chelsey says

    December 12, 2016 at 7:09 AM

    These all look SO fun!!! Love anything that helps kiddos eat their veggies!

    Reply
  2. Liz @ I Heart Vegetables says

    December 12, 2016 at 10:02 AM

    I love these ideas!!! I might have to try some of these out on my nephews 😉

    Reply
  3. Kristen Chidsey says

    December 12, 2016 at 10:03 AM

    I seriously think my kids would love every single one of these!

    Reply
  4. Tara | Treble in the Kitchen says

    December 12, 2016 at 4:35 PM

    Yum! Pinned this one 🙂 Perfect for making dinner while nannying/babysitting!

    Reply
  5. Betty @http://bettysbalance.weebly.com says

    December 12, 2016 at 7:13 PM

    I LOVE the zucchini rounds pizza idea! My toddler loves pizza, so I’m definitely going to try this one. I’ve had some success lately in getting her to eat peas by making a little chute with a piece of celery and we take turns rolling peas down the chute into our mouths.

    Reply
  6. dixya @food, pleasure, and health says

    December 13, 2016 at 6:43 AM

    im definitely checking these nuggets out.

    Reply
  7. KalynsKitchen says

    December 13, 2016 at 11:50 AM

    Thanks for including my sister Val’s kid-friendly zucchini pizza; I’m not an expert at feeding vegetables to kids but my sister sure is!

    Reply
  8. Cori says

    January 6, 2018 at 5:42 PM

    I tried the green beans fries and the veggie nuggets; i enjoyed them, but my kids hated them both. I am going to give the spinach balls a try and if that is a fail I give up on fancy vegetables. My kids love basic steamed or raw vegetables.

    Reply
    • Lindsay says

      January 7, 2018 at 2:36 PM

      sorry to hear they weren’t a hit. But if they like steamed and raw, that’s awesome! Nothing wrong with eating them that way!

      Reply
  9. Carol says

    January 17, 2018 at 12:37 PM

    I get stuck in a rut with our 18 month old with peas and broccoli. Tater tots are a huge hit, but not particularly healthy and I don’t offer them often (Can you believe a kid that won’t do mashed potatoes?!). He loves tomatoes, but we don’t always have them. This post sparked a few new ideas. I’m going to try carrots with some butter and a touch of brown sugar tonight (he refuses them plain) and see what happens. Thanks! And great photography too!

    Reply
    • Lindsay says

      January 19, 2018 at 8:56 AM

      so glad to hear it! hope they’re a hit!

      Reply

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Lindsay Livingston The Lean Green Bean Healthy Living Tips and Tricks

I'm a Registered Dietitian and mom of three from Columbus, Ohio. I use this blog to share simple, healthy recipes, nutrition tips, and an honest glimpse of motherhood!

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Learn how food affects your body.

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