#PPBF – Monsters Don’t Eat Broccoli – Helping Fussy Eaters

Posted on February 21, 2014 by viviankirkfield

Today is Friday – and that means that Susanna Leonard Hill has set up a linky for picture book reviews. To see more great book reviews and activities, please click here.

I also want to announce the winner of a copy of My Warp Speed Mind by Donalisa Helsley.

Drumroll….the winner is….Jaymie Shook!

Congratulations, Jaymie…please contact me and I will get your book in the mail right away.

This afternoon, I saw a video of awesome food art, I knew I had to find a book that would address the problem of fussy eaters. Scroll down to the bottom of this post for the video – you will be amazed.

Do you have any fussy eaters in your house? I can sympathize because I was one…and so was my oldest son. If picky eating was one of the sports in the Winter Olympics, would your child win the gold medal?

Here’s a great picture book that might help your child try new foods.

MONSTERS DON’T EAT BROCCOLI

Written by Barbara Jean Hicks

Illustrated by Sue Hendra

Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers (2009)

Ages: 3-7

Synopsis: From School Library Journal:

“Kids generally don’t like eating broccoli. Apparently, neither do monsters. Sure, they like tractors, rocket ships, and boulders. Only don’t give them artichokes, lima beans, or anything green. When the “monsters” eat giant maple trees, though, they discover they have been fooled into eating the dreaded broccoli. The next spread reveals that the monsters are children who have fallen for that age-old adult trick of calling broccoli “trees.” Not only that, but they also discover that “trees” are so delicious, they beg for “Another helping, please.“

Activities:

Here’s a great website with photos and simple recipes for getting kids to eat healthy: http://www.mykidsadventures.com/food-art-projects/

And another from a mom in Russia: http://www.boredpanda.com/food-art/

Photo courtesy of http://www.boredpanda.com/food-art/

After watching the video, I challenge you to make a simple plate of fruit and veggies, cheese and crackers or even a peanut butter and jelly sandwich into something clever and cute. My kids loved when I made carrots and raisins and apple slices look like animals…it was lots of fun! The great master chefs say that presentation is more than half the enjoyment of a good meal – why not give it a try. Make pancakes and give your child blueberries or raisins to make a happy face.

23 thoughts on “#PPBF – Monsters Don’t Eat Broccoli – Helping Fussy Eaters”

Patricia Tilton on February 21, 2014 at 11:01 pm said:

And, neither did George W. Bush. Really great book selection with some wonderful food ideas to make food more attractive. I hated hot dogs as a kid. I like what some mothers do with vegetables– puree broccoli and other vegetables in a blender, freeze it in cupcake tins and pull out what they need and add it to sauces, soups, etc. and the kids don’e have a clue their getting their vegetables. I know — sneaky.

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viviankirkfield on February 21, 2014 at 11:09 pm said:

That’s true, Pat! And there are two schools of thought on the food issue…some say you should not try to hide healthy foods…others say as long as the kid is getting it, who cares. 🙂 I say…what works for each family is what is best. 🙂 I do think if the parents eat healthy foods and introduce them in a matter-of-fact way AND don’t give lots of processed, salty and sweet,snack-type foods, kids will eat healthy on their own. My son and his wife give their 10 month old steamed veggies, avocado…everything they are eating, she wants to try. She doesn’t love everything right away…they say it takes 10-20 times of trying certain foods before we develop a taste for them. But that is not true for processed salty and sweet stuff…kids will love them the first time. 😦

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nrhatch on February 21, 2014 at 11:42 pm said:

FUN video . . . but I’m not tempted to try to create many of those masterpieces. 😉

I love having a variety of colors on my plate ~ mostly from veggies and fruit. Yum!

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:43 pm said:
  
  I also wonder how these people have so much time…most of those dishes would be very time-consuming to make…perhaps they see it as a venture into creativity, kind of like a painter or musician.
  
  Totally agree about the colors on the plate…just give me a BIG veggie salad with raisins and pecans and apples…oh my gosh…let me check the fridge…maybe there is a left-over container of it somewhere. 🙂
  
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Stacy S. Jensen on February 22, 2014 at 1:01 am said:

My son received a photo book of funny food for Christmas. I cannot recall the title at the moment. We are a bit fussy at our house.

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:45 pm said:
  
  Stacy…When you say ‘we’ …does that mean just Enzo or all of you? 🙂
  I was the pickiest eater as a kid…so there is hope for everyone…I now eat EVERYTHING…LOVE sushi and any ethnic food and…. 🙂
  
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Perfecting Motherhood on February 22, 2014 at 2:03 am said:

What? I can’t believe my food art didn’t make it into this video!
http://perfectingmotherhood.wordpress.com/?s=food+art

I’ll have to check if our library has this book. Fortunately my kids eat broccoli (one of them loves it) but some other foods can be a bit hard, so this could be a fun read.

By the way, did you get my query letter? No rush if you did. I just want to make sure it didn’t get lost in cyberspace.

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:49 pm said:
  
  Milka…you are amazing! I love these posts…I’ll try to link them to mine tonight.
  And I’m so sorry about the query…I will go back and check…I thought I sent it back already. 😦
  
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  - Perfecting Motherhood on February 22, 2014 at 11:56 pm said:
    
    No problem about the query. Really, there’s no rush and I appreciate any advice you have.
    
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orthodoxmom3 on February 22, 2014 at 12:05 pm said:

I don’t necessarily have a picky eater….I have a moody eater. I can’t think of anything he really doesn’t like….but once in awhile he gets in a ‘mood’ and spits out something he usually likes and says, “YICK!”…..grrrrrrrr…. it drives me wild.

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:59 pm said:
  
  So happy you stopped by! Moody eaters can be very frustrating…my grandson LOVED strawberries for months…then one day he said, “Yucky!” Good luck…I think as long as you are offering good healthy food and not junky snacks and stuff, if they don’t want one thing or another once in a while, it’s nothing to worry about. 🙂
  
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Marylin Warner on February 22, 2014 at 12:25 pm said:

The Edible Art is great, Vivian. Still smiling!!!

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:50 pm said:
  
  Hats off to those creative and patient people! I just had to share, Marylin. 🙂
  
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thiskidreviewsbooks on February 22, 2014 at 12:39 pm said:

This book sounds very cute! I love the food art pictures you showed! 🙂 I am actually working on a PB draft for 12×12 about this topic (kids and vegetables) 🙂 I am going to get this book!

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:51 pm said:
  
  That’s great, Erik. You can Google ‘picture books for fussy eaters’…there are a couple of websites that have posts which give 10-15 book titles. Good luck on the PB draft. 🙂 By the way, Susanna’s class is awesome!
  
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Doris on February 22, 2014 at 1:01 pm said:

Thanks Vivian! I’m going to check out the book it sounds great. The video made me realize how boring the food is at our house.

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:55 pm said:
  
  Thanks for stopping by, Doris! I feel guilty because I am behind on Fearless February…although I HAVE been writing way more than 28 minutes every day…but not following the prompts for the last couple…I’ll make up my assignments tomorrow.:)
  
  Sometimes it just takes a spring of parsley or some carrot curls to add a little color and style to a plate of food.:)
  
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readingwithrhythm on February 22, 2014 at 2:03 pm said:

Well this whole post has me howling! I love broccoli myself. And I’m more than happy to clean up what the kids throw out. I’ll have to look for this book. thanks!

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:52 pm said:
  
  My kids loved it because we always had a dog when they were growing up, Rhythm…and I’m sure I know why Boss sat under the table while we were eating. 🙂
  
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  - readingwithrhythm on February 22, 2014 at 10:38 pm said:
    
    And I’ll bet that name, Boss, had some meaning behind it!
    
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belindambrock on February 22, 2014 at 4:48 pm said:

cute post! my husband is the picky eater in our family——maybe i should try reading him some picture books 😉

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- viviankirkfield on February 22, 2014 at 9:53 pm said:
  
  Oh Belinda…what a riot! My poor husband is used to hearing picture books…I’m always reading him my revisions. 🙂
  
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talesfromthemotherland on February 24, 2014 at 1:54 pm said:

Thankfully, I only ended up with one (out of 3) “picky” eater! That said, the other two had their own challenges. One was Gluten Free (long before there were GF foods in the stores) and the other was a vegetarian from grade 4 on. Dinner time was NEVER easy! LOVE the food art, but would never have had time for it. Just glorious though!

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