How to get fussy kids to eat vegetables with five simple tips plus a healthy muffin recipe

Every parent knows the dinner-time battle: you spend ages preparing a meal, only for your child to take one look at it and declare, “I don’t like it!”

So, how do you tackle fussy eating without turning every meal into a fight? Nutritionist Sarah Di Lorenzo has five simple tips, plus two sneaky recipes packed with veggies.

The 5 Tips

1. Serve it differently, not just repeatedly

Same vegetable, different form — roasted, raw, spiralised, blended, dipped.

Kids often reject a texture, not the food itself.

Try: raw carrot with hummus, roasted broccoli with a little olive oil and salt, cauliflower “nuggets” crumbed and baked ( could have these on the bench)

2. Hide vegetables in the meals they already love

The single most reliable way to get vegetables into a fussy child.

Grate zucchini and carrot into Bolognese, meatballs and burgers.

Blend spinach and cauliflower into pasta sauces, soups and smoothies ( could have this on the bench).

Pumpkin into mac and cheese, cauliflower into mash, beetroot into brownies.

3. Keep offering, no pressure

Research shows it can take up to 15 attempts before a child accepts a new food.

Keep putting it on the plate, don’t make them eat it, don’t make a big deal if they don’t.

No bribes, no rewards, no “just one bite” pressure backfires every time.

4. Portion size and plate presentation ( could have a cute plate set up)

A crowded plate looks overwhelming to a small child.

Use smaller plates and serve less.

Leave room around each item kids eat with their eyes first.

Bright colours, fun shapes, food on sticks all work.

The rule: Less on the plate, more likely to be eaten.

4. Eat together and model it

Kids learn to eat by watching adults eat.

Sit down together whenever you can, even for 15 minutes.

Eat the same food they’re eating not a different “adult meal”.

Let them help with shopping and simple prep, they eat what they’ve helped make.

The most powerful habit of all: Family meals, no screens, no phones.

Green muffins

Makes: 12

Ingredients

• 2 large ripe bananas
• 2 large handfuls (about 2 cups) baby spinach
• 2 eggs
• ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ⅓ cup pure maple syrup or honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1½ cups wholemeal self-raising flour
• ½ cup rolled oats
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
• Handful of dark chocolate chips (optional — a small handful goes a long way)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C fan-forced. Line a 12-hole muffin tin with paper cases.
2. Blend the bananas, spinach, eggs, olive oil, maple syrup and vanilla in a blender until completely smooth and vibrant green.
3. Pour into a large bowl. Fold in the flour, oats and cinnamon until just combined.
4. Fold in blueberries and chocolate chips.
5. Spoon into muffin cases and bake for 18-22 minutes, until golden and springy.
6. Cool on a rack.

Sarah’s tip: These freeze brilliantly for lunchboxes.