Toddlers are gourmets of picky eats and masters at food-poking. Don’t let this worry you too much though: after a year of rapid growth (where they normally triple their weight at birth), toddlers don’t gain weight as rapidly as they did in the first year. This means that they do not need as much food. What’s more, kids between the ages of 12 to 48 months are constantly on the move, rarely sitting still through any activity, let alone meal times!

So how do you keep your tot entertained at the dinner table? There are ways, most of which involve some effort on your part in food prep! Still, with these creative eating tips, your toddler can get the nutrition he needs without too much effort - just always be prepared for spills!

1. Make meal time a mini-smorgasbord.  Get a compartmentalized dish, tray, or even an empty ice cube maker. Place a variety of colorful foods in each compartment, making sure you have food from every basic food group: grains, veggies, fruits, proteins, dairy. Try a variety of foods, such as apples, blueberries, Cheerios, sweet potato sticks, cheese cubes, hard-boiled egg, shredded corn and steamed broccoli florets. The attractive colors entice toddlers to graze through each food so that they’ll grab a morsel of healthy food each time!

2. Create food faces. You can make “food faces” with any type of food, not just pizza! Try some of these ideas:

Breakfast – Happy face pancakes:
Make buttermilk pancakes. Use berries and bananas to make eyes and ears; use a bit of peanut butter or jam spread to draw the mouth. Make sure you top off this meal with a nice glass of milk!

Breakfast or Lunch – Eggs:
Scramble an egg, and use vegetables and meat to make the face: Use tomatoes for ears, stir-fried mushrooms for the eyes, some ham strips for the mouth, and a bell pepper nose!

Snack or Lunch – Potato pancakes:
Put grilled zucchini for the ears, some steamed sweet peas for the eyes, a baby carrot nose, and shred some cheese for the hair.

Lunch or Dinner – Pizza:
This is easy! Take a plain pizza crust, spread on some chunky tomato sauce mixed with a broccoli or carrot puree, and use sausage slices and olive slices for the eyes, some fresh button mushroom for the nose, bell peppers for the mouth.