For Kids, Every Day Can Be Family Meal Day
The 4th Monday of September (Sept. 24) is set aside as National Family Dinner Day—a time to focus on eating more meals as a family.
So join with Super 1 Foods in promoting the ties that bind, and that includes dinners.
There are lots of ways to turn meal time into family time:
- Start the pattern of family dinners when children are young.
- Encourage your children to create menu ideas and participate in meal preparation.
- Turn off the TV and let your answering machine answer calls during dinnertime.
- Talk about what happened in everyone's day: school, work, extracurricular activities or current events.
- Establish a routine to start and end each meal. Light candles, say grace or tell a story.
- After dinner play a board game or serve dessert to encourage the family to continue the conversation.
- Keep conversation positive and make sure everyone gets a chance to speak.
Check our article archives for lots of kid-friendly recipes. Here's one that will have your youngster beaming with pride and eating veggies at the same time!
15-Minute Black Bean Salad
Ingredients:
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
8 grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbs olive oil
3 Tbs lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Mix all ingredients together and serve.
Serves 4
Note for parents: for younger children, you may want to open and drain the beans, and chop the tomatoes and cilantro in advance.
Nutritional Information:
Calories Per Serving: 200, Fat: 10 g (1 g Saturated Fat), Cholesterol: 0 mg, Sodium: 102 mg, Carbohydrates: 23 g, Fiber: 7 g
