8 Winter Foods You Must Serve Your Child

While winters are indeed a time of play, activity, and some holidaying for children, they are also a time when children become more susceptible to catching infections and allergies like the common cold and flu. But, the good news is that most of the seasonal foods available in winter are rich in Vitamin A and iron, and foster immunity. Hence, it becomes essential for parents to carefully choose the food they feed their children during winter, while also ensuring that it is prepared in a way that children relish the taste and look forward to meals.

Let us look at eight winter foods that you must serve to your child.

Sweet Potato

Sweet potato is one of the tastiest winter foods that kids often like. Sweet potatoes are rich in beta-carotene and Vitamin A, nutrients that are extremely good for eyesight. Much to the satisfaction of parents, sweet potatoes have a low glycemic index as compared to regular potatoes. They also provide complex carbohydrates and a good amount of fiber, so including sweet potatoes in your child’s diet also prevents constipation. Sweet potatoes also include nutrients such as calcium, Vitamin C, B-Vitamins, potassium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, thiamine, and magnesium.

How To Serve | Here are a few ways you may serve sweet potatoes to your child.

• Boil sweet potatoes or bake them; toss in rock salt or black salt; add with some lemon juice and a splash of homemade sweet chutney (having jaggery, preferably).
• Cook boiled and mashed sweet potatoes in desi ghee and add some jaggery to it, so it turns into ‘halwa’.

Also Read | 8 Tips To Get Your Picky-Eater Child Try New Foods

Carrot

Fresh, red, juicy carrots are available in the markets during winter, and parents must make them a good addition to their child’s diet. Carrots are extremely nutritious as they are rich in beta-carotene, which converts into Vitamin A in the body.

How To Serve | Carrots could be served to children in the form of carrot kheer, carrot halwa, or as components of other savoury meals like upma, chilla, or sandwich. You could also blend in some carrot pieces, pineapple or kinoo slices, and a few pieces of beetroot into fresh juice. This will help build up iron and hemoglobin in the body.

Bajra

Bajra is also known as ‘pearl millet’. It contains fiber, some essential amino acids, zinc, and vitamins like Vitamin A which are good for eyesight. Being rich in iron, bajra helps children’s bodies maintain optimum hemoglobin levels. Children with celiac disease can benefit greatly from this millet as it is gluten-free and helpful for those with gut issues.

How To Serve | Serve your kids bajra khichri or roti with white butter, or ghee and jaggery (gur or shakkar). You could also make some nice bajra pancakes, drizzle some organic honey over them, and serve them hot!

Parents Should Carefully Choose The Food They Feed Their Children During Winters

Amla

Amla, or Indian gooseberry, is an excellent source of Vitamin C. Amla grows for a brief period and hence, parents should include it in their children’s diet as much as possible. Amla would also help build up children’s immunity, thereby preventing common infections and seasonal flu.

How To Serve | Kids may not like to have amla in the form of juice or drink, but they would love to have it as pickles, murabba, and delicious sweet and sour dips (chutneys). These ways of consuming amla not only make it tastier but also helps preserve it for a longer time.

Orange/Kinnow

Orange and Kinnow are citrus fruits, that is, rich in Vitamin C. These fruits are also high in calcium, thereby strengthening children’s bones.

How To Serve | Prefer that you serve these fruits as a whole and not in the form of juice or liquid, since the body makes better out of the nutrients when fruits are eaten as a whole.

Green Leafy Vegetables

Green leafy vegetables, referring here to fenugreek leaves (methi), mustard greens (saag), and spinach, are loaded with iron. They also have high amounts of Vitam A and Vitamin K. Apart from building immunity, green leafy vegetables are also good for eyesight.

How To Serve | Children relish saag with makki ki roti and some homemade white butter. You can also add some shakkar along with ghee over makki roti to make it tastier and even more nutritious.

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Soups

Winter is the best time for having hot liquids and soups. Making a soup of them is a great way to include seasonal vegetables like carrots and spinach in your child’s diet.

How To Serve | Experiment with different combinations of vegetables such as carrot-beetroot soup; spinach with some dal; or even pumpkin. Simply boil some big-cut pieces of vegetables in water and blend everything together to make a thick soup. You may add some salt and black pepper for flavor along with some garlic and ginger paste, according to what you feel your child will prefer.

Sheera

What’s better than a sweet hot fudge on a winter evening, which is also nutritious and healthy? Serve your child this hot, sweet sheera which can be made of any flour (whole wheat, besan, jowar, ragi, etc). The consistency of the sheera should be such that it is neither too thick like a halwa, nor too liquidy like milk. Ensuring this would make eating the sheera a soothing experience for your child. Sheera boosts kids’ immunity if made with nuts, ghee, and jaggery/shakkar. You may also enjoy this delicious winter food with your child and make the most of this season.

Seasonal foods have unmatchable benefits for one’s health when eaten in the right amount and form, and at the right time. So, these winters, make sure you make the correct and most nutritious food choices for your children and yourself.

Chesha Kukkar is a Chandigarh-based dietitian with extensive experience in the field, and has helped 1600+ clients of varying age groups in achieving their health goals. She holds a postgraduate diploma in Nutrition and Dietetics from Govt. Home Science College, Chandigarh, and an internship in Govt. Medical Super Specialty Hospital, sec-16, Chandigarh. She can be reached at http://www.dietitianchesha.com/