So when my son says ‘mom, can we have that supper where we get to pick different things from bowls by ourselves’ and I say ‘you mean the salad buffet?’ and he says ‘ya, that!! Can we do that for supper?’ you know that my answer will be YES.
The Salad Bar/Buffet has become a staple in our house. It satisfies the kids’ desires to decide what they eat and how much, and for us it’s nothing but deliciousness. Now that it’s market season, this will become an even more popular dinner item.
To set it up simply cut up any veggies, fruit, salad-ish items and put them in various dishes (yes, this creates a lot of dishes, but the kids will eat their veggies!).
I always have some protein (or a couple options – eggs and chicken are popular kid choices) and I just lay it out. Everyone gets an empty plate and we start passing bowls.
Sometimes the kids don’t love what they take (the onions aren’t popular anymore) and other times they eat even more than what I normally would serve (chopped carrots are a huge hit).
I love having avocado on hand and my kids for some reason will eat raw lettuce – one likes it with a little dressing. Love it!
Grated cheese is also a favourite; the 5 year old happily eats the cheddar and the 3 year old prefers chunks of feta.
The selections change depending on what’s available in the fridge – chopped broccoli is usually around, seeds and nuts as well.
The point? It’s a family favourite that encourages the kids to try new foods and talk about vegetables as they eat them. We’ll be doing this more and more this summer.
Have you done salad buffets?
