Need ideas for picky eaters - no dairy

[believer]

Hi ya'll. We are not vegan or vegetarian, but have gone no dairy for the kids. Dd 12 is going nuts - hates it - she will have to get over it. Ds 6 just started Thurs/Fri and today his teacher wanted to know what happened over Thanksgiving break to change his behavior so much! We are supposed to do no cow or goat milk with him and as little sugar as possible - honey and maple syrup are ok. We have mainly cut out milk products for now and have greatly reduced the sugar. But, I don't know what to feed my children now! They are picky eaters anyway and ds used to eat mac-n-cheese and pizza and yogurt and cereal with milk. I had him try soy yogurt and he did not like it. He tried chocolate almond milk and said it was ok, but he did not want any more than the little taste I gave him. I don't think any of my children eats beans at all - they eat chicken a lot - not much meat because I don't cook it much because I don't digest it well. DD12 eats veggies - she is doing ok. Dd3 has been subsisting mainly off of chocolate milk made with whey protein powder. So, what to feed her on a no milk diet? We have cut back on her milk, but not gotten rid of it all yet. She eats ham, chicken and beef hot dogs and bananas and apples and crackers and ham sandwiches and sometimes peanut butter sandwiches and fruit juices. Sometimes spaghetti, oatmeal, oranges.
I need ideas for my picky eaters. I have no idea what to feed them now.
Thank you.

[tryin-to-FROG]

me and my kids are no dairy- we make our own almond milk it tastes much better then the one in the box and really easy- 1c raw almonds soaked in water overnight drain in the morning and add 4c water put in blender and blend a couple minutes then strain thru cheesecloth or something similar- then pour back into blender and add honey and vanilla or whatever- very yummy and healthy-
my kids like Manna bread (bought at health food store) with cashew butter and honey or jam
fruit smoothies- maybe they soy yogurt would be better mixed up in one with frozen bananna or strawberry
hope this helps-it does get easier-
Lorene

[AmyDoll]

The soy chocolate milk is really yummy! My dh will even drink it! Pastas are good - you can buy whole wheat or fortified pastas. Can you find a good cookbook with pictures and go thru it with them? Maybe they have some good ideas. If you are looking at hidden dairy - be careful lots of Hot Dogs have dairy!

[ShangriLewis]

My picky eater gets a smoothie almost everyday. I add hemp protein powder and flax oil. Whey is dairy. Check breads and hot dogs because they often contain hidden dairy.

Otherwise you have lots of choices, but there is going to be and adjustment period. Just keep offering the milk. Have you tried rice milk? I think it's a better switch. I got my BIL to switch and his migraines are so much better now. He preffered the rice milk, too.

Nuts to snack on. Salad dressings with veggies. Drews has some good no-dairy ones. www.vegweb.com is a good resource for recipes, too. Look for Vegan on packaged items to make sure there isn't dairy on there.

For a creamy sauce over pasta you can put some tofutti cream cheese on it. I like it with artichoke hearts, too.

Do they eat salads or green veggies at all?

[believer]

My oldest dd will eat salads with vinegrette dressings and she will eat veggies pretty well. The younger two, however eat french fries as a veggie and ds will eat corn and both will eat raw carrots and that is all the veggies they eat .They like pistachios. I am slowly phasing out the milk with the youngest and now she wants juice all of the time. I know too much juice is bad too. I try to encourage her to drink more water, but don't know what else to offer.

[memory maker]

Originally Posted by believer

The younger two, however eat french fries as a veggie .

have you ever tried making your own fries out of sweet potatoes? they are really good!

[believer]

I want to try that. I have a couple of sweet potatoes. Is there a recipee or do I just cut them in wedges, put on some olive oil and maybe salt or sugar and cinnamon and bake at high heat?

[memory maker]

Originally Posted by believer

I want to try that. I have a couple of sweet potatoes. Is there a recipee or do I just cut them in wedges, put on some olive oil and maybe salt or sugar and cinnamon and bake at high heat?

I just cut them up and sprinkle with olive oil and bake. I think I might try them with the sugar and cinnamon, that sounds yummy!