How to Feed Your Kid

So much of life with kids is feeding them. If you can make the meal time experience positive—for everyone involved—you’re looking at a much easier life.

So let’s talk meals: They’re something I think about a lot—personally and professionally. As Eater’s restaurant editor, I’m forever focused on the who, what, why, how, and hell-yes of dining out. I’ve even authored a cookbook dedicated to bringing all the tips, tricks, and recipes from the restaurant world into the home kitchen. Yes, even home kitchens inhabited by picky toddlers, ravenous teenagers, and exhausted parents desperate for just one nice meal, please. I knew when I had my daughter that I wanted her to experience the wonder that food holds. I also wanted to be intentional about my efforts to model and nurture a healthy relationship to food as it relates to her body. Food is nourishment, comfort, and culture—which brings a lot of joy, but also a lot of questions.

How do we avoid bringing diet culture to the table? How can we use food as a starting point in a conversation about identities and histories? How do we deal with only wanting mac and cheese? And wait—what is a weighted straw cup and do I need to get one for my baby? The collection below offers insight and strategies I’ve relied on as a food-loving parent who wants to prioritize making meal times in my own home as delicious, as enriching, and as affirming as possible.

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