Most of my friends know that I stopped eating red meat and chicken when I was 12 years old. So a question I was asked more than a few times while I was pregnant was “Will your baby be a vegetarian too?”. Until this question was posed to me the first time, I had never really thought about it. I guess because the obvious answer to me is ‘Of course, he will eat what I eat!” But now that the realities of being a mom have set in, I see that kids are constantly ‘sharing’ food with one another. They will eat almost anything whether it contains meat, or sand for that matter!
There may not be a way to avoid my son ‘experimenting’ with foods he does not eat at home, but so far Dylan has adhered to a vegetarian, and predominately, raw/vegan diet. This is a diet that consists of uncooked fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. After having my son, my cravings for waffles and ketchup subsided and I decided to head back down the raw/vegan path while nursing. I chose to do this because fruits and vegetables that are not cooked tend to have a higher nutritional value. I have been a raw/vegan of various degrees over the past seven years and have accumulated a lot of tasty and easy recipes. I began making ‘green smoothies’ for Dylan when he was about 8 months old, mixing a little banana and greens with breast milk. Now that he is older, I have added lightly cooked vegetables, goat’s milk yogurt, and eggs so that he has a more variety and protein in his diet.
So, what is an easy way to incorporate some nutrient dense foods into your child’s diet? Among my favorites raw snacks are ‘raw balls’, as I like to call them. These consist of dates, walnuts, and blueberries mixed in a food processor and then rolled into balls. Dylan is a huge fan of these! We also have a green smoothie everyday. I blend up leafy greens with one banana, celery, and various other fruits and veggies that I have in the fridge. Twelve ounces of green smoothie every day is an easy way for Dylan to get enough greens for the entire day! I have multiple recipes for smoothies and raw snacks on my blog, The New Baby Code, if you would like to try some out!
We have lived in the area for about four months and have found that there are quite a few restaurants that serve vegetarian meals. “Green” is in North Tempe, serving vegetarian comfort food. Dylan and I shared their veggie burger which was so flavorful! Another great spot is “Pita Jungle”. They have multiple locations in The Valley and serve awesome Taboule and Hummus which are two of our favorites! ” True Food” just opened a location in The Scottsdale Quarter offering many unique vegetarian dishes.
Are there any other vegetarian or raw/vegan moms out there? We would love to hear from you! Even if you are not a vegetarian, there are so many awesome vegetarian recipes so let us know if you have any you would like to share!
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Kelly Carlsen is a new mom in Scottsdale and mother to son, Dylan, who is 2 years old. Kelly is the founder of an online skin care boutique called Simply Organica. She has spent over five years researching skin care ingredients to create a line of lotions, body scrubs, and insect repellent that are safe for everyone, including babies! You can learn more about Kelly and her son at her blog: The New Baby Code
