For today, I would like to review to Healthy food toddler plates.

Fresh Baby My Plate Dinnerware Set

The Fresh Plate My Plate Dinnerware Set is a complete package. It includes a plate, cup, fork, spoon, knife, and placemat. The placemat shows the “my plate” recommendations on one side, and healthy activities on the other side. The fun design will help children be excited about healthy eating.
On a whole, I like the concept. It can help children want to eat well by giving them the information to know what is “good” at a glance. This silverware is adorable, though I will be waiting until Samantha has better over her spoon to give her a fork or knife. If your child likes to keep things separate, the dividers will do a good job at that.

I have found these do not meet my needs in two areas:

1. Samantha loves fruit, so her fruit sometimes covers part of her grains portion (balancing out the overall carbs in her diet). This plate makes it hard for me to adjust the proportions within a meal.
2. The dairy serving is represented as a cup. Currently, Samantha only gets about half her dairy from milk (formula). She is having issues with straight milk, and loves some of the other dairy, so we shift her meal that way some. This makes it hard to cover the dairy portion. Additionally, she will be taught that dairy is an optional part of the diet due to my dairy allergies. This does not lead to the ways Samantha may or may not get dairy products in her diet.

Fresh Baby Plate and So Easy Toddler Food Cookbook - Value Pack, English

(This product seems to only be sold in Spanish right now) The Fresh baby plate comes with just a plate and cookbook. It has three sections to the plate: fruits/veggies, grains, and protein. Given Samantha’s diet, and my level of comfort with adjusting the amount that Samantha eats based on her diet throughout the day, I am finding this plate works better for me.

I can easily do a fruit, veggie, and protein meal, or a veggie and bean dinner (beans are excellent sources of both carbs and protein) by adjusting where I put the foods to illustrate how they still meet the meals needs. Additionally, I can lay the dairy across the section it bests meets the needs of in the meal when it is included. While I can do this with the other plate, I find this plate slightly easier to do this with.

I have one major complaint about this product:

1. It should be 50% fruits and veggies, not the 40% it is given. If you are new to balancing a meal, this plate is probably not for you. This is a classic way of dividing a child’s plate (healthy or fun), and is something to be aware of if you are just learning how to balance a meal.

Fresh Baby Plate and So Easy Toddler Food Cookbook Value Pack, English

It seems like the company is phasing in the cookbook with the "my plate". This is a great combination for those who are just starting out. The cookbook contains useful nutritional information, and easy but fun recipes. Below is “pink potatoes”, which Samantha loves.

I use a combination of these products. I also use small bowls some, which combine all the food groups. At this time, I do not use the milk cup, since Samantha cannot drink milk straight yet. She gets her formula in a bottle at night and in the morning. I am also waiting on most of the silverware until she is showing a readiness for it. That said, I love the placemat for her. The “my plate” plate nicely teaches what a healthy diet looks like if it was a single plate (which it does not have to be). I feel any of the options are good buys depending on your level of comfort with putting a healthy diet in front of your children.

This batch did not turn out very pink, I think due to the type of sweet potato I used. That said the flavor was in there.

Pink Potatoes

• 3 medium white potatoes
• 1 medium sweet potato
• 5 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 14 oz can chicken broth
• 4 Tbsp butter or margarine
• Salt and pepper to taste

Direction

Scrub, peel, and cut the potatoes into 2 inch chunks. Place potatoes and the garlic cloves in a saucepan with the chicken broth. Add enough water to cover the potatoes. Set the pan over high heat and bring to a boil. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to low, and boil for 10-12 minutes, until a fork slides easily through the potatoes. Drain the potatoes, reserving ¾ cup of the cooking liquid. Mash the cooked potatoes with a potato masher until they are the same color throughout. Stir in the butter or margarine. Add the reserved cooking liquid ¼ cup at a time, until the potatoes are a creamy, whipped consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Makes 10-12 toddler servings or 4 adult servings.