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Here’s what Table365 partners Kimberly and Sharon have to say:

I was very conscious of this exact question as I began feeding my kids solids when they were babies. I made an effort to make sure they were eating variations of what we were eating.  As they became more independent and aware of their own likes and dislikes this definitely became more challenging.  The other change is that on any given day something they devoured just last week will be the worst thing on earth to them this week.  Keeping in mind those things I know they definitely won’t eat, I make my meal plan so that I am still only cooking one thing for the entire family. If it is a recipe that I can easily adjust for one serving, or omit an ingredient that one kid won’t eat, then I still keep it in the rotation.  I also make an effort to balance out the meal plan so that there is a veggie and carb they will eat even if the protein isn’t a hit.  Also when planning meals I try to include a few meal that will be a guaranteed hit with everyone.  Nonetheless, everyone is still expected to at least take a “no thank you” bite.  I still continue to introduce new foods and cuisines in the hopes that I strike gold and/or develop their taste buds.

A few meals I find easy to adjust to tastes are ones that can be composed or have components easily removed. A few examples are:

• Stir-fry — for one daughter who doesn’t like sauce too much, I set aside some of the stir-fry before sauce has been added.
• Tostadas/tacos — I give my girls all the components and let them choose what to put on their own shells/tortillas.

Creating one meal that will satisfy all four of us has been a continuing challenge, but I have improved on getting it done after years of practice and trial and error.  My three-year old has food allergies so it has limited what I can make that serves all of us but it has also made me more creative in my cooking and more willing to try new ingredients as substitutions.

Successful tools that I use to create one meal that meets all preferences:

• Serve more ingredients on the side (cheese, dressings, nuts, etc.).
• Create more “buffet” meals instead of plated meals (taco bar, pasta bar, salad bar, scrambled egg bar, hot cereal bar, chili bar).
• Use more condiments to dress up basic entrees (salsas, diced vegetables, hot sauces, capers, sautéed onions, fresh lemon).
• Make soups and casseroles – the children enjoy ingredients in combination dishes that they won’t eat alone (like tomatoes) so I can serve a variety of vegetables and “more exotic” foods like capers, anchovies, fish sauce in a soup or casserole (enchiladas, lasagna, quiche).