Toddler Meal Planner
Finding out what foods your toddler will and won’t eat can be a nightmare for any parent. One of the easiest ways to overcome this is to introduce a toddler meal planner. Not only will sticking to a plan make your life much easier but it will also reduce mealtime tantrums as they know what to expect. Toddler meal planner is also a great way of guaranteeing that they get their five-a-day and other important nutrients into their diet as you can monitor and plan their intake. Below are some toddler meal planner ideas for ages 1-3 years old, including breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner. You can follow them completely or adjust according to your toddler’s favorite snacks and fruit!
Toddler Meal Planner: Key Components
Here are some essential nutrients that should be in your toddler meal plans:
Protein - protein should be a key component in your toddler’s meal plan. Not only does it help with growth and brain development, but also helps to keep skin, hair, and nails strong and healthy.
DHA - this is unsaturated omega-3 fat and is vital for brain health and development.
Calcium - calcium plays an integral role in tooth and bone health, blood clotting, neuron messaging, muscle contraction, and other important bodily processes.
Iron - by this age, the iron they received from you during the third trimester is depleted so will need constant topping up. Iron is essential in preventing anemia and other immunodeficiencies.
Choline - this is vital for cell function and also supports brain health
Folate/Folic Acid - this is a key nutrient for when your toddler is going through periods of rapid growth. It aids in the growing and functioning of their tissues and can be found in fruit and veggies, beans, eggs, meats, and grains. It is particularly prevalent in spinach, asparagus, yeast, and Brussel sprouts.
Toddler Meal Planner: 1-Year-Old
By this age, your little one should be well on the way to becoming an eating expert. Unfortunately for you, this means they will start to have preferences and food tantrums will most definitely become routine as they discover said preferences. By this age, they should start to have three balanced meals a day accompanied by snacks. These toddler meal plans will help to influence their taste development and preferences and are loaded with all the important nutrients listed above.
Toddler Meal Planner Breakfast
Option 1: Easy Cheesy Egg Roll-Ups
Option 2: Banana pancakes
Option 3: Oatmeal topped with diced cinnamon apples
Option 4: Whole Grain Pumpkin Waffle Dippers with nut butter and 100% fruit spread
Option 5: Unsweetened yogurt with sliced berries and granola
Toddler Meal Planner Lunch
Option 1: Whole-grain pita “pizza” topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, spinach, and broccoli
Option 2: Shredded or diced chicken or turkey with black beans and corn
Option 3: Hard-boiled egg, cubed butternut squash, sliced grapes
Option 4: Quesadilla made with whole-wheat tortillas, cheddar cheese, and cubed avocado
Option 5: Veggie pasta
Toddler Meal Planner Dinner
Option 1: Cheeseburger (ground beef, chicken, or turkey), cut up in pieces on a whole-grain roll, and soft roasted zucchini
Option 2: Fork mashed salmon and soft-cooked cauliflower
Option 3: Baked fish “fingers” with roasted carrots and quinoa
Option 4: Bolognese
Option 5: Baked Seasoned Chicken Tenders & Sweet Potatoes
Toddler Meal Planner Snacks
Option 1: Shredded or cubed cheese
Option 2: Banana & Yogurt Muffins
Option 3: Diced, ripe fruit
Option 4: Hummus with steamed or soft-cooked veggies
Option 5: Baked Seasoned Tofu
Toddler Meal Planner: 2-Year-Old
By this age, your toddler should be used to having three healthy meals a day, plus a few snacks here and there. They will be able to eat the same food as the rest of the family meaning you shouldn’t be fixating on amounts. If possible, off them finger foods instead of foods that require cutlery to eat.
Breakfast
Option 1: Breakfast Cookie, reusable pouch with plain whole milk yogurt
Option 2: Applesauce Waffles, applesauce, nut butter
Option 3: Porridge with blueberries
Option 4: Banana Oatmeal Muffin, melon, and milk
Option 5: Spinach Pancakes, pineapple, peanut butter
Lunch
Option 1: Spinach pesto pasta with peas, grapes, and milk
Option 2: Butternut Squash Apple Soup
Option 3: Sweet potato grilled cheese, red peppers, and strawberries
Option 4: Bean and cheese quesadilla, corn, and roasted zucchini
Option 5: Carrot cake muffins, roasted carrot fries, cottage cheese, and grapes
Dinner
Option 1: 1/2 Cheesy meat bun, broccoli, milk
Option 2: Baked chicken tenders, cheesy rice with carrots, and berries
Option 3: Taco filling with ground beef, peppers, beans, and corn; cheese quesadilla
Option 4: Teriyaki shrimp with zucchini and rice
Option 5: Egg Muffins with veggies, salsa, and applesauce
Snacks
Option 1: Cherry tomatoes, raisins
Option 2: Cheese stick, clementine
Option 3: Cheese Crackers
Option 4: Cottage cheese, raspberries, graham crackers
Option 5: Banana, water
Toddler Meal Planner: 3-Year-Old
By the time your toddler reaches this age, their taste preferences should have settled, giving you a better idea of what food to give them. Compared to when they were younger, 3-year olds have smaller stomachs and lower energy needs relative to their size. Make sure to portion-control as they may start to over-indulge in sugar, fatty foods. If you need a little inspiration, take a look at these sample toddler meal plans for your 3-year-old:
Breakfast
Option 1: Mini mushroom omelets or breakfast cups, strawberry and banana slices, and milk
Option 2: Oatmeal pancakes with apple sauce
Option 3: Apple and cinnamon porridge
Option 4: 1 slice whole-grain cinnamon-raisin toast
Option 5:
Lunch
Option 1: Cream of parsnip and carrot soup with 100% whole wheat unsalted crackers, or pita bread
Option 2: Tuna grilled cheese or mini sandwiches on whole-grain bread
Option 3: 1 small or half salmon burger
Option 4: Creamy pasta salad with broccoli and raisins
Option 5: Chicken and avocado sandwich
Dinner
Option 1: Mini meatballs with whole-grain pasta with tomato and vegetable pasta sauce
Option 2: Tofu vegetable stir fry with brown rice
Option 3: Mini shepherd’s pies
Option 4: Pizza with vegetable face
Option 5: Salmon fish fingers with chunky chips and peas
Snacks
Option 1: Apple slices with nut butter
Option 2: Cheddar cheese cubes
Option 3: Granola and fruit bites
Option 4: Yogurt and fruit smoothie
Option 5: Cucumber and carrot slices with dip
