5 Ways to Serve Avocado to Kids

5 Ways to Serve Avocado to Kids

Have you tried serving avocado to your kids in the past, but gave up due to a less than enthusiastic response from your little one? Avocado is a food most parents would love their kids to enjoy. They are loaded in fiber, omegas, and have more potassium than even a banana! But it can be a food that takes a little getting used to for some kids. Below we’re sharing 5 enticing ways to serve avocado to kids for lunch or a snack!

When we conducted taste tasting research for the What a Good Eater! cookbook, we found that adding a spritz of fresh lemon juice made a big difference in whether a child would eat the avocado or not. Kids who tasted the avocado plain often didn’t want to eat it, but after adding a little freshly squeezed lemon juice, most kids found it more palatable. Our advice is don’t give up. As with many foods, it probably took 15-20 exposures to avocado before my own kids found it palatable. It’s part of the learning process–kids are getting used to new tastes, textures, and flavors, and they can certainly acquire a taste for most foods.

5 Ways to Serve Avocado to Kids:

1. On a cracker. Most kids love carbs, right? Mash an avocado, squeeze fresh lemon juice to prevent it from browning, and spread it on a cracker. The cracker often entices them to at least give it a try.

2. On toast with fruit. Mash the avocado like it’s guacamole, give a squeeze of lemon juice, and spread it on toast. Then, top it with your kid’s favorite fruit or a fruit that’s in season. Try sliced bananas, cantaloupes, apples, or plums. It makes a beautiful lunch that’s creative and fun, and the fruit on top often makes it inviting for kids. (You could even try one of our fruit smoothies!)

3. With honey. This method is a winner! I tried it recently and it was really delicious. Take an avocado, mash it with a fork, give it a spritz of fresh lemon juice to prevent it from browning, and add anywhere from 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon of local farmer’s honey. It naturally sweetens up the avocado and brings a new, refreshing flavor to the senses that even most adults haven’t experienced!

4. As a dip. What kid doesn’t love a chip? Make “guacamole” by mashing the avocado, adding fresh lemon juice, and serving it with a side of tortilla chips for an afternoon snack. For a healthier alternative, try serving it with banana or plantain chips.

5. Straight from the “bowl”. Sometimes the food itself isn’t the problem–a new delivery system can bring new interest and intrigue to a kid, simply because it’s fun! Cut an avocado in half, remove the seed, and serve it with a spoon right in the “bowl”! Let them have fun eating it, and as your reward, there’s no real bowl to wash afterwards!

How do you serve avocado to your kids? Did they like it right away, or did it take a number of attempts for them to acquire a taste? Please share with other parents in the comments section. For more healthy recipes and snack ideas that include avocado, check out the What a Good Eater! cookbook.

About Amy Godiwalla

Amy Godiwalla is co-author of the What a Good Eater! cookbook, available on Amazon. Amy and her husband, Shaun, live in Denver, Colorado, with their two little boys. When Amy is not feeding little mouths or inventing recipes, she enjoys hiking, yoga, snowboarding, cooking, entertaining, traveling to the mountains, sipping hot chocolate at ski resorts, and wine tasting.

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