Make It Monday – English muffin pizza

Today I was inspired by some friends that are having trouble getting their children to eat.  Children are different and have different reasons for being picky or unwilling to eat.  If you’re a parent with a child like this, don’t give up!  You probably try and try and try again.  Getting kids to eat, and to eat healthy can be hard work and many times there’s no fast fix.  You will probably find yourself doing  the same things over and over before you find any results.  One thing that can help is to get your child involved in the cooking process, and make it fun!  Try English muffin pizzas.

You’ve probably made these before.  They’re fun to make, and kids get to be a little creative with cooking.  Let them get messy and put more or less toppings on than you would.  Let them sample as they cook.  If you don’t have an English muffin, try pita bread or a tortilla.  I just use boxed tomatoes for the sauce, but you could use spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce, or just chopped tomatoes.

We’re shredding mozzarella, but you could use any cheese you have on hand.  Make many toppings available, even ones you might not like yourself (my husband likes to make tuna and corn pizzas).  Cut up the toppings beforehand if you won’t expect your child to cut them.  We like to use green peppers, onions, mushrooms, olives, and chopped ham.  Get creative with what you have on hand.  Fruit and leftovers are always options.

I show my kids what I’m doing and talking about it as an example while they do the same (or whatever they want).  After your english muffin is topped as you like, bake at 350 for 10 minutes on a shallow baking pan.

Getting children involved and giving them options makes them more interested and invested, and even picky eaters are more likely to eat.  Make sure to praise them, even if it’s for “being creative,” or “making a pizza like you’ve never seen before.”  Enjoy!