Turkey Tacos, Carrots, and Smoothies

According to the experts, one key step to raising a good eater is to keep offering foods that your kid has previously rejected. Also, you're not supposed to force them to eat. If you diligently follow this advice, you will see a lot of food get wasted. Which is particularly frustrating if you are keeping close tabs on your grocery bill and trying to cut costs.

But tonight I reaped the benefits. I was tempted to serve Nugget a cheese quesadilla, but I stuck to my guns and put beans and ground turkey in there, knowing I might be throwing it all away. He ate it!

I also served steamed carrots and smoothies. Ordinarily Nugget and I drink milk with dinner, but the almond milk in these smoothies actually had more calcium than milk. And Trent drank it. They were somewhat expensive, despite my use of coupons, but really bumped up the nutrition of this meal. 

Menu/Ingredient	Nutrition	Cost
Lean ground turkey	Iron (10%), Protein (22 g). Good source of Niacin, very good source of Selenium.	$3
Canned organic tomatoes	Fiber (1 g/4%), Vitamin A (10%), Vitamin C (20%), Calcium (2%), Iron (2%), Selenium (50%), Folate (5%).	$0.96
Fresh cilantro	Vitamin A (5%), Vitamin C (2%)	$0.69
Fresh white onion	Vitamin C (3%).	$0.27
Fresh lime juice	Vitamin C (1%)	$0.20
Canned refried beans	Fiber (3 g/11%), Protein (3 g), Calcium (1%), Iron (3%). Good source of Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium, and Manganese.	$0.99
Whole wheat tortillas	Fiber (3 g/12%), Protein (4 g), Calcium (8%), Iron (6%)	$3
Mexican cheese blend	Protein (3 g), Vitamin A (3%), Calcium (10%)	$1
Fresh organic baby carrots (steamed)	Vitamin A (266%), Fiber (2 g/9%), Protein (1 g), Vitamin C (5%), Iron (1%), Calcium (2%). Very good source of Vitamin K, Vitamin B6, and Manganese; good source of good source of Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol), Thiamin, and Potassium.	$0.50
Almond milk	Fiber (1 g/4%), Protein (1 g), Vitamin A (10%), Calcium (45%), Iron (4%), Vitamin D (25%), Vitamin E (50%), Riboflavin (2%), Phosphorous (2%), Magnesium (4%), Zinc (2%), Copper (4%), Manganese (6%)	$0.95
Canned pineapple juice, fortified	Fiber (1 g/2%), Vitamin A (10%), Vitamin C (120%), Vitamin E (10%), Iron (4%), Calcium (4%)	$1.10
Frozen strawberries	Fiber (3 g/13%), Protein (1 g), Vitamin A (1%), Vitamin C (102%), Calcium (2%), Iron (6%). Good source of Folate, Potassium. Very good source of Manganese.	$1
Total	Fiber (15 g/55%), Protein (35 g), Iron (36%), Calcium (74%), Vitamin A (305%), Vitamin C (253%).	$13.46

Cost per person: $3.85
Nutritional Goals: Excellent Fiber, Calcium, Vitamin A, and Vitamin C; Good Iron. One serving of whole grains. Recommended protein source.