By Cristy Clavijo-Kish
If you’re a parent or general adult exposed to a tween-aged child around eating time- you’ll come to recognize that for the most part- they’re finicky. As the mother of identical twin tweens- I get to enjoy both spectrums: the super finicky “no way I’m eating that and going to pretend that I’m gagging” tween personality and the slightly less finicky “at least I’ll try it” tween-related food reaction. As I’ve said about this age- they’re ‘special’ but fun (at times)!
Since I personally am going through my own renaissance with Avocados- I’ve decided to bring the Tweens along on my continued effort to expand their food repertoire outside of chicken nuggets, fries and burgers. For the most part, I haven’t been an avocado fan most of my life- it was a texture issue with me. The mushy factor didn’t settle well with me although my parents and Abuelitos LOVED avocados! Then five years ago I attended a Mexico-inspired event which helped ignite a passion in me for the fruit and its many preparations. The health benefits also motivated me to start eating them again. A close friend in Miami has a huge avocado tree in her front yard so she distributes them at every opportunity. But I have noticed that this variety is simply not as tasty as the smaller avocados from Mexico. Ask my husband, I make this comment every time I have one in a salad!
Back to the tweens… so now it’s time to introduce them at a young age to this miracle fruit of sorts. Moms and parents out there, reality is – you know you gotta get creative with them. ¡Ponte creativa! So I went the old-fashioned route and created a simple dip with a flavor my “super finicky” tween would love- Honey Mustard!
Yep, here’s all you need:
– Small avocado
– 1 teaspoon honey mustard sauce (bottled variety works)
– pinch of salt and pepper
– On the side: shredded cheese & tortilla chips
Blend the ingredients all very well in a blender until it is smooth (again, texture can be the issue). For the sides I used white-corn tortilla chips because I know my kids ALREADY love them and shredded cheese to make it fun. Using ingredients or sides that you know they already like, can reduce half the battle. I’ll have video of their reaction later.
Here are some great kid-inspired recipes from famed Mexican chef Aquiles Chávez. And Los Tweens & Teens is bringing you a fun contest! Check out this informative website and enter the contest for a chance to win $500 and a trip to Houston in September for private cooking classes with Celebrity Chef Aquiles at his new critically acclaimed restaurant The Fisheria. Good luck- mucha suerte amigos!!
http://www.aguacatesdemexico.com/AdM/Aguacate-Lindo-y-Querido.aspx
This is part of a sponsored campaign with Latina Mom Bloggers and Avocados From Mexico. However, all opinions expressed are my own.
As a mother of twin tweens in 2011 and an active Girl Scout Troop leader, Cristy realized there was a need to develop bilingual digital content and foster a community facing the challenges of raising kids after first grade. That year she founded and remains co-Publisher of Los Tweens & Teens, to support multicultural parents and mentors with content related to raising Gen Z- tweens & teens ages 7-18. Through the Los Tweens & Teens LIVE events such as Teens & Me – the growing team aims to provide our community with essential resources from chats with therapists to battle anxiety and bullying, to understanding social media and technology.