No more fish fingers!!

The teenage DGS will eat most meals, but the younger ones
Have very restricted tastes, mainly revolving around sausages, peas, mash, pizza, fries, etc.
Usually gets better as they get older though.

Jalima ! How very dare you diss ( even politely) a fish finger sarnie.....it’s ambrosia, food of the gods indeed.

Nina mine also love sprouts, and cabbage!

My three little grandchildren are not fussy at all, and will eat all the vegetables I give them. When my four children were small I would put everything on their plates and they could eat what they wanted. They got a serving of pudding after, but no extras. Three of them ate most things, but one was very fussy. She’s now a really good cook! I would cook what you want and give them small portions: after all, they don’t know if they will like it until they try it. You could try omelettes with salad and a very small portion of chips, for instance, or beef casserole with mash or baked potatoes with bread on the side.

I looked after my GC a lot when he was small and he ate everything. Not now though. How does that happen?
I used to give him hummus with veggie sticks and he still loves those. Thank goodness.

It is indeed lemongrove but it has to be on thick sliced white bread! (Tartare sauce optional).
?

I cook as normal and they eat it or they don't. I do insist they have to try a taste of everything and at 9 and 6 years of age they understand that this is helpful because their tastes have already changed and things that once they didn't like, they now do.
I think our children/grandchildren have benefited from having their food served from dishes and not plated. It means they have more control over portion sizes and which elements of a meal they have more or less of. Also, because we have so many guests at meal times the focus is often more on the conversation than the food and the youngsters get distracted into eating a range of foods.

My own boys and all their friends used to love shepherd's pie. You can smuggle loads of veg into the mincemeat.

My DGD eats everything, so it's no good asking her. DGS has all sorts of exotic things to eat as they live in California. Like many children, he will eat one thing one day and turn his nose up at it the next and do the opposite with something else.

They do both love a piece of cucumber, though.

Your meal times around a table sound wonderfully relaxed grannyactivist I like the idea of children helping themselves to food.

You are welcome to fish finger butties lemongrove and Urmstongran
I prefer a more upmarket chip buttie myself

Our DC and DGC have always eaten what we eat, except perhaps more spicy dishes, although they have tried dishes with some chilli.

When our granddaughters (now in their 20's) came to stay for their summer holidays, they loved lunch: I would put small amounts of various things around a plate, designed to look colourful and enticing, and they could eat what they wanted. I do think half the pleasure of eating is the appearance of the meal - and they still talk about "Nana's plates" to this day!

DGD's favourite meal is steak with all the trimmings
(Expensive tastes at 9!)

dahlia I agree, nice colourful food like strips of pepper, cucumber, carrots, cherry tomatoes cut in half always go down well.
Houmous as a dip goes down well for lunch with the above.

Roast chicken dinner is the most requested meal by GC here, followed by chicken casserole or fish pie and vegetables.

Large Yorkshire pudding filled with veg/meat/chicken/gravy etc or filled with sausage and gravy/carrots.

Baked potatoes
Risotto, with any combination of meat, veg or cheese.

We have been on a bit of a journey with GS. He has been a faddy eater from the start - no potatoes (not even chips!), no butter or spread on his bread, nothing with a sauce and definitely no pizza or anything with tomatoes. He always adored plain pasta and any kind of vegetable (except tomatoes and cabbage). Now, after much persuading and skullduggery, he will eat potatoes in any form, chicken pie, mild curry, risotto (as long as you leave the onions out!), sweet and sour chicken, and salmon. A roast dinner is always welcome and good sausages with Grandad’s mash has him drooling. They get better as they get older.

Thank you for all your ideas. Some of your grandchildren sound amazing with the range of foods that they eat. I will persevere!!!