Kids and sandwich crusts

[Little_Flatty]

With the eldest starting school this year, I now have the task of making school lunches. Curiously, she has requested that I cut the crusts off all her sandwiches.

I know it's quite common, but what is it with this phenomenon? I mean, it's not like the bread I am using is incredibly crusty (and she is incredulous when I explain to her that grown-ups like the crusty bits the best of all).

When I was young, I did see other kids eat crustless sandwiches, but I never understood why, even as a kid (and my friends could never explain why either). So can anyone provide any insight?

Mike

ps. Of course, I retain all the bread crust cuttings, freeze them and then catch a few fish with them come the weekend. Bonus!

[noelm]

I think it's just a "kid thing" like eating green vegetables, most will eat White ones (Potatoes) and Orange ones (Carrots) but green.....nope, bread crust is the same, it's just not right to a kid.

[kingie chaser]

When I was young if I didnt want eat what mum put in front of me or in my lunch box then dad would tell me if I dont eat it I can go hungry then.

I remember once mum had made lamb chops with brussel sprout, I said I dont like those & wont eat them, dad sent me to my room & said dont come out till your ready to eat your sprouts, yep went hungry that night but not the next time which I think was broccoli.

 

Maybe that is why as an adult I actually eat & enjoy every vegetable I can think of, also knowing how good they are for me helps.

 

I think kids these days need to be reminded how lucky they are to be getting a a packed lunch & a hot meal put in front of them!

 

Imo kids these days seem to run their parents life & rule the roost, dictating terms to the parents even.

 

As you can tell I am not a parent but I certainly remember the tough at times life lessons that my parent taught me with many young & adolecents seem to lack these days, like respect & thanks & more.

 

Oh & also just remind them the crusts makes your hair curly & that the curls get the girls maybe, or boys 

Edited March 7, 2021 by kingie chaser

[Little_Flatty]

I used to see crusts as a boost to my meal as well - couldn't see why you would cut off perfectly good food...but then I was a strange kid by kid's standards

8 minutes ago, kingie chaser said:

On & also just remind them the crusts makes your hair curly & that the curls get the girls maybe, or boys 

I did use a similar strategy to start the eldest eating salads (probably my biggest parenting achievement thus far!) She got a new bike for Christmas and I convinced her that good bike riders eat salad. Even got one of my cycling mates to play along and reiterate what I told her.

[kingie chaser]

1 minute ago, Little_Flatty said:

I did use a similar strategy to start the eldest eating salads (probably my biggest parenting achievement thus far!) She got a new bike for Christmas and I convinced her that good bike riders eat salad. Even got one of my cycling mates to play along and reiterate what I told her.

Yep, I think every parent starts by saying "if you dont eat your greens you wont grow up big & strong" but where do you go from there? Eventually let them have their way??

 

I think being a chef now I could invent ways (another term for hide😂) to get them to eat them or at least introduce them to veg or things they dont like. 

I have made many a meal for people who said they dislike something & used the exact ingredient a different way & they love it, untill I tell them.

Of course asking if they had any allergies 1st, I wasnt trying to kill them, just show them their dislike is just a figment of their imagination.

 

[noelm]

I guess lifestyle plays a big part in kids growing up, bombarded constantly with fast food adds, driven to and from school and sports, sitting in front of technology for hours, mums and dads working, it's just "normal" to go through a fast food "drive through" can't possibly get out of our air conditioned car, then be asked if you want to "upsize" to an extra litre of gassy sugar drink and a kilo of chips, imagine if you wanted to go to your mates place, you ride your bike, and if he wasn't home, it was bad luck, now you just text him, you might not actually see your friend for days, but you text constantly! Gees I am getting old....get off my lawn!

[kingie chaser]

23 minutes ago, noelm said:

Gees I am getting old....get off my lawn!

I didnt think so until you made that last comment 🤣

That reminded me of the old buzzards next door either side when our cricket ball would end up in their front or back yard & we would jump the fence to collect it 

I think every street had a few!

 

All those things are valid points Noel, todays life is a different pace for sure & so many more choices, menu log, Uber eats etc, both parent working doing different shifts etc to be able to pay the morgage

 

I  think the whole family sitting down at the table & having an evening meal together & talking about their day or week is becoming more a rarity unfortunately.

And that last paragraph reminds me of a Seinfeld episode of course 😂

 

Edited March 7, 2021 by kingie chaser

[noelm]

Yeah, I think so, we have a family meal at our place Monday nights, both my kids and their kids come (when they can) we all sit at the table (not eat in front of the TV) we have vegetables and some kind of meat, everyone sits at the table until we are all finished, even the little 4 year old grand kids, at times it's "testing" with certain kids that won't eat odds and ends, but, in the main, they all eat most stuff.

[Rebel]

It's al about growing up.

[Little_Flatty]

6 hours ago, kingie chaser said:

Yep, I think every parent starts by saying "if you dont eat your greens you wont grow up big & strong" but where do you go from there? Eventually let them have their way??

One of the time tested solutions is spag bol! Kids will eat anything that is put into spag bol!:)

That said, any tricks to get kids to eat better are always thankfully devoured by most parents!

Other things that have had some success in our household are getting them involved in growing our own veggies and cooking with them. They love their carrots and corn. Ownership seems to drive their enthusiasm. But there are no silver bullets, that’s for sure...

Funny story, we got the proverbial excrements with the kids the other day, and we banned TV and iPads. We soon realised that the punishment wasn’t going to bite, because after some initial protests, they just forgot about the technology and went outside to play instead! 🤣

Not sure if the strategy will continue to work as they get older, but it’s worth a try...

[kingie chaser]

1 hour ago, Little_Flatty said:

One of the time tested solutions is spag bol! Kids will eat anything that is put into spag bol!:)

That said, any tricks to get kids to eat better are always thankfully devoured by most parents!

Other things that have had some success in our household are getting them involved in growing our own veggies and cooking with them. They love their carrots and corn. Ownership seems to drive their enthusiasm. But there are no silver bullets, that’s for sure...

Funny story, we got the proverbial excrements with the kids the other day, and we banned TV and iPads. We soon realised that the punishment wasn’t going to bite, because after some initial protests, they just forgot about the technology and went outside to play instead! 🤣

Not sure if the strategy will continue to work as they get older, but it’s worth a try...

Just like the old days when there were no such devices except going outside & playing wasnt a punishment it was an everyday occurance  👍

 

Absolutely on the ofyour post, my standard spag bol recipe includes a thing calles a Soffritto of carrot, onion, celery & button mushrooms, the kids would never be able to tell they are eating vegies 😄.

 

It is actually great to see some junior schools I have seen on TV being proactive in teaching kids about growing veg & seeing where good food comes from.

 

I know Jamie Oliver did a lot of work on this in England, I think we need moreof the same approach here to.

[Fab1]

My son now 25 was a fussy little snot nose when he started school.All he would eat is nutella sandwiches but there was a catch.He wouldn't eat crust either.My wife had to buy dinosaur cookie cutters and cut his sandwiches into various dinosaur shapes discarding the crusts into daddy dinosaur belly(me).

  Worked a treat.Luckily he ate fruit and things like that to balance out the nutella sangas. 😂🤣

Ps. I was totally over nutella crusts after a couple of years.😂🤣😂

  

Edited March 10, 2021 by Fab1

[kingie chaser]

13 hours ago, Fab1 said:

My son now 25 was a fussy little snot nose when he started school.All he would eat is nutella sandwiches but there was a catch.He wouldn't eat crust either.My wife had to buy dinosaur cookie cutters and cut his sandwiches into various dinosaur shapes discarding the crusts into daddy dinosaur belly(me).

  Worked a treat.Luckily he ate fruit and things like that to balance out the nutella sangas. 😂🤣

Ps. I was totally over nutella crusts after a couple of years.😂🤣😂

  

Not sure but I think some schools now have a no nut policy because some kid might inhale the smell of one & go into  anaphylactic shock 

 

[Fab1]

10 hours ago, kingie chaser said:

Not sure but I think some schools now have a no nut policy because some kid might inhale the smell of one & go into  anaphylactic shock 

 

I'm surprised they still allow kids to breathe these days.

[wazatherfisherman]

On 3/11/2021 at 11:28 AM, kingie chaser said:

Not sure but I think some schools now have a no nut policy because some kid might inhale the smell of one & go into  anaphylactic shock 

 

Hi KC I used to be assistant co-ordinator at Australia St (Newtown) Before/After school centre. We provided ready made (by us) sandwiches every afternoon when the children came across from the school. 

In the space of only 3 months, we had to stop making the (most favoured by the kids) peanut butter sandwiches, due to the "possibility" of anaphylactic shock. Met with a lot of resistance from many parents because most of the kids loved them, however, as safety and well-being are number one priority we ceased making them. 

I got 5 big buckets of peanut butter to take home- lasted me a few years. 😁

Oh and we didn't cut the crusts off- peer group pressure between the children dictated that they ate right up to the crust if they didn't like crusts.

[Little_Flatty]

10 hours ago, wazatherfisherman said:

Oh and we didn't cut the crusts off- peer group pressure between the children dictated that they ate right up to the crust if they didn't like crusts.

But Waza...imagine all the drummer and bream you would have caught if you saved those crusts! 🤣 I'm astonished at how much you can collect in a short period of time.

I can imagine the kids would have loved your stories!

[wazatherfisherman]

11 hours ago, Little_Flatty said:

But Waza...imagine all the drummer and bream you would have caught if you saved those crusts! 🤣 I'm astonished at how much you can collect in a short period of time.

I can imagine the kids would have loved your stories!

My ex was co-ordinator and I wasn't allowed to tell fish stories in case someone's parents objected to fishing- sad but true!

I wonder if the fish prefer peanut butter or vegemite crusts? LOL