Happy National Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month - get your produce on!

Happy June 1 and Happy National Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month!

The weather is warming up outside and many kids are already beginning their summer vacation.  This is the perfect time to experiment with some new recipes for summer outings, barbecues and picnics.

Summer salads are a great way to introduce more fruits and vegetables into your child's diet.  Get the kids involved so they will be more curious about trying it.

You might think kids don't like fruits and vegetables but that is just not true.  The trick is getting them curious and figuring out what their peaks their taste buds.

You might surprised that some kids love things that are "mushy" and soft while others love foods that are crunchy.  Texture has a lot of influence on what a child may want to try.

Here are some ways to get them involved and curious about new fruits and vegetables:

• plan a family outing to a nearby farm where your child can actually pick the vegetable or fruit right from the ground, tree or bush
• review possible recipes and have them help decide on how you want to serve it
• have the child help prepare the fruit or vegetable.  They can help wash it and once cut up, they can also help put the pieces in a bowl
• they can help mix it up
• kids are great at naming things, have them come up with a special name for the dish and present it to the family

Let the kids know it is National Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month and you need their help in planning how the whole family will celebrate!

My Plate Resources:

Vegetable Group Fun

Fruit Group Fun

My Plate Colors Of The Food Groups

My Plate page that teaches children about the foods belonging to each colored section of the My Plate.

Printable For Younger Children - Introducing My Plate

Colorful My Plate sheet to introduce the plate and the food groups.

Printable - My Plate Teaches Kids To Balance Healthy Foods With Exercise

Fun colorful page to show children the importance of balancing their food choices on My Plate with daily activity.

The Foods That Belong To My Plate Food Groups

Colorful overview page of the foods that belong to each of the food groups on the USDA My Plate.

My Plate-Food Group Servings and Amounts

Healthy servings from each of the food groups on the My Plate.