Josh/2010/food

Current as of 2009-12-30

Main Meals

chicken (fried, roasted, nuggets, even stir-fried as long as nothing else is mixed in... doesn't seem to matter -- a big favorite)
ground beef, cooked pretty much any way with no bun or toppings -- 1 pound is usually good enough for a meal, but if he hasn't eaten in awhile he can go through 2 pounds
- We stock up at the Durham Farmers' Market most weekends, though the organic stuff at Costco is (usually) almost as good. I usually defrost a pound for 9-10 minutes in the microwave, cut it into quarters, defrost another 7 minutes, cook for 2:30 or so, then cut it up into bite-size portions so it will cool off faster. I sometimes sprinkle garlic powder on it; he mostly doesn't seem to care either way. He will also sometimes eat fast-food hamburger with no toppings (he'll eat the beef and leave the buns).
lamb chops (which we rarely cook because they are so expensive these days)
turkey -- white or dark meat; prefers dark
hot dogs -- he used to eat these a lot, but went off them and we haven't tried them in a long time. Worth trying again.
rice -- we normally serve brown rice, covered in chicken broth from the pan, with his chicken; he would probably be ok with white rice too. Tends to be very messy, though; spills a lot on the floor.
bacon -- apparently likes this a lot; one evening he tried to cook some himself -- in the toaster oven...

veggie chips / potato chips
pasta -- you can never tell whether he is going to eat this or not, but if he has already had a lot of meat and still seems hungry, it's a good thing to try. We try to use wheat-free pasta, but sometimes give him the regular kind. We most commonly serve Quinoa spirals, but he will also eat spaghetti. We don't usually add salt or spices (he doesn't like sauce), but he doesn't seem to mind them either.
french fries (no ketchup; salt optional)
popcorn - we always do the plain flavor; microwave or regular is ok. Salt and butter are optional; he doesn't seem to care.
hard boiled egg whites -- he isn't so good at peeling the shell off, but he can separate the white from the yolk. Tends to leave a mess (yolks & yolk crumbs)
- haven't tried other forms of egg in a long time, but he used to eat scrambled eggs and such

skittles make a good quick reward for doing a task or cooperating
gummi bears/vitamins - same
pizza - we try to minimize how much he gets because dairy products seem to be bad for his acne, and may be a behavioral issue too, but he really likes it. Will sometimes eat the crust too.
cheese - same thing; he will go through an entire pack, if it's a kind he likes. If he just thinks he likes it, he may shred the entire pack before changing his mind. Favorite is provolone. I've also been able to get him to eat tofu-based fake cheese -- which is unfortunately expensive too, and he was getting tired of it by the time I stopped. He won't eat plain tofu at all, as far as I can tell.