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My 7 year old was just diagnosed a few weeks ago with Crohn's and we are struggling with finding food he will eat. He's so upset that he can't eat the things he loves. Does anyone have any recipe ideas for children?

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Will want to be careful with what you choose for juicing.  Anyone in the berry (strawberry, raspberry, etc.) family will contain little seeds that will scratch up already inflamed tissue.  You'll also notice that none of the recipes listed use real onion or garlic, it's always the powder.  Season to taste and what works for your son's preferences, tummy, and digestive system.  Hope he is doing better!

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Low/no fiber foods:
-Walmart brand bread (I think it's round top white) has 0 g fiber
-V8 fusion juice (fruit stuff NOT tomato juice)--has 0 g fiber and 1 serving of fruits and veggies in each glass...can be watered down due to sugar content and makes texture a little easier to drink
-proteins: meats (lean meats are best: poultry, pork, fish), cheeses, eggs have 0 g fiber
- surprisingly, Cheetos puffs have very little fiber but it's junk food
-canned peaches I think have 0 g fiber (check label)

When in a flare, I always water my juices down 50/50.  Also on low-residue diet and it is restricting, can't imagine what it's like for a 7 year old!  Below are some links about low-residue diets, sample menus, etc.  Just saw that pickles are on the do not eat list...so would definitely omit them from the cheeseburger pie but the juice should be OK, just make sure there are no seeds or floaties.  I'm guessing the pickles are bad because of the seeds and fiber.  But like everything it's a lot of "guess and test".  Everyone's different and some people can tolerate things while others can't.  Hope these recipes can help and you can find something your son can eat and enjoy.
http://www.nutritioncaremanual.org/vault/editor/docs/Low-FiberNutritionTherapy.pdf
http://www.healthpartners.com/ucm/groups/public/@hp/@public/documents/documents/dev_005116.pdf

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Homemade Mac n Cheese (comfort food in a bowl)
2 large eggs, 1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk, 1 T mustard, 8 oz (~2 c) macaroni, 12 oz shredded cheese, 2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 1/4 tsp hot sauce (can be omitted), 4 T butter
Mix eggs, 1 c of evaporated milk, 1/2 tsp salt, pepper, mustard, and hot sauce (if desired) in small bowl, set aside.  Meanwhile, bring 2 qt water to boil in large, heavy-bottomed sauce pan or dutch oven.  Add remaining 1 1/2 tsp salt and macaroni, cook until almost tender but still a little firm to the bite.  Drain and return to pain over med-low heat.  Add butter, toss to melt.  Pour egg mix over buttered noodles along with 3/4's of the cheese, stir until thoroughly combined and cheese begins to melt.  Gradually add remaining 1/2 c evaporated milk and remaining cheese, stirring constantly until mix is hot and creamy, about 5 minutes.  If after 5 minutes, still not hot can turn up heat up to medium but watch that it doesn't burn and cheese doesn't curdle up (we have a "colder" stove top).  Serve immediately.

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Cheeseburger pie
1 can crescent rolls, 1 tsp onion powder, 1/3 c chopped dill pickles (can be omitted..pickles might be too "scratchy" on the digestive system?), 1 tsp mustard, 2 c shredded cheese (divided), 1 lb ground beef (I like 93/7, less greasy), 2 T ketchup, 2 T flour, 2 T dill pickle juice, 2 T milk.  If omitting chopped pickles, maybe add a little more pickle juice.
Preheat oven to 375.  Unroll crescent rolls and press into bottom and sides of an 8 in pie pan.  Brown ground beef and drain well.  Stir in onion powder, chopped pickles (if desired), ketchup, and mustard.  Sprinkle with flour and add pickle juice and milk, cook, and stir until thickened and bubbly.  Remove from heat and add 1 c of cheese.  Pour into pie pan and bake 15 minutes or until edges of crust are golden brown.  Remove from oven and top with remaining cheese.  Put back into oven for a few minutes or until cheese is melted. 

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Mini Meatloaves
1 egg, 3/4 c milk, 1 c shredded cheese, 1 c quick cooking oats, 1 tsp salt, 1 lb ground beef (I like to use 93%/7%).  There is a ketchup topping but this might be too acidic?  It's 2/3 c ketchup, 1/4 c packed brown sugar, and 1 1/2 tsp mustard.  Can be omitted and you can top with gravy instead.
Preheat oven to 350.  In large bowl, combine egg, milk, cheese, oats, and salt.  Let sit a few minutes for oatmeal to absorb liquid. Add ground beef, mixing well, and form mix into mini meatloaves.  The mix will be pretty wet so I like to put them in my mini loaf pan (it has 8 little loaf pans all in one pan).  Muffin tin would work too (just might not need all the tins and cooking time might be a little different).  In separate bowl, mix ketchup, brown sugar, and mustard (or omit, only put on some, etc.) and spread over each loaf.  Bake for 45 minutes.
If omitting ketchup sauce, I serve these over rice and topped with gravy.  These can also be made into meatballs too.  Since they can have trouble keeping shape, I put them into mini muffin tins.  They were the perfect size.
If dairy is a problem, there's lactose free milk.  Most hard cheese like block cheese contain little to no lactose. 

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Baked chicken tenders. 
I "marinate" the chicken pieces in watered down greek yogurt (or sour cream) that have some spices in it (garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, etc.).  The consistency is sort of like gravy.  I do that for a couple hours so it helps keep the chicken moist when cooking and adds flavor.  The greek yogurt is high in protein and I believe has some probiotics from the yogurt culture but sour cream works too.  Toast some panko crumbs in a skillet with just a little bit of oil until golden brown.  Coat marinated chicken in toasted panko crumbs (you can also season the crumbs with spices and/or parmesan cheese after toasting) and bake in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes.  If you wrap the baking tray in foil and set a wire rack (sprayed with Pam) on top, it keeps the chicken nice and crunchy on the bottoms and clean up is a breeze!

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Sorry to hear about your son.  That is such a young age and a lot to be going through.  I like to stick to lean meats (poultry, pork, and fish).  I cut up a boneless, skinless chicken breast into bite sized pieces, season with garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper, and cook with a little bit of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  It cooks up fast since the pieces are small and it's easy to check for doneness.  You can serve with rice (maybe add some gravy?) or canned green beans are good too or also a casserole (like below).  Canned green beans have about half the fiber than if you cook raw green beans so should be easier on the digestive system. 
Casserole: 2 c cooked chicken, 1 can green beans, 1 can cream of mushroom soup (cream of chicken would work too), 1/3 c plain greek yogurt (or sour cream), 2 c cooked rice, 1/2-3/4 c crushed ritz crackers (can also add some shredded cheese).  Just mix everything but the crackers in a 2 qt casserole dish and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes (until heated through).  Remove and add cracker topping.  Cook for 10-15 minutes more until topping is nice and golden brown.  Then I add extra parmesan cheese for extra flavor to taste.

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

oh yeah...GOOD BLENDER!   :)

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Hi...sorry to hear he's back in the hospital.  i'm sure you are anxious about the whole food thing-it can be very stressful  the best thing to do is what Lizzie's mom said and to keep a food,etc journal...input, output, anything journal so you can find out triggers and food that work and how you prepared them.  The other important thing is to try not to make too many changes at 1 time and try and add "new" foods 1 at a time so you know what caused an issue and what didn't.  even the smoothie...add ingredients slowly-even honey!  try and limit added sugar, use natural 100% juices, possibly organic foods, limit processed foods...cook veggies, fruit, try applesauce-natural, soups are amazing...no spices and be careful with onions and garlic.  as faras smoothies-banana blue and strawberries to start.  i have Uc and am very picky eater, but don't really add veges because i eat them.  i do add some other thing that are not good for crohn's.  read up on the SCD, paleo and gaps diets.  it will be good and healthy and easier to change as a family.  i do not follow strictly, but closer to when flaring.  
I don't want to overwhelm with too much info.  the best advice is to take a deep breath, keep track, go slowly, listen to his gut and yours and find local support and be informed so you can be your son's best advocate.  

good luck and feel free to ask any other questions...Shelly 

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Sorry to hear your little guy is in the hospital.   Believe it or not, it may be better because they can monitor him closely, keep him hydrated and get his system under better control.  
In the beginning phase of getting a flare under control, fruits and veggies needed to be peeled and cooked.  It was hard here at home because I always had fresh veggies in the fridge for the kids when they wanted a snack before dinner.  Believe it or not it was one of their favorite snacks, along with dipping it in ranch dressing.
In time Lizzie was able to tolerate smaller / modified portions.  There was a time I would have to peel grapes.   It broke my heart to see this 4 yr old holding her hand out for more and I couldn't peel them fast enough!   If your son misses Popcorn, go the grocer and buy "Pirates Booty" they are well tolerated, though they do have some milk product (cheese), but I do know CD kids who are lactose free and can tolerate them.  The same company also makes an alternative for cheese doodles too.
As for lunches, we use all natural peanut butter (though not SCD legal) and all natural fruit spread on white bread.  You can make your own version on personal pizzas by using a small amount of home made sauce, topped with a bit of mozz cheese on an english muffin (not the whole grain).  Wraps have also become a biggie.  Often I will just dice up whatever meat we had the night before, stuff in some well grilled veggies, add a little dressing and there you go.  The main change our family had to make was to lower the amount of whole grains we consumed. 
Hope your little man is feeling better soon.   Be well.

Lizzies Mom

 Reply posted for Smiller68.

Do you have any ideas for smoothies or juicing that works well for kids? I think the smoothies are a great idea. I read somewhere that there is a such thing as juicing for chrons. Perhaps there are similar ideas for smoothies as well. Do you hide veggies in the smoothies too?

 Reply posted for Lizzies Mom.

Right now Jonathan is in the hospital, but before he was admitted we were trying our best to follow the low residue diet. We were instructed to give him no raw fruits or veggies and no fruits with seeds. Also, he had to drink pediasure peptide 3 times a day. Jonathan is really missing out on popcorn, hot dogs, at first we were told no lunch meats...LOL so, for a 7 year old that's a lot.

We have just been cleared to give him whatever he wants to eat (while he is still in the hospital)...just to get him to eat. I had no idea this would be such a rough routine.

 Reply posted for patman75.

Hello all...sorry for taking so long to respond.

Thanks for all the responses. Jonathan is in the hospital now and we were just hit with the option of Pediasure Peptide 5 times a day for 4-6 weeks or methotrexate once a week. I will try the smoothies although I think my mom ruined it by trying to make a Peptide Smoothie (YUCK!!!!). I will also check out that SCD diet, it sounds pretty interesting. I think diet will make a difference for my son, just not sure how much.

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Our daughter was dx @ 4 so I know how difficult it can be, especially in the beginning.    What are you currently giving him?   I know from my experience (it's been 8 yrs now) it was hard in the beginning just figuring out which foods were tolerable.   Working with a nutritionist helped, along with a food diary.  It helped keep track of what she was eating and would make it easier to decipher which the culprit was.   A lot of trial and error, but now Liz can pretty much handle the decision making when over friends' houses, etc.  
What foods is he missing?   I know popcorn was a biggie at our house, considering we have Friday night moving night and it kind of goes hand in hand.   Sure enough I found a substitute and she likes it.....we all do.  Don't despair, it will get easier, it just takes time for both his system to "cool off" and get into remission and for the family to adapt to a different lifestyle/awareness.   For us, it was kicking much of the whole grains to the curb and being more aware of fiber as well.    

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

Smoothies are an awesome way to boost nutrition with whatever he likes and whatever extras you want to hide!  Who doesn't love smoothies especially this time of year.  frozen fruit is easy and less expensive, wild blueberries are better for you, strawberries, bananas, some people use peanut butter-natural...use his imagination and whatever he can tolerate.  scd gaps paleo type diets help, nonprocessed foods, limit breads.  good luck, shelly

 Reply posted for jonthecool.

pecanbread.com is a Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD ) site with recipes for kids.