Oh, poor kid
I hope he's starting to eat more now. In the past I've struggled with gaining weight (in that I couldn't gain weight and needed to) and I found a cookbook ('Eat Up!') especially for people who need to gain weight! It was really helpful. I also found an old book with tips for people who had no appetite & needed to eat nutritious, weight building meals. The most help I got was from a naturopath who helped me figure out what was blocking the nutrients (mostly wheat, & I was also reacting to dairy) and once I got rid of those I finally gained weight. Here's a quote from one of the books:
"It's not how much you eat, but how much you assimilate that builds a strong body. Weak, run-down persons stuff themselves in an effort to gain strength, and more food often than not merely adds to their troubles. The vital elements of most foods are locked in minute cells which must be broken down to release their building elements. This breaking-down process should be well begun before the food reaches the stomach." He goes on to talk about how food needs to be chewed to a 'fine, milky paste' before it is swallowed, to get the most from it - but generally we're hurrying and don't chew properly. So it's a good idea to use a 'blender' (this was pre-Thermomix days!) to whip food into an easy to digest consistency.
The most nutritious combinations of foods to blend are protein with fruit juices - so nuts /eggs /cheese whizzed with fresh fruit to make creamy juices. Also 'cream of' soups - you can blend the raw veges with milk, add some herb salt & a tsp butter, and barely warm it up. The Thermomix is so perfect for this - whiz up the milk & veges on speed 9 for a minute, then barely warm on 37 degrees. That way you've got the nutrients of the raw veges but it's much easier to eat. Some veges that work well like this are fresh green peas, shallots, raw beetroot, carrots, parsley, spinach, asparagus, & mushrooms. (The suggestion is that you do just one vege on it's own - 1 cup of milk to a handful of the chopped vege, plus salt & butter.) You can just tip it into a mug and let him sip on it.
Another suggestion - eat smaller meals, more often! Don't expect him to be able to eat a normal sized meal at one sitting. 4-5 'meals' a day is better. Sometimes that might just be a smoothie & some nuts or fruit. Or custard, as Faffa said.
Anyway, here's some ideas of foods that I found helpful:
Breakfast & snack ideas:
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freshly squeezed juices whizzed up with egg/nuts/cheese - the high sugar content (good sugars!) in juices are helpful with weight gain (pineapple or orange juice & blanched almonds, raw cashews or pecans; pineapple with a couple of tablespoons cottage cheese or orange juice with cream cheese)
-
banana & egg in smoothies - bananas are great for weight gain! (I would use a non-dairy recipe with nut milk, like this
Banana Nut Butter Protein Shake or
Chocolate Almond Smoothie)
-
avocado on toast/crackers-
hot chocolate made all on milk (again I'd use dairy free nut milks - try my
Creamy Cashew Milk Hot Chocolate)
-
Swiss Breakfast (handful of soaked oats & almonds topped with grated apple & cream/yoghurt & a little honey/maple syrup)
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sliced banana with cream/yoghurt
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cooked cereals (I like the Chinese style drinking porridge in the EDC - makes a lot though, might want to halve it)
- a tablespoon
black molasses stirred into milk of choice, slightly warm is nice
-
fruit salad/cereal with chopped nuts (or try one of these:
pink fruit cereal,
raw fruit cereal-
custard-
banana ice cream (
chocolate banana ice-cream,
toffee pecan crunch ice cream)
-
stewed fruit with cream/yoghurt/
cashew cream-
wholemeal scones with
homemade jam & cream
-
apple pie with cream
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apple berry custard crumbleLunches & dinners:
-
homemade mayonnaise on any salads
-
waldorf salad-
egg salad with wholemeal toast & butter
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nourishing soups & broths (especially chicken or potato)
-
lightly cooked spinach (can be added to soup/broth just before serving so it wilts but isn't overcooked)
-
fish/chicken/hamburger patties, grilled, with baked potato & a little salad/steamed veges (butter or mayo on potato) - I found when I had no appetite, the one thing I could stomach was plain beef or turkey mince patties with herb salt!
-
tuna & celery salad with homemade mayo on toast or in a sandwich
-
beef stroganoff or
stew on pasta or mashed potatoes
-
baked sweet potatoes- casseroles
- seafood/chicken with cheese sauce on pasta
- baked macaroni & cheeseOkay, there's a few ideas!!
Hope that helps
