Happy Easter to all who celebrate.

Holidays are great times to visit and celebrate with family and friends. They come with traditional foods, some we like and some we don’t like.

Young or old, family and friends may be picky eaters. For the young, now is not the time to battle with traditional foods. If you are an aunt or even a great aunt, tasting the traditional dish or even liking it isn’t a representative of whether they like you.

Toddlers are notoriously picky eaters. Many only eat small amounts of food at a time and can go on food “jags” where they refuse all but one or two of their favorite foods.

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As toddlers grow older, they may become less interested in food. They are more interested in what is happening around them. If your toddler is growing within normal guidelines from your pediatrician, unusual eating behaviors are no cause for concern.

In some homes of toddlers, when it comes to mealtimes, the kitchen table turns into a battleground. However, mealtimes can be an enjoyable social time if parents or grandparents remember their part of the feeding relationship.

Here is the help. Remember this — parents and caregivers are responsible for the “what” and the “when” of foods to serve and when to offer them. Children are responsible for how much they eat and whether they eat a certain food. Remembering this simple recommendation can stop your meal from turning into a battleground.

Enjoy your Easter holiday. Share conversations about traditional recipes.

Here is a recipe from the Slovak tradition. For Easter, we prepared paska, a dessert in the form of a pyramid containing cheese, cream butter, eggs sugar and candied fruits, decorate with a cross. The Holy Saturday meal included ham, sausage (klobasa), horseradish and syrek, an Easter cheese. This year, I will make paska, a recipe of my Mom’s, but without the dried fruit. No one in our home likes the dried fruit.

My Mother’s Easter Paska

8 cups flour

1 cup sugar

½ large fresh yeast cake

4 eggs

1-pint warm milk

1 cup butter

1 tsp salt

Cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives into the flour. Continue until the butter is “worked” into the flour and the flour turns a slight yellow color. Sprinkle salt and sugar over flour.

Warm milk until it reaches 110 degrees. It is important to check the milk temperature with a calibrated food thermometer for best results.

Add yeast and stir to dissolve. Let sit for 2-3 minutes until yeast starts to foam.

Break eggs into flour and butter mixture. Mix well with a spoon. Add yeast and milk mixture. Continue to mix until mixture becomes elastic like. Knead until soft, smooth dough.

Divide into 3 balls. Cover with wax paper or clean dish towel. Set in warm area for 1 hour until rises.

Punch down dough and shape into 3 loaves. Place in well- greased round pan. Cover and rise again until double in size.

Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.

Nutrition Corner Mary Ehret
https://www.psdispatch.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/web1_Ehret.CMYK_-2.jpg.optimal.jpgNutrition Corner Mary Ehret

Mary R. Ehret, M.S.,R.D.,L.D.N., is the Nutrition Links Supervisor in Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Carbon, Schuylkill, Sullivan and Bradford Counties for the Penn State Extension.