Looking to add more fun into your day-to-day eating habits and get your kids excited about learning? Why not base your meal choices around a different letter of the alphabet each day? Here’s a list of kid-friendly foods by letter to help you do just that.
A few years ago, we embarked on a journey we lovingly dubbed food+fun as an attempt to get my oldest to eat a wider variety of food and to take away the stress and fighting around dinner time. It was a smashing success and something that I think we probably need to embark upon again real soon. 🫣
With my youngest in Kindergarten now, she’s been coming home with worksheets of all the different letters in the alphabet to learn and practice writing. One day, she was having trouble figuring out what to eat, so I thought it would be fun to use her letter of the day to organize lunch around.
To say that she got the biggest kick out of it would be an understatement.
A few days later, she asked to do it again with a different letter. And then again. At first, it was a random selection of letters based solely on the whim of a five year old. No shade to said five year old, but it got a little difficult to just wing it when she started selecting trickier letters.
Instead of letting that deter us, we decided to tackle the entire alphabet and create our list of food by letter ahead of time. That way, we have something to look forward to each day and I can plan ahead and get things from the store we wouldn’t normally have in the house.
Here’s what we came up with for each letter. Obviously this list isn’t exhaustive and it’s 100% skewed towards The Little’s preferences.
Food by letter
A:
- Apples
- Almonds
- Applesauce
- Alphabet Noodle Soup
- Almond Milk
B:
- Banana
- Beef
- Bell Peppers
- Bagels
- Banana Bread (Muffins)
- Broccoli (which she doesn’t like)
- Brownies
- Black Beans
C:
- Chocolate (Milk, Chips)
- Cashews
- Chicken
- Corn
- Cheese (Colby Jack)
- Crackers
- Canteloupe
- (Dried) Cranberries
- Clementines
- Carrots
- Chicken Soup
- Cereal (Cheerios)
D:
- Dates
- Dill Pickles
- Dumplings
- Donuts
E:
- Edamame
- Eggs
- Egg Noodles
- Elbow Macaroni
- English Muffins
- Egg Drop Soup
- Eggo Waffles
- Empanadas
F:
- Falafel
- Fajitas
- Frittatas
- Flank Steak
- Fuji Apples
- Fruit Punch
- Fruit Smoothie
- Fruit
- French Toast
- French Fries
G:
- Granola
- Grapes
- Grilled Cheese
- Green Apple
- Gala Apple
- Golden Delicious
- Gouda Cheese
- Golden Grahams
H:
- Hot Dogs
- Hamburgers
- Hard Boiled Eggs
- Hemp Hearts
- Hot Chocolate
- Hashbrowns
I:
- Ice Cream
- Idaho Potatoes
- Instant Oatmeal
- Instant Noodles
J:
- Jam/Jelly
- Jell-O
- Jasmine Rice
- Jewish Rye
- Juice
K:
- Kidney Beans
- Kettle Corn
- Kumquats
- Kiwi
- KitKat
- Ketchup
- Kebobs
L:
- Lettuce
- Lemon or Lime
- Lychee
- Lolipops
- Latkes
- Lady Apple
- Lasagna
M:
- Mac + Cheese
- Meatloaf
- Mushrooms
- Mongolian Beef
- Meatballs
- Mango
- Melon
- Mint
- Mustard
- Miso
- Marinara
- Milk
- Muffins
- Maple Syrup
N:
- Nachos
- Naan
- Nectarines
- Noodles
- Naval Oranges
- Noodle Soup
- Nut Butter
- Nutella
- Nuts
O:
- Oranges
- Oatmeal
- Oatmeal Cookies
- Omelet
- Onions
- Oreos
P:
- Peas
- Pecans
- Pears
- Pasta
- Parmesan
- Pine Nuts
- Pineapple
- Popcorn
- Pumpkin
Q:
- Quinoa
- Quiche
- Quesadillas
- Quaker Oats
- Quince
R:
- Rice
- Raspberries
- Ramen
- Raisins
- Ranch
- Red Potatoes
- Red Peppers
- Ravioli
- Rice Krispies (Treats)
- Romaine
S:
- Salad
- Salami
- Salsa
- Sandwiches
- Scones
- Soup
- Soy Sauce
- Spinach
- Star Fruit
- Steak
- Strawberries
- Sushi
- Sweet Potatoes
T:
- Tacos
- Tortilla
- Teriyaki
- Tangerines
- Turkey
- Tomatoes
- Tater Tots
- Tilapia
- Tea
U:
- Udon
- Upside Down Cake
- Utz Chips
- Ube (Purple Yam)
V:
- Vanilla (ice cream)
- Vinegar
- Vegetables
- Veggie Burgers
- Vegetable Lasagna
- Vegetable Soup
- Vermicelli
W:
- Watermelon
- Waffles
- Water
- White Potatoes
- White Rice
- Wonton (soup)
- Waffle Fries
- Wraps
- Whipped Cream
X:
- Xavier Soup (?)
- Xarem
- Xiaolongbao (Soup Dumplings)
Y:
- Yams
- Yogurt
- Yellow Peppers
- Yukon Gold Poatoes
- Yakisoba
- Yakitori
Z:
- Zucchini (bread, fritters)
- Zesty Fries
- Ziti
- Zebra Cakes
Looking for other ways to have fun with your food? Here are several posts (with menus) to check out: