Toddler Meal Ideas for 1-2 year old toddlers. I’m sharing 25 meal ideas based on what my 20 month old ate this month!
I am a stay at home mom with two boys under two! So preparing healthy, quick and easy meals for my toddler is a necessity.
I’m sharing toddler meal ideas based on what my 20 month old at this month to help other mamas with meal-time inspiration.
Nothing I make is extremely difficult or time consuming and a lot are based on freezer foods, pantry staples and even leftovers!
As a rule of thumb I try to serve my toddler 5 different breakfast, lunch, and dinners during the week but do often end up repeating week-to-week. This keeps it fun and interesting for him and he gets a well-rounded variety of nutrients from meals.
Besides the standard 3 meals a day, my toddler also normally gets two snacks. You can check out our toddler schedule here to see our daily routine for meal times!
If you are looking for more toddler meal ideas for babies or toddlers, check out more posts from my feeding series:
- Combing Purees and Baby-Led Weaning
- Baby’s First Solid Foods
- Self-Feeding ideas for 8-12 Month Olds
- Self-Feeding Foods for One Year Olds
- 20 Easy Meal Ideas for 1 Year Olds
- Easy Toddler Breakfast Ideas
- Easy Toddler Meals with Frozen Food
- Self-Feeding Ideas for 12-16 months
- Self-Feeding Daycare Lunch Ideas for One Year Olds
- Toddler Meal Ideas – 15 months
- Toddler Meal Ideas – 16 months
- 33 Toddler Dinner Ideas
- Toddler Meal Ideas – 17 Months
- 18 Month Toddler Meals
- Toddler Daycare Lunch Ideas
- Toddler Meal Ideas – 19 months
- Easy Toddler Lunch Ideas For 1-year-olds
- Snacks For Toddlers
Favorite Meal Supplies
Meal times can be a little easier if you have the right supplies!
Ingenuity Booster Seat – my toddler sits at the table with us on this booster seat. It is so easy to wipe down and keep clean, we highly recommend it! If you have a younger baby I also have this for my youngest and highly recommend the Ingenuity baby seat as well.
Munchkin 360 Cup – these cups are so awesome in that they are completely spill-proof but allow your toddler to transition from a sippy or straw cup to an open cup.
If you are looking for all my favorites check out My Favorites Shop & 10 Toddler Feeding Essentials.
Breakfast Toddler Meal Ideas
- Peanut Butter & Banana Toast – Whole wheat toast with a thin layer of peanut butter (or other nut butter) and sliced bananas on top. This was a fun way to incorporate a toddler favorite into a wholesome meal.
- Waffle with smashed blueberries – Whole wheat waffle with thawed frozen blueberries smashed on top, side of pears. Instead of jelly which can be high in sugar we tried adding some blueberries on top as a fruit spread. Definitely a hit!
- Yogurt Parfait – We use dairy-free yogurt (almondmilk, coconut milk, or oatmilk yogurt), but whole fat yogurt is also another great option. Topped with thawed frozen berries and shredded cereal.
- Carrot Cake Oatmeal – Oatmeal, shredded carrot, raisins, cinnamon & maple syrup to sweeten. We added ground flax seeds for some extra nutrients as well!
- Bagel with Peanut Butter – a cinnamon raising bagel slightly toasted topped with peanut butter and a side of thinly sliced apples. Bagels can be really chewy for young toddlers, but my 20 month old had been practicing with small pieces and was ready for his own!
- Toast with Jam – Dave’s Killer Bread with superfruit jelly and a side of kiwi. Try cutting toast into different shapes (diagonals, squares, strips) to make it more interesting!
- Cereal with Milk – Cinnamon Life cereal with Ripple milk (pea protein milk) and a side of mandarin oranges. This simple breakfast is one of my toddler’s new favorites. I finally trust him enough to have cereal with milk and not immediately dump it out everywhere (although he still does sometimes).
- Cinnamon Pear Oatmeal – Oatmeal, diced pears, cinnamon & maple syrup to sweeten. We also added 1 Tbsp ground flax seeds for some added nutrients. You could also add 1/2 or 1 full scrambled egg for extra protein!
- Avocado Toast & Eggs – Whole wheat toast topped with smashed avocado and a side of scrambled cheesy eggs. My toddler is not the biggest fan of eggs but we do still want to give him some exposure and often add eggs as a side. Avocado toast is one of his favorite meals/snacks!
Lunch Toddler Meal Ideas
- Veggie pasta – veggie noodles with cheddar and sides of mixed veggies and baked beans. We love to buy pasta with added veggies to make it a little more nutritious! This was a quick and easy pantry/freezer staple meal.
- Dr. Praeger’s Broccoli Littles – some of our favorite freezer connivence foods! Side of kiwi and avocado for a healthy fat.
- PB & J – side of thinly sliced carrots and ranch and avocado. We made this toddler classic a little more fun by using cookie cutters to cut out fun shapes. For young toddlers you will want to cut raw carrots very thin since they can be a chocking hazard.
- Sliced Turkey – sides of green beans and mandarin oranges. A very quick and easy lunch and one of my toddler’s favorites!
- Dr. Praeger’s Spinach Littles – sides of leftover diced chicken and mixed veggies. Leftovers are great for a quick, easy, and nutritious lunch!
- Avocado “Quesadilla” – side of oatmilk yogurt. If your toddler is dairy-free try making a quesadilla with avocado instead of cheese! We also do non-dairy yogurt and have been loving oatmilk, coconut milk, and almondmilk yogurts.
- Veggie Pasta with Avocado Sauce – Veggie pasta with mixed veggies and homemade avocado sauce. For the sauce I added 1/2 an avocado, a few Tbsp of olive oil, garlic powder, and pepper into a blender and mixed.
- Pizza – side of avocado and mandarin oranges. We normally have pizza about once a week. I always make sure to pair it with some healthy sides to make it a little bit of a more well-rounded meal for my toddler.
Dinner Toddler Meal Ideas
- Pasta with Shrimp and Veggies – Linguini pasta in a garlic butter sauce with shrimp, red pepper, and broccoli. This was a great dish for exposure to shrimp. My toddler didn’t like them but did taste it and that’s all we an ask for!
- Taco Plate – A deconstructed version of taco night. Cut up tortilla, ground beef with cheese, and a side of avocado. We love taco Tuesday in our house!
- Deconstructed Hamberger – Cut up hamburger patty, avocado, tomato, and onion. Mom and dad actually had BLT Hamburger salad that was super delicious!
- Grilled Cheese & Tomato Soup – some yummy comfort food. We like to cut the grilled cheese into strips so that it is perfect for dipping. Soup is also a great way for toddler’s to practice using a spoon. We just plan for it to be a messy dinner!
- Pasta with Pesto, Chicken, and Veggies – we chose “protein pasta” noodles for some extra nutrients and also added broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower.
- Turkey Breast with Gravy – Instantpot turkey breast made such an easy dinner and something a little out of the ordinary for spring time. Side of rice and veggies.
- Chili with Cornbread – We had some spring snow and it got me wanting a hearty warm meal. Homemade chili is one of our favorites and my toddler loves it too!
- Shepherd’s Pie – This might be one of my toddler’s favorite meals at the moment and i’m okay with it! We make a homemade version that is a little healthier and like to load it up with veggies.
Thanks for stopping by!
If you are looking for more toddler meal ideas for babies or toddlers, check out more posts from my feeding series:
- Combing Purees and Baby-Led Weaning
- Baby’s First Solid Foods
- Self-Feeding ideas for 8-12 Month Olds
- Self-Feeding Foods for One Year Olds
- 20 Easy Meal Ideas for 1 Year Olds
- Easy Toddler Breakfast Ideas
- Easy Toddler Meals with Frozen Food
- Self-Feeding Ideas for 12-16 months
- Self-Feeding Daycare Lunch Ideas for One Year Olds
- Toddler Meal Ideas – 15 months
- Toddler Meal Ideas – 16 months
- 33 Toddler Dinner Ideas
- Toddler Meal Ideas – 17 Months
- 18 Month Toddler Meals
- Toddler Daycare Lunch Ideas
- Toddler Meal Ideas – 19 months
- Easy Toddler Lunch Ideas For 1-year-olds
- Snacks For Toddlers