Feeding a fussy family can be daunting. Different nutritional needs such as allergies and varying diets such as vegan, vegetarian and others can make it very difficult to plan meals for a family without cooking 5 or 6 different meals. So what can we do?

I have 2 picky eaters, one with food allergies, and I eat a plant-based diet. Here are my top tips for making sound nutritional choices for a picky family:

1. Involve everyone in the meal planning. Do what you can to cook separate entrees at the same time with one appliance, like my example with the barbecue. When children are old enough to help, they can cook their own part of the meal. Planning ahead helps with budgeting, shopping, and a sense of ownership when everyone helps.

2. Less shopping, more preparation. Have some meals interchange. Use the same ingredients for different meals, make sauces in large quantities in advance, and don't waste ingredients.

3. Prepare the meals at the start of the day for the whole day. Chop the veggies, portion the meats, lay out the recipes, and make sure everything is ready to go. That way, when it's time to prepare dinner, all you have to do is throw it together and the kids can help.

Here are my tips for making the right nutritional choices:

1. Eat a color rainbow. A beautiful visual variety is more stimulating. Different colors of foods provide different nutrients and all are important.

2. Do the best you can to get organic meats. Avoid meats with antibiotics and growth hormones and possible exposure to glyphosate, or Roundup. Use the CluckAR app linked below to find the best eggs possible at your supermarket.

3. Milk is a tricky one. Cow's milk is not the calcium-booster that the marketing tells us. Soy is GMO, full of glyphosate and artificial estrogens that the body can't process. Nut milks are better, but research the brands. It's actually quite easy to make nut milks at home and it's fun for the family to do.

When feeding your pets, there are some other things to consider.

1. Cats, or felids, need to hunt for their food. That's not to say that your household cat should hunt for everything outside, but I've found that making bits of jerky from the off cuts of meat I'm preparing and putting them inside a cardboard tube is a good treat for my elderly cat, and he also gets exercise and stimulation.

2. Dogs, or canids, are descended from wolves and are opportunistic feeders. They will eat eggs out of nests, scavenge on carrion, and even eat some greens. Plan to give your dog one whole egg a week, shell and all, and if he needs calcium, he'll eat the shell too, once he figures out how to get into it.

Making correct nutritional choices is a matter of a broad spectrum of vitamins and minerals. Involving your family in the preparation and planning is a great lifelong exercise that will benefit everyone.

Do you know how "free range" the eggs at the supermarket really are? Use the CluckAR app to find out. https://www.choice.com.au/about-us/products-and-services/cluckar-mobile-app

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