Alison Ellis, MSc., RD
Hi! I'm Ali. Welcome to The Toddler Kitchen! I am a registered dietitian with a master’s of science in health promotion, passionate recipe developer and mama. Feeding kids is hard. It can be stressful (I know!). The Toddler Kitchen is here to help make feeding your kids a little bit easier.
If you’ve been struggling with trying to figure out what to feed your kids, wondering if they are getting enough nutrition, dealing with picky eating preferences and various texture aversions – I see you! Here you will find easy toddler recipes, daycare and school lunchbox ideas, and feeding tips for parents of toddlers, preschoolers, and young kids!
My journey with introducing foods for my daughter was stressful and was so different from how I thought it was going to go. I was so excited to begin introducing foods to my daughter, but then quickly became overwhelmed with all of the information out there. Then you add a child into the mix who has a lot of feeding challenges, and all this to say, it ended up being a very challenging time. At age 2, my daughter was diagnosed with Angelman Syndrome, which shed some light on the feeding challenges we were experiencing. She's come so far, and now supporting parents to feed their children is what I am so incredibly passionate about!
My approach
As a registered dietitian, I am incredibly passionate about not only nutrition, but also the eating environment, and cultivating a positive relationship with food. This is woven into all of the information and programs on this site. I follow The Division of Responsibility (sDOR) by Ellyn Satter to support kids in becoming competent eaters. You can learn more about the sDOR here.
I love supporting families with this exciting (and crazy) area of feeding kids! So feel free to check out some of my easy, toddler-approved recipes, my helpful round ups of top bento box lunch ideas for daycare and preschool, or lunch ideas for kindergarten. If you're looking for more support I offer 1:1 nutrition services and also have my signature membership - The Toddler Table designed to help make dinnertimes with toddlers easier!
Educational Background
- BSc. Food, Nutrition and Health (majoring in dietetics) from the University of British Columbia
- MSc. Health Promotion from the University of Victoria
- Registered Dietitian with the College of Dietitians of BC
- Member of Dietitians of Canada
Work Experience
- Over ten years working in health promotion research with families at the Behavioural Medicine Lab at the University of Victoria
- 4 years as an oncology dietitian at InspireHealth Supportive Cancer Care
- 5 years working in private practice with families, parents and child nutrition
You can also find me on social media on Instagram and Pinterest.