I use a lot of the French ideas about food ( book French kids eat anything, fit example)
1. No snacks (unless dinner will be late, like at 7 or 8, then I do a 400 snack).
2. healthy, adult foods
3. Sweets only once a week or less, on a special occasion, like a birthday
4. Food is first and foremost fuel, not entertainment or enjoyment. The enjoyment comes from eating together and enjoying conversation.
5. Eat what is served, no special meals, or wait for the next meal.
6. we eat a salad or raw veggie plate or cooked veggie or veggie soup first, then the rest of our dinner. It's amazing how that initial hunger adds flavor to the veggies. :)
7. Small serving of everything to start with. No servings unless you eat all the firsts. But I never make or force them to eat anything.
As far as what we eat, it's meats, veggies, fruits, dairy, nuts, eggs, and a few whole grains. My kids are great eaters and rarely complain. No crackers, chips, cereal, and very little processed food s. ( Lara bars. Trail mix with nuts and fruit, home made popcorn, fruits and veggies, hard boiled eggs, cheese, pickles and olives are our snack and travel food s. )
We also go with eat until full, then stop. If we are having a sweet or dessert, it's usually after lunch or for an afternoon snack. I never want them to over eat a meal in order to get a sweet. Ice cream for dinner once a month us waaay healthier then having a candy or cookie after every meal.
No bedtime snacks. They can finish any leftover dinner or have water. But, we usually eat on the later side, 7 or 8, which prevents much of the snack requests. They have small breakfast, big cooked lunch, small snack and big cooked dinner.