What is your advice for parents whose kids are picky eaters, by making meals fun and enjoyable?

Educating our kids is key! When JP says he hates a specific ingredient like cilantro or tomatoes, I won’t panic or say anything until after I’ve made a dish with the same ingredient/s that he’ll rave about. Only then will I open up a dialogue about the importance of “expanding his palate”. Since JP is fascinated with the idea of ‘fancy’ things, I try to find opportunities to teach him a thing or two about the five senses. That way, he is able to articulate a little more about what it is he likes and doesn’t like so that I can possibly open up his mind to new things. I'll make him try a bite of the dish without the ingredient, explain to him how that particular ingredient enhances the dish and make him try it again, this time with the ingredient. More often that not, you’ll see him nod his head in agreement then make a joke or two about how “classy” or “first class” something is. The point is to enjoy the process with them and help them appreciate the characteristic of each ingredient balanced with the rest of the dish. One example would be that JP says he hates diced tomatoes in a pasta or stew but one of his favorite snacks is Tortilla Chips with Chunky Salsa, so to say he doesn’t like tomatoes in general is not an accurate description of what he likes and doesn’t like. He’s just not fond of raw diced tomatoes in particular.