To make up for your little ones' preferences for cookies over cauliflower, you may be relying on multi-vitamins and fortified cereals. That way, picky eaters can still get most of the nutrients they need without your having to force feed them, says Jennifer Collins, a registered dietitian and owner of Leading Lady Fitness in Pompano Beach, Fla.

And that means fewer children in the U.S. are clinically deficient in the recommended nutrients, with the exception of iron. Yet the National Cancer Institute reports that only 1 percent of children between the ages of 2 and 19 get the intake of grains, vegetables, fruits, meat and dairy that the USDA Food Guide Pyramid recommends.

Although it is a good idea to give kids the nutritional safety net that multi-vitamin supplements and enriched foods provide, Collins, the Mom of Delaney, 2, and Donovan, 5, says that vitamins and minerals found naturally in foods are more readily absorbed and used by the body.

What's more, Flintstones and Frosted Flakes don't have the fiber, health-boosting phytonutrients and water content of whole grains, legumes, fruits and vegetables. Nor does their use inspire good eating habits.

To find out which nutrients our kids are most likely to be lacking in their diets, we consult with Josee Derrien, a registered dietitian in Boca Raton, Fla. She says the usual suspects are calcium, iron, fiber, folate, magnesium, potassium and vitamin E.

There is no need to screen your child's blood for nutrient deficiencies unless a doctor or registered dietitian recommends it, Collins says. But you can do some simple meal planning and add new recipes to your repertoire to ensure your child gets them.

Here we offer a guide to each of these nutrients including how much your child should be eating and why. Then we tell you which food sources are best and offer nutrient-rich recipes. These are for dishes you can tuck into your child's school lunch to be sure he is getting the necessary requirement to make him a healthy child and tip-top student.

Don't expect changes overnight. What your child eats over the course of a week matters more than his or her day-to-day consumption. Most kids need to try a new food at least 10 times before they acquire a taste for it. Also, the most effective strategy for getting kids to eat healthy foods is to eat them yourself. So while you're making over your kids' diets, you'll get a nutrition makeover to boot. How's that for a win-win situation?

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CALCIUM

Why kids need it: Calcium helps build strong, healthy bones; assists in nerve transmission; facilitates muscle contraction; and aids in hormone release.

Why they may lack it: Your child may need more calcium if he or she chooses sodas, sports drinks and other beverages instead of calcium-rich milk. These not only lack calcium, but phosphoric acid found in soda, can actually limit calcium absorption. Some teenagers who avoid milk fat due to weight concerns are more prone to osteopenia, a precursor to osteoporosis (teenage girls in particular) and are often low in calcium intake. And children who follow a vegan diet tend to be low in this nutrient.

Recommended daily intake: 800 milligrams for kids ages 4-8; 1,300 milligrams, ages 9-18.

Sources: Milk (300 milligrams per 8-ounce glass); yogurt (225 milligrams per 6-ounce serving); cheese (300 milligrams per 1.5-ounce slice); and fortified soy milk (80 to 500 milligrams per 8-ounce glass).

Our lunch box suggestion: Our Bone-Building Lasagna contains plenty of calcium in the tofu, cheeses and even the whole-wheat noodles. In fact, a serving of it contains 181 milligrams calcium or 18 percent of the Daily Value.

Pack a slice of the lasagna in a small, reuseable container with carrot sticks, your child's favorite dip and an insulated container of unsweetened herbal ice tea. This is a particularly good meal for kids who don't like milk.

BONE-BUILDING LASAGNA

1 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 large shallots, chopped

2 small or 1 large garlic clove(s), minced

Salt and fresh-ground black pepper, to taste

8 ounces firm tofu, drained

15 ounces part-skim ricotta

3 cups jarred prepared tomato sauce

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 pound whole-wheat, no-boil lasagna noodles

1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup grated Romano cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a skillet over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the shallots and garlic and saute 5 minutes until tender. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.

Place tofu and ricotta in a food processor fitted with the metal blade and use on/off pulses to chop until mixture has texture of cottage cheese.

Put tofu mixture in a bowl and mix onions mixture into tofu mixture.

In a nonreactive saucepan, combine tomato sauce and water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Grease a nonreactive 9-by-13- by-2-inch baking dish. Place a layer of 4 noodles on the bottom of pan, breaking them to fit if necessary, spoon a third of the ricotta mixture on top, and ladle a third of the sauce on top of that. Repeat layers twice more until all three ingredients have been used. Make sure that the top layer is coated with sauce. Sprinkle with mozzarella and then the Romano cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 10 additional minutes. Makes 12 servings.

Per serving: 221 calories, 41 percent calories from fat, 10 grams total fat, 5 grams saturated fat, 29 milligrams cholesterol, 22 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams total fiber, 2 grams total sugars, 19 grams net carbs, 11 grams protein, 524 milligrams sodium.

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IRON

Why kids need it: Iron makes up hemoglobin in the blood, which carries oxygen to all of the body's cells.

Why they may lack it: If he or she avoids red meat; has been diagnosed with anemia or consumes too much calcium, which can block iron absorption.

Recommended daily intake: 10 milligrams for kids ages 4-8; 8 milligrams, ages 9-13; 11 milligrams for boys ages 14-18; and 15 milligrams for girls ages 14-18.

Sources: Lean beef (2.5 milligrams in 3 ounces), canned tuna (1.3 milligrams in 3 ounces); edamame (9 milligrams per cup), cooked dried beans(ASTERISK) (4.4 milligrams per cup) and spinach (3.2 milligrams per 1/2 cup cooked spinach). Iron from plant sources such as edamame, beans and spinach (non-heme sources) are not absorbed by the body as easily as those from animal (heme) sources. Also, cooking foods in a cast-iron skillet can add iron to food.

Our lunch box suggestion: A serving of Not Your Ordinary Spinach Salad contains 5.5 milligarms iron or 30 percent of the Daily Value. We suggest you pack it in the lunch box with an 8-ounce container of orange juice. The vitamin C from the juice will aid absorption of the iron. Also pack a slice of whole-grain bread and pat of butter. Kids who eat meat tend to get plenty of iron, but this lunch is particularly good for children who don't.

NOT YOUR ORDINARY SPINACH SALAD

The vitamin C helps iron absorption.

1 cup raw spinach leaves, thoroughly washed and dried

2 tablespoons raisins

1/4 cup "crunchy" of choice such as whole-grain Goldfish crackers

2 tablespoons unsalted cashews (preferable) or unsalted peanuts

1/2 cup cooked and shelled edamame

1/4 cup grated cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons low-fat salad dressing of choice

Place spinach in a bowl. Top with raisins, crunchy, nuts, edamame and cheese putting your child's favorite ingredient on top. Place dressing in a container to pack separately. Makes 1 serving.

Per serving: 771 calories, 44 percent calories from fat, 37 grams total fat, 15 grams saturated fat, 62 milligrams cholesterol, 81 grams carbohydrates, 8 grams total fiber, 29 grams total sugars, 73 grams net carbs, 30 grams protein, 1750 milligrams sodium.

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FIBER

Why kids need it: Those who don't consume enough fiber increase their risks of developing certain cancers, diabetes, digestive disorders and heart disease.

Why they may lack it: If he/she allows fruits, vegetables and whole-grains to take a back seat to chips, cookies and other simple carbohydrates or is routinely constipated.

Recommended daily intake: Children aged 4-18 should get 5 more grams fiber than their age. For example, a 10-year-old child should consume 15 grams fiber daily (age10 plus 5).

Sources: Cauliflower (3.5 grams per cup); raspberries (8.5 grams per cup); sweet potato with skin (3 grams); broccoli (4.5 grams per cup); and whole-grain oats (4 grams per cup cooked oats).

Our lunch box suggestions: A Fiber-tastic Burger, which contains 4.5 grams fiber or 18 percent of the Daily Value, is a great way to add fiber to your child's diet. Pack it with a favorite bread or roll (preferably whole grain, which will add about 3.2 grams fiber), a bag of baked sweet potato chips and a container of cold, low-fat soy milk. The burger can be put on the roll and eaten as is or microwaved for 10 to 15 seconds. Even fast-food junkies will appreciate this meal.

FIBER-TASTIC BURGER

2 tablespoons canola oil

2 small or 1 large shallot(s), minced

1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained thoroughly

1 1/2 slices whole-grain bread

1 teaspoon garlic powder

Salt and fresh-ground black pepper, to taste

1/4 cup whole-wheat flour

In a small skillet over medium heat, heat 1 tablespoon canola oil. Add the shallots and cook 3 minutes until translucent.

In a large bowl, use a potato masher to mash the beans leaving them with some texture. Either crumble the bread finely or grind it in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Add it to the beans with the shallots, garlic powder, salt and pepper.

Add the flour, a tablespoon at a time, stirring after each addition with a wooden spoon. Form the mixture into six 1/2-inch-thick patties. Add 1 tablespoon oil to a nonstick skillet and heat over medium-low heat. Add the patties and cook 5 minutes per side until firm. Makes six burgers.

Per burger: 139 calories, 33 percent calories from fat, 5 grams total fat, .4 grams saturated fat, no cholesterol, 20 grams carbohydrates, 5 grams total fiber, 1 gram total sugars, 15 grams net carbs, 5 grams protein, 224 milligrams sodium.

Per burger served on a whole-wheat bun: 253 calories, 25 percent calories from fat, 7 grams total fat, .7 gram saturated fat, no cholesterol, 41 grams carbohydrates, 8 grams total fiber, 5 grams total sugars, 34 grams net carbs, 9 grams protein, 429 milligrams sodium.

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POTASSIUM

Why kids need it: Potassium is essential for proper kidney function, for regulating blood pressure and for muscle contraction.

Why they may lack it: If his or her vegetable and fruit intake consists predominantly of fries and ketchup or salt consumption is very high as this may increase the need for potassium.

Recommended daily intake: 1,600 milligrams for kids ages 4-8; 2,000 milligrams for kids ages 9-18.

Sources: A banana (500 milligrams); baked potato with skin (700 milligrams); and broccoli (500 milligrams).

Our lunch box suggestion: A serving of Peanut Butter Banana Dogs packs 613 milligrams potassium or 18 percent of the Daily Value in a fun lunch box treat. Pack them in a reuseable container with a container of cold, low-fat milk and baked soy chips. This is another great source of potassium for those kids who balk at broccoli.ENTREE

PEANUT BUTTER BANANA DOG

1 medium banana, peeled

Juice of 1/4 lemon or orange

1/4 cup all-natural peanut butter

2 tablespoons yogurt-covered raisins or similar snack of choice

2 whole-wheat hot-dog buns

Cut banana in half lengthwise from tip to tip. If you are packing this in a school lunch and you don't want it to turn brown before lunchtime, brush the orange or lemon juice over the rounded surfaces of the banana. Blot cut edges of banana halves using a paper towel. Spread peanut butter on the flat, cut surfaces. Sprinkle raisins on top of the peanut butter on both halves. Wrap air tight. For serving, place each in a hot dog bun. Makes 2 servings.

Per serving: 388 calories, 43 percent calories from fat, 18 grams total fat, 4 grams saturated fat, no cholesterol, 50 grams carbohydrates, 7 grams total fiber, 21 grams total sugars, 42 grams net carbs, 13 grams protein, 356 milligrams sodium.