What Teenagers Really Like

Mom, Dad, this entry is for you.
You claim not to understand a thing about what your teenager likes to eat. But think about it: do you really not know? You were once a teenager-- what did you like eating? Probably, the same things your teen likes. A lot of things change throughout the generations, but the love of good food never seems to give up.
This doesn't mean, though, that all teenagers like to eat the same thing; we are individuals, and each person has his or her own taste. That is something you have to remember. Perhaps talk to your teen about his or her preferences- We usually know.
I can suggest a few things, coming from a teenager's point of view. We all appreciate variety. Keep different things available. Also, fresh fruits and vegetables are huge. Even you know that we don't always crave junk food. Sometimes we just want a little something fresh to chomp on. That has been my personal problem: all I want is a fresh fruit or vegetable and there are none in sight, I'm stuck at home and have no better option than last night's leftover pizza or oversweet cereal. Keep something fresh in the house, please. It's being left with no healthy option that frustrates teenagers most.
Also, savory foods are a great thing to keep in the house because we don't always want to eat like raw macro hippies. One thing I love to eat during the day is seasoned tofu, even leftover stir fry. The less guilt, the better the eating. So perhaps keep a package of tofu in the fridge, and your kid can season it to whatever his liking at that moment. It's easy for you, and customized for him. Savory foods are great to have around the house.
Don't worry-- if your child wants a sweet snack, he'll find it. The important thing is to keep sweets in the house down to a reasonable minimum, and in the healthiest forms possible, like yoghurt or organic dark chocolate. I've found them best if they have strong tastes to satisfy the craving and can be broken apart, and are not portion controlled, like energy bars (admit it-- we all have the urge to finish it once it's started...)
Once again, I can only emphasize the importance of having decent food available. We teenagers don't always eat it, true, but you can always make us eat it for dinner, right?
So that's what I have to tell you, parents, the Golden Rule, modified: What you like, chances are your child would like, too. So just try to keep nutritious food available for your teenager, and then it's up to us to him or her to make the right decision and choose to eat it.
Goodbye to settling for throat-irritatingly sweet days, guilt, and resentment!