Eating Battles

I have to admit that my daughter is not the best eater on the planet. While she does try a variety of foods, she eats such a small amount of food at a time, that it is extremely frustrating to me. Here is an example of a typical meal time in our house:

Kate comes running up to me and says, "Mommy, I'm hungry."

I reply, "Well what do you want to eat? We have _________, _____________, and ___________." (I always give a few choices and let her choose.)

Next, she asks for something we don't have all the time, like tofu or pastrami. I spend the next few minutes telling her we don't have what she wants, and then I give her the choices again. She reluctantly chooses something else, and I set it on a plate for her. She takes two or three nibbles (not bites, but nibbles!) and exclaims, "Mommy, I'm done!

Now I know she isn't full. There is no way that a child who hasn't eaten for 3 hours can be full on three nibbles of ham or one slice of carrot. Herein begins my dilemma. Do I hound her to eat more, and in the process create a negative connotation with eating as well as possible ruin her inner ability to regulate when she is full? I would hate for her to develop an eating disorder down the road because I put too strong an emphasis on eating when she was three.

On the other hand, she doesn't even weigh 30 pounds and she is almost 3 1/2 years old! Trying to persuade her to eat another bite or two doesn't seem to bother her too much at this point. I'm so confused on what to do about this issue. I am hoping this is another stage she will pass through, but it makes me uncomfortable that it seems to be lingering.

What do you do about your reluctant eaters? I'd love to hear what your thoughts are on this topic.