Like most toddlers Owen is somewhat of a picky eater. He loves and will devour any fruit
you put in front of him, but vegetables are a completely different story. I've tried heating up
carrots, peas, or green beans and putting them on his plate, and 9 times out of ten they end
up on the floor. He has his rare moments where he will eat anything off our
plates including cucumber out of sushi rolls, radish out of our salads, or green peppers out
of our breakfast sandwiches, but those moments are hard to come by. The only way I've
successfully gotten him to eat vegetables is when it is hidden in something else. Corn
casserole that I refer to as "corn cupcake" for him. Pumpkin muffins. Zucchini bread.
It turns out I was so close to a genius idea. My friend introduced me to the book The
Sneaky Chef. Basically the premise is hiding fruits and vegetables in the foods kids love
to eat. You start by making fruit and vegetable purees that you can freeze and reheat
whenever you need them. Then the book gives you recipes using the purees.
So I got my veggies at the store and spent part of the day yesterday preparing an "Orange
puree" (carrots and sweet potatoes) and a "White puree" (cauliflower and zucchini).
My first test was a standard grilled cheese sandwich. I made the sandwich the same exact
way I normally make it, with the exception of a thin layer of the orange puree on the inside
with the cheese. I cut it up, put it on Owen's plate and stood back and watched. He tried
one piece...then went back for another...and another. I could not help but smile a devious
smile knowing he was eating the vegetables that he otherwise detested.
My second test was today at lunch. A standard box of mac n cheese mixed with some of
the white puree. I was not quite as hopeful with this one. Even I have to admit cauliflower
and zucchini in mac n cheese sounds pretty awful. But sure enough....he inhaled it!
"What?!? There's veggies in here??"
It's what I like to call Mommy Magic. :)
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