Well hello again! These Wednesdays sure do sneak up on me! Speaking of being sneaky, today's topic is Sneaky Recipe! Per usual, I'm linking up with Sue @ ThisMamaRunsForCupcakes
Susan @ MomSwimBikeRun and Amanda @ MomWhoTris
Now, most people know it can be tough to get kids to eat fruits and veggies. So as a parent with two kids who have become quite the picky eaters, I had to get creative!
No one wants to sit down at the end of the day to have a meal with a couple of picky eaters. Breakfast and lunch are pretty simple, but dinner for us is a different story! As soon as I put a plate of food in front of the kids they start eye balling what they don't like..or what they think they don't like. When our kids were a bit younger the Wiggles' song, "Try it, you'll like it" used to help. Now they just stare at us like, are you really singing that preschool song?
So how does one sneak the "good stuff" into picky eaters' meals? Ya camouflage it. There are quite a few food items like cheese that hides things like chopped mushrooms and onions quite well. Here are a few ways I get more of the good stuff into our kids' bellies without them even knowing.
1. Cheese. Did I mention cheese? We like lasagna, spaghetti and lots of other pasta dishes. We grown ups like our mushrooms, onions and peppers but the kiddies don't. So, I like to chop those up rather small, create a casserole type pasta dish and cover it with cheese. Our kids love it because all they see is the dairy on top. My stomach? Not so much. But we don't have to make empty threats just so they'll eat their dinner.
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| Funnyjunk.com |
2. Speaking of pasta, I buy the Garden Delight Veggie Noodles. They're made with carrots, corn and squash. We all love them and they don't have a weird flavor or texture!
3. Another thing that seems to work well is chowders and soups. They seem to eat the veggies a lot easier if they're in a bowl mixed with flavorful juices or a creamy sauce, than if they are sitting on a plate staring back at them. Here's one of our favorite Chowders! It's not really "healthy" but it's full of protein and veggies!
Broccoli Tortellini Chowder
Don't forget to go check out how the other moms are sneaking the good stuff into their kid's meals! Click on any of the links at the top and there will be a list at the bottom of the post.
I have quite a few readers that aren't yet moms, so I'd like to know, what would you try in order to sneak in some fruits and/or veggies into your kids' meals?
I hope everyone is having an awesome week so far!
I've never heard of that pasta before. I'll have to check it out...but mine will only eat pasta if it's in a Ninja Turtle shape....hmmmm....
ReplyDeleteI first saw them last year in Safeway. Ninja turtle shape huh? That's a tough one..
DeleteI love that pasta! I use it all the time with my kids. Super sneaky! Thanks for linking up that chowder recipe sounds good!
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see if they'd eat spaghetti squash! I love it, but they might not since it's a vegetable! Haha Thanks for stopping by!
DeleteI'm going to link up next week! I always grate in onions to recipes. If I grate them, they have no idea!
ReplyDeleteOoh! "Grate" idea! Haha...I couldn't help myself..
DeleteGreat ideas!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was growing up, my mom always sneaked healthy stuff into our foods. Carrots mashed up and put into our orange jello. Pea's mashed up and put in our pancakes and then we were just told she was having fun with food coloring, the list goes on! But funny thing, all my sisters do it with their kids:) I'll have to share this post with them, I think they'd like these suggestions!
Thanks! There are lots of other sneaky recipes on the bottom of the hosts post! I'm going to try the zucchini carrot muffins!
DeleteI'm one of the lucky ones because my kids aren't picky eaters. I just make sure to give them a couple of choices for the sides at our meals and they end up getting a well rounded meal with what they choose. My son hates melted cheese (crazy, right???) and so I rarely make casseroles or lasagna. I miss them! I'll have to check out that pasta!
DeleteYes you are lucky! That's great!
DeleteI've made two different sides or two different veggies when I KNOW for a fact one kid doesn't like something. Just makes life a bit easier. Plus, I don't want someone to force me to eat something I really don't like, so I try not to do that to our kids.