Six Recipe Hacks To Get Your Child To Eat More Veggies
As a parent, you know that getting your kids to eat vegetables can feel like Mission: impossible.
Picky eaters and kids alike can relate - vegetables on their own can be, well, “yuck". At least that’s what they think.
My sons have recently headed back to school, and so it’s been even harder to make sure that they’re getting proper nutrition when I’m not around. I picture that a lot of parents are in the same boat. When you can’t be present with your kids, you still want to make sure that they’re making healthy choices, and actually enjoying doing so, too.
I recently posted a few great vegetable hacks for picky eaters and kids over on my instagram, however, today, I want to share a few examples that I use. These are hacks that my sons love - and fortunately, they haven’t caught on yet.
Here are six of my favorite recipes to “sneak” more veggies into!
PRIMAVERA PASTA SAUCE
PRIMAVERA
PASTA SAUCE
Make marinara sauce as you usually would.
You can sautee bell pepper, carrot, onion, celery, squash, broccoli and add it to the sauce. At the very end, you will want to puree the sauce so that all the veggies blend in with the sauce.
Would you believe it if I told you that i snuck in four full servings of vegetables into this dish? Because I totally did!
CAULIFLOWER MAC & CHEESE
CAULIFLOWER
MAC & CHEESE
Make your mac & cheese as you normally would. this time, however, you’ll use half the amount of pasta and replace the rest with cauliflower florets.
You can boil the florets and the pasta together since they take about the same amount of time. Once cooked, I like to lightly mash up the florets so they blend in with the pasta.
Add your sauce. Top with some parmigiano reggiano or cheddar. Voila!
BROCOLLI TOTS
BROCOLLI TOTS
This is a get fit mom staple - this time, though, i experimented with adding broccoli instead of my usual pick of zucchini or cauliflower.
Head over to the original recipe to get the full scoop. Essentially, though, you’re going to want to steam your broccoli, put into the food processor, then form them into tots using eggs and breadcrumbs (along with cheeses and veggies of choice - i love cheddar and PARMIGIANO REGGIANO, and for veggies, bell pepper and onion) and bake. Yum!
(HIDDEN) VEGGIE BURGER
(HIDDEN)
VEGGIE BURGER
Use ground turkey or organic grass-fed ground beef. Then, grate choice of veggies - I use zucchini, carrot, and minced onion.
Form your ground meat into multiple patties - instead, this time, replce between 1/3 - 1/2 of the meat per patty with your grated veggies. additionally, add some Worcester sauce to amplify the flavor of the burger. Cook on grill as usual.
Bam! An additional serving of veggies, not counting your side of sweet potato fries or BROCCOLI tots.
Bonus veggie tip: Instead of regular French fries, cut sweet potato wedges toss them in olive oil, garlic powder, paprika, salt pepper and bake at 400* for 15 min, turn over and bake for ten more.
BANANA NICE CREAM
BANANA
NICE CREAM
Nice cream is my kids favorite way to enjoy dessert!
Made with a base of bananas and milk of choice (meaning almond or coconut milk do suffice), nice cream makes A great vegan or lactose-free alternative to ice cream for those of us who can’t (or choose not to) consume the original stuff.
The hack is to put frozen bananas into the food processor, adding just a tablespoon or two of milk to help. Mix in flavors of choice if so desired - I love raspberry and peanut butter!
TROPICAL SMOOTHIE & HOMEMADE FRUIT POPSICLES
TROPICAL
SMOOTHIE
What better way to add nutrients than with a smoothie? Add banana, any kind of milk your child prefers, any frozen fruit (my kids love strawberry and mango), flax, chia, or hemp seeds, and…wait for it…kale or spinach.
This is a great way to get their greens in without them flat-out rejecting them - I promise you, your kiddos won’t taste it. If you feel you’ll have better luck disguising the green color, then be sure to add blueberries to the smoothie.
The best part? I turn leftovers into home made popsicles! Simply pour leftovers into a popsicle mold and freeze. Way better than anything you’ll find at the market.
home-made popsicles rock - case in point!
Check out my reel of these hacks on my instagram - and follow along to see all of my favorite recipes and health tips in one spot!