You know those kids you see happily devouring a spear of broccoli? That’s not my son. When he started eating solids at around six months, he was a great eater who loved everything from carrots to cauliflower. But that all changed around nine months when he became extremely picky. While he’ll eat fruit and carbs and dairy, he won’t touch vegetables. No matter how hard I try to make them tasty, he’ll still scowl and drop them on the floor. I’ve learned not to try too hard–I am sure he’ll like vegetables at some point. But I still want him to enjoy a healthy diet. So here are a few fool-proof ways I’ve found to sneak veggies into his meals so that he’ll not only eat them–but like them!
Put them in pancakes. Kids love pancakes, and they make a great finger food. But you don’t have to always mix fruit and other sweet stuff into them. Shredded or diced vegetables are an excellent mix-in–resulting in a more savory pancake. I love this recipe that uses carrots and zucchini. I make my own version by also adding grated apple. And I make a huge batch and freeze them in a zip-lock–they defrost easily in the microwave.
Sprinkle them with cheese. A friend of mine mentioned that she gets her son to eat veggies by melting Parmesan cheese on top of them. I tried it with some leftover zucchini I wanted to use up and it did the trick!
Turn them into chips or fries. Transforming veggies into a stick or crunchy snack somehow makes them more appealing to kids. I’ve found sweet potato fries to be a big hit–and I am sure you could do the same with regular potatoes, carrots, and many other vegetables. You can also make veggie chips–this recipe for kale chips results in a surprisingly kid-friendly snack.
Incorporate veggie purees into other dishes. Jessica Seinfeld has great ideas for this in her book, Deceptively Delicious, where she sneaks everything from squash puree to cauliflower puree into meals like lasagna, grilled cheese, and even brownies. My favorite way to do this is by putting pureed veggies (like spinach or squash) in quesedillas–along with lots of cheese, of course!
Mix them with fruit. Adding an apple or pear puree to other veggie purees is a great way to sweeten them up and make them more appealing to babies. The squeeze packs of fruits and veggies you see all the kids eating–like Happy Baby–does this really well. But you can do the same thing at home. Add pureed pears to pureed broccoli and peas, or pureed apples to carrots. I did a mixture of edamame, apples, and carrots that I was surprised my son actually liked.
For more ideas and recipes, browse through New York Family’s food blog, Yummy Delicious.
