Deceptively Delicious

I have been on a mission to get my daughter to eat more veggies. When she was a baby, she did great, never had a problem until after her first birthday: she has refused, spat out, and thrown her "oh so healthy veggies" on the floor. Having a love for nutrition, I knew I cannot allow my daughter's diet to consist of cheerios, crackers, oatmeal and yogurt. I need to feed her nutrient-dense food because it vital to her growth and development! I had purchased this book before I had a baby because I had a sweet tooth and wanted a way to make desserts healthier. So the premise behind this book is that you make a whole bunch of purees ahead of time, say at the beginning of the week, and 'sneak' them into food through out the week (freeze some right away or any leftovers). I must admit it is a bit time consuming, but there are great benefits from it. I think the ideal situation is if you already had an infant on purees and older children; that way you can make a huge batch and feed everyone. So far she has liked my creations, but I am still introducing veggies (not pureed) to her because my end goal is to get her to eat the real thing, and not making purees her whole childhood. But for now it works :)

 This post is mainly of pics of what I have made and for some inspiration if you are going through something similar with your kiddo(s). Jessica Seinfield (yes this is Jerry Seinfield's wife, and she of course has lots of time to be making purees, lol) has a second book which I own as well called "Double Delicious".

Purees finished, cooling

Froze half right away in 1/2 cup portions

She gives you lots of instructions on which cooking method is best for each vegetable.

spinach being mixed into blueberry jam....shhhhhh

Blueberry Oatmeal Bars...they are of coffee shop quality! 

Blueberry Lemon Muffins with summer squash puree

Green Eggs with spinach puree (there is another variation of  this with
cauliflower puree in case you don't want the color to change)

French Toast with either banana, sweet potato,
carrot, butternut squash, or pumpkin puree; lots of choices, made mine with banana

Sweet Potato Maple Quinoa (my daughter didn't like the texture too much)
I also made sweet potato oatmeal & sweet potato pancakes that I didn't get to take a picture of.

Such a pretty vibrant color! Beet Pancakes

Disclaimer: these had a distinct beet flavor, but if your kids don't like
beets too much you can drown them in maple syrup & they taste
like regular pancakes, just a tip ;)

My daughter's absolute favorite: Pita Pizza. Sneaked spinach puree underneath
the pizza sauce. Another combo I did was beet & spinach and she gobbled it up! 

Tortilla "Cigars" with shredded chicken breast,
carrot puree & cheddar cheese

Chicken & Rice Soup with cauliflower and carrot puree...its was
a really 'homey' soup, I made home-made
chicken broth which gave it
a lot of flavor.

And that was one a tiny glimpse of all her recipes! I still have more recipes to try like tomato soup with broccoli puree, apple crumble with butternut squash puree, chocolate yogurt cheesecake with carrot puree, huevos rancheros with cauliflower puree, chicken enchiladas with spinach puree, gnocchi with sweet potato puree, and oatmeal raisin cookies with banana & zucchini puree! The dishes shown above & the ones I still plan to make are were taken from both books. (just so you know ;)

ENJOY!

Mac & Cheese All Dressed up

I was in a cheesy pasta kind of mood, and as I was flipping through one of my many recipe binders from Cooking Light Magazine I came across this one and decided today would be the day to try it. I used Applewood Smoked Bacon from Trader Joe's and it added sooo much flavor and depth. I also used their Chicken Spinach Asiago Sausages, but buy the fresh ones not prepackaged, they are so yummy. Next time I would put it in the oven less, broil it for a few minutes and that's it. I felt like it stole a lot of my sauciness (if that makes sense). 

the ingredients

I knew I would find another use for my milk frother thermometer!

getting the goodies ready

whisk, whisk, whisk

mix everything together

top with lots of cheddar cheese and broil

 http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/bacon-mac-10000001918488/ <--link to the recipe

Mac n' Cheese Basics

1.  Temperature is crucial to a successful sauce. If the cheese gets too hot, the sauce can crudle or develop a grainy texture.
2. Pick the perfect cheese for best texture. Hard, aged cheese don't melt easily or smoothly, especially in lower-fat recipes.
3. Punch up the flavor and add color. Stir in tomatoes, green onions, roasted bell peppers, sauteed squash, grilled eggplant, or your favorite vegetables.
4. Add flavor and texture with tasty toppings. Top with buttery fresh breadcrumbs, extra cheese, or a mixture.
5. 4. Salt pasta cooking water. This barely bumps up the sodium but makes a big difference in the overall flavor.