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Do You Sneak Veggies Into Your Child's Food?
January 13, 2009 at 10:41 AM by Cafe Kim - Comments (11)
This morning in my inbox I received some free "Sneak-It-In Recipes" to help me creatively "sneak in nutrition" for my family. Several of the recipes looked yummy, (particularly one for Sweet Potato Pancakes with Honey-Cinnamon Butter, which I'll include at the end of the post). However, I am a little uncomfortable with the attitude that I should deceive my family in order to get them to eat healthy food...
This so-called "sneak attack" is certainly nothing new. Since the beginning of time, moms have been dealing with picky eaters by hiding nutritious ingredients in their food. And recently, people like Jessica Seinfeld and Missy Chase Lapine have made this method famous with their best-selling books, (respectively) Deceptively Delicious and The Sneaky Chef.
But many nutrition experts advise against food deception because they argue that although it is completely well-intentioned, it may prevent kids from learning how to make healthy choices in the future. I tend to think this way, too. Yet, I can understand the other side as well: If your picky eater refuses to eat all fruits and veggies, is there any other way to get these nutrients into their bodies?
What do you think? Do you think sneaking food is a good way to get kids to eat healthy or do you have another method?
And now, the recipe I promised...
Sweet Potato Pancakes With Honey-Cinnamon Butter From CookieMag.com
(For the pancakes)
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk, plus more if necessary
2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup store-bought pancake mix
1 small pinch ground nutmeg
1 small sweet potato, boiled, peeled, and mashed (about 1/2 cup)
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and oil. Stir in the pancake mix and nutmeg until just combined. Fold in the sweet potato. If the batter seems too thick, add more buttermilk until it reaches the desired consistency (it should be thick but still able to pour). Place a large, greased griddle or pan over medium-high heat. Working in batches, spoon the batter onto it and cook until the surface of the pancake is covered with bubbles, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook the other side until golden, 1 to 2 minutes more.
(For the butter)
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temp.
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Beat together the butter, honey, and cinnamon until smooth. Serve on top of pancakes with maple syrup.
FILED UNDER: family meals, food, grocery shopping, healthy choices, kid-friendly, recipes, suggestions, trends
Comments:
I use the V8 fusion
I wonder if you can add sweet potatoes to just the pre mixed pancake mix that you add water too??
My 2 year old someone KNOWS when I sneak veggies in her other food and she won't eat it !
I sneak stuff in but then tell him, like I found a recipie for mac-n-cheese that had squash in it and my DS loved it so after he finished I told him that there was squash in it! Also this summer I made zucchini bread with chocolate chips and told my nephews that it was chocolate chip bread then after they proclaimed it "awsome, can you teach mommy how to make it" I told them it was zucchini bread! The youngest-4 years old- asked if we could make more for Papa and did the same to him.
That recipe looks yum. I'm very fortuante that both my boys love their veggies.
My son is only 10 months old so I don't have to sneak the veggies in because he likes them (especially squash).
I seve both hidden and visible veggies at every meal. My 2.5 year old loves her veggies, so I have no problem getting her to eat them. My husband is another story! HE's the reason I'm hiding the squash!
I don't "hide" them, but I do add veggies to things we normally wouldn't. My favorite is the veggie "crumbles" like the boca whatevers, I add those to anything with ground beef in it. Also, When I make tator tot casserold, I always use mixed veggies instead of just green beans, and usually just a whole big bag of the frozen ones. We all love them!
My DH just won't eat squash or sweet potatoes! lol
I was really blessed with this one, although my children are older now. I began them eating lots of vegetables, and they still love them
My grandson has hated any kind of veggie since birth. I am just thankful that he will eat at least some of the fruits. By all means, sneak them in, anything that works. When the kids get older and make a decision to eat healthy, they will eat veggies themselves. In the meantime, HAPPY SNEAKING!!!!
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Yes I do. I don't have to with my baby but my nephews tried to convince me they were allergic to anything green...
mlregalado Jan. 13, 2009 at 11:47 AM