From Stirring Up Success
This busy mom was sick of begging her three kids to eat their veggies, so she came up with an innovative plan, outlined in her new cookbook, Deceptively Delicious (Collins, 2007)."I had begun to dread mealtime," Seinfeld writes. "Then one evening, while I was cooking dinner and puréeing butternut squash for the baby, I had the crazy notion to stir a little of the purée into the mac and cheese I was making for the rest of us. You couldn’t really see the squash, and the texture was perfect. So I stirred in more. Feeling only a little guilty that I was tricking my poor babies, I mixed in enough to feel satisfied that I was giving them a healthy, great-tasting meal. I held my breath. It worked! My kids plowed right through their dinners."
Seinfeld now hides sweet potato in pancakes, cauliflower in potatoes and spinach in pizza. Read on to see how.
Prep Tips
Before you toss these veggies into the blender or food processor to purée, prep and cook as follows:
- Beets. Trim stems to 1 inch. Wrap, unpeeled, in aluminum foil, and roast at 400º for about 1 hour, or peel, quarter and steam for 45 to 50 minutes.
- Broccoli. Cut into florets. Steam 6 to 7 minutes. Add a couple of tablespoons water to blender or food processor if needed for smooth texture.
- Cauliflower. Cut florets off stem; discard stem. Steam 8 to 10 minutes. Purée with a couple of tablespoons water if needed.
- Baby spinach. Steam 30 to 40 seconds, or cook in skillet with 1 tablespoon water 1 to 1 1/2 minutes to wilt.
- Sweet potato. Cut unpeeled potatoes into quarters and steam 40 to 45 minutes, or roast whole potatoes at 400º for 50 to 60 minutes. Scoop flesh out of skin.
Deceptively Delicious Recipes
Chicken Nuggets
Mozzarella Sticks
I have been pureeing vegetables and putting them in my children's food for almost a year now and worry so much less about their nutrition - its a great cookbook!
As a recent convert, my food processor is now the most-used item in the kitchen. I puree everything on the weekend and pick what I want for each meal. It works!
Cauliflower in scrambled eggs is an oldie but goodie - works every time on my little guy. I tried Jessica Seinfeld's book and its actually very good. Some of the recipes are versions of the tried and true but they are well tested and researched. I'd recommend her book.