conquering the picky toddler

I cant complain too much about my twins eating habits, they have generally been very good with meals.  When they turned 2 they started with the "normal" picky eating habits and judging something by its looks.  I struggled for a while getting them to eat the recommended amount of vegetables daily.  They would only eat roasted carrots.  I bought a few cook books about hiding pureed veggies in recipes.  I tried a few and only found a couple that tasted good, most I would not even eat.  I thought I would experiment for myself with recipes and share my struggles and mom wins with you!  I have heard many times "they will eat if they are hungry" but that didn't stop me from having mom guilt that they weren't getting the needed nutrients to grow and thrive.  Dont get me wrong, sometimes you do just have to throw your hands up and say I can only do so much, but if I can hide a vegetable in a meal that they already like why not right?? 

My food processor became my best friend when I started making puree baby foods for my twins when they were infants, I stopped pureeing once the boys were older and could eat solids.  I quickly learned that pureeing is still a great way to get your kids to eat vegetables!  Another product that I absolutely LOVE are my mini 4oz glass mason jars with lids that you can freeze in perfect portion sizes.  I got mine at Target.

Tonight I roasted beets.  I usually just roast 3 at a time but you can certainly do more.  Wash the beets and cut the stems off.  Wrap each beet in foil and bake at 400 degrees for one hour.  Let cool for about 20 minutes.  Once cooled you should easily be able to rub the skin off and slice each beet into 4 pieces.  Place in processor with 1/2 cup water and voila!  Place in containers and freeze.

My go to recipe for the beet puree is one of the boys favorites, beet pancakes!  We use Bobs Red Mill buttermilk mix(add all ingredients on package for pancakes),  add one really ripe banana and 2 spoonfuls of the puree.

Makes such a pretty pink color!  We make these for Valentines Day!

My kids love food in bite size portions

I have struggled so long with finding good recipes and ways to keep my family healthy!  I want to start sharing my recipes and veggie hiding ideas with you all in hopes to help just one other mama out!