Wednesday, August 18, 2010

beet it

I love beets. They are very earthy, and yes, I do think they taste like dirt. So I was a little confused when Gabe, who eats dirt by the handful, didn't devour the pretty purple vegetable! Julia spit them out too. It was time for some deception. I made the "Pink Pancakes" from Jessica Seinfeld's book. I could really taste the beets in them, but the kids didn't seem to mind and gobbled them up. Sweet.

Looking at all the beet puree I in the freezer, I had another idea. Why not mix it up and add beets to smoothies with or instead of the usual spinach? The kids slurped it up. Then next day (I make them smoothies nearly every day) I put in sweet potatoes. They loved it as usual.

It's strange I hadn't thought of branching out beyond spinach in the smoothies before. But I am all about it now. I do want the kids to grow up eating veggies undisguised, so I will always put a few on their plates. But it doesn't hurt to sneak the good stuff in them as well. So beet smoothies it it. They taste earthy, and we all seem to be okay with that.

P.S. Julia actually does eat quite a few vegetables. Lately her favorite lunch is a ham, sprouts, and tomato sandwich. I am thrilled that she now loves tomatoes - they are my favorite after all.

8 comments:

Drew said...

Good girl. Tomatoes are the best! They're (almost) the best part of the Full English Breakfast.

Savannah said...

I think I have that book- it's Jerry Seinfeld's wife right? It's weird because it's aimed at kids but I thought what a great idea with the vegetable puree and everything. Its pretty handy!

Jill said...

way to go mel...I really need to try and incorporate some things like that into my kiddos diet. Jack won't touch a single veggie with a ten foot pole, or fruit - unless it's applesauce or yogurt. I have that book, I need to pull it out and get to work!

Kevin said...

Try adding some lime juice to the beet smoothie. The Nicaraguans have a juice called remolacha (Spanish for "beet" or "beet juice"), which is simply beet juice (beets processed to a puree and strained from the pulp) and the juice from a few limes. Without the lime juice, it tastes earthy. With it, it's heavenly.

Kassi said...

You kids are such good eaters! You are really crafty at disguising veggies too! I really love beets too. My favorite are pickled beets or just add a little vinegar to steamed beets. It sounds like your garden is producing well again this year!

Cami said...

Bears, beets, Battlestar Galactica.

I don't think they taste like dirt! I think I asked for them for my birthday once from grandma--pickled ones anyway.

Unknown said...

I know what you mean about the earthy taste. Good for you and them for liking the good-for-you stuff.

Jessica said...

that is hilarious! I'm so impressed with her knowing the lyrics.

And I loved your guesses on my lame closet contest. I didn't wear it to the 9th grade night dance, but I'm pretty sure I did to some stake dances, the one in my mind was in Alpine and I danced with Keegan Bench and was really nervous.