Kids & veggies ~ do they go together? It seems that I hear stories regularly about parents that struggle with getting their kids to eat veggies.
As babies, my girls ate veggies. Some of their favorites were sweet potatoes, squash and spinach. That was followed by the independent stage where they learned to say no and could be quite stubborn about what they would / would not eat. It seemed that soon after that they would eat veggies but only of a select variety.
Over a year ago I discovered a new way of preparing veggies which has been a big hit. Roasting.
It all started with a bundle of fresh asparagus. If I had to select my favorite vegetable, I'd probably have to go with asparagus. My girls had tried it the way I usually prepared it (steamed) and they weren't fond of it. I happened across a recipe in this book which was called Broiled Asparagus. It sounded good to me so I gave it a shot and believe it or not, my girls loved it.
Since then I've been roasting everything ~ broccoli, potatoes, zucchini, onions, mushrooms, sweet potatoes ~ and the girls have eaten all of it.
It's so simple. The taste, so satisfying. There's something about that little bit of crunch it adds to the veggies. No more soggy, bland veggies in this house.
Don't know how? It's really very simple. Wash your veggies and cut into bite size pieces. Place in an oven proof dish. Season with a bit of salt & pepper or seasonings of your choice. Using olive oil, pour a bit on the veggies and mix so that all the veggies have a bit of oil on them. Start sparingly, like a tablespoon or so. You can always add more if needed but you don't want them swimming in oil. Roast in a 450 degree oven for about 40 minutes or until they are tender.
The veggie dish pictured above is one that I make on the stove top. My mother made this every summer with ingredients fresh from our garden. It too is very simple. Chop zucchini and onions. Saute in olive oil in a hot skillet. Add chopped tomatoes to the skillet during the last minute of cooking. Season with garlic salt and pepper. Serve immediately. My kids will eat this too.
Do your kids eat veggies? If so, do you have a secret ingredient, recipe, cooking method?
8 comments:
I LOVE roasted veggies...asparagus being my absolute favorite. My kids are pretty good about veggies...when my youngest was little he'd eat broccoli like there was no tomorrow..."more, please". He still loves veggies...and fruit..he'll sit and eat a whole cucumber if I let him!
I love roasted veggies, but especially diced, roasted sweet potatoes tossed in olive oil, sprinkled with lime juice, salt, and cilantro before roasting. I could eat it every day. Zucchini is another favorite of mine, but no one in my family will touch it no matter how it's prepared.
you know, I am all over roasting!
Jenni ~ I'm going to try your recipe next time I roast sweet potatoes. Sounds delish.
The Bug will eat most veggies without flinching. We did have a lot of fun watching him scrap brussel sprouts off his tongue last week, but anything else seems good.
The Pirate will eat: potatoes and corn.
I will have to try roasting next.
i LOVE roasted veggies! i like to eat them room temp the next day, dipped in hummus :)
Velvet ~ Dippiing in hummus? What a great idea. I'll try it the next time I have some leftover (which doesn't usually happen).
Thanks for the tip. I forgot about how much my kids love grilled veggies (especially asparagus) but roasting wouldn't leave any grill marks to complain about!
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