Veggies for Breakfast

Not so long ago I was writing about hiding veggies in various dishes to get my toddlers to eat more of them.  I still have to do that....but I find it surprising that I'm often putting those veggies in their breakfast!

Breakfast is a favorite meal around here, lunch is next, and dinner is a distant third (for the kiddos).  Little Alex is not a picky eater.  He'll eat just about anything if he is hungry (which is most of the time) and that includes veggies.  Aaron, on the other hand, is pretty picky.  He loves breakfast foods like cereal, oatmeal and pancakes.  And for lunch he really loves yogurt and hummus (he'll even eat the occasional carrot stick) but dinner?  Nope.  He doesn't like dinner.  I'm convinced it is mainly the time rather than the food because though we are trying to stay dedicated to feeding the kids what we eat for dinner, even if I tempt him with his beloved yogurt, he only takes a few small bites.  He apparently wants most of his calories in the morning/afternoon and that is ok with me.

But that does mean that getting him to eat veggies at a meal when veggies aren't often served, breakfast, is important.  So I thought I'd round up a few of our favorite breakfast recipes that include (hidden!) veggies for those of you with picky eaters or just dinner-haters.  :)

Breakfast foods with Veggies!

Pineapple and Carrot Muffins 

Sweet Potato and Blueberry Pancakes

Pumpkin Pancakes

Banana Zucchini Bread

Pumpkin Oatmeal... I actually don't have a recipe for this.  I usually just make a big batch of oatmeal as usual but stir in about a cup of pumpkin puree and some brown sugar and cinnamon to taste.  Easy peasy and delicious.  It stores in the refrigerator for a few days too, which is nice.

Smoothies!  Another one we make a lot but don't use a recipe for.  Mr Pears actually makes the smoothies around here and he just tosses in whatever we have on hand.  You can add broccoli, kale or spinach to just about any kind of fruit smoothie and though it will turn green, it won't taste "green". My kids love their green smoothies!

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Sneaky Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Ok, I have another sneaky hidden vegetable recipe for you. When I read over this recipe I honestly thought that the odds of this one actually being good were like 50 : 50. But since Oatmeal cookies sounded kind of delicious and tricking my kids into eating more veggies is my new mission, I figured I would give them a whirl anyway.

I'm really glad I did give this recipe a try because these cookies are good! I mean, even if your toddler eats all their veggies with no fuss, and I have to wonder...do toddlers like that even exhist? Anyway even if you are super blessed and your little monsters eat veggies these are worth making. Or maybe you don't have toddlers or kids? Still try them, you can never have too many veggies (or cookies).

And dont freak out when you read the ingredients. Yeah I know cookies made with zucchini and whole wheat flour sound yucky...they aren't I promise!

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, adapted from Jessica Seinfeld in Deceptively Delicious
1 zucchini or 1/2 cup zucchini puree
1 banana, fork mashed into a puree
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar (I used dark but light works too)
6 tablespoons room temperature butter
1 large egg white
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Before you get started on the cookies you need to puree the zucchini. Now is also a good time to take the butter out of the fridge if you havent already. To puree the zucchini just chop it into a few big chunks and put it in a steamer basket set over an inch of boiling water. Cover the pot and steam for about 8 minutes. Once done, put the succhini in the food processor or blender and blitz until smooth.

In a small bowl mix tgether the flour, oats, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl mix the butter and brown sugar together with a wooden spoon just until combined. This is a soft dough so dont bother with your mixer for this one. Add in your zucchini puree (it should be about half a cup), your banana puree and the egg white and stir to combine. Now mix in the dry ingredients just until combined. Lastly stir in the raisins and nuts if you are adding them.

Line two cookie sheets with silplats or parchment paper. Spray the paper with non-stick cooking spray if you arent using silplats. Drop dough by tablespoons onto the trays. Bake for about 12 minutes.

Remove the trays from the oven and let the cookies cool a minute or two before transferring them to wire racks to finish cooling.

I hope you love these as much as we do! Enjoy.