Anicia Ngozi of Kid’s Table is sharing her go-to recipes for picky eaters. The first is a pasta sauce filled with "hidden" veggies. The second is a batch of banana muffins designed to be easy enough to involve your little one in the baking process—the more involved they are in the kitchen, the more likely they are to try new things!
Creamy Tomato Pasta Sauce with Hidden Veggies
Kids love sauce. Always have jars of different sauces on hand. It's also a really easy way to hide vegetables. Pasta sauce can be blended with different types of veggies. (Sauce can also be used as a dip—kids love dipping.)
Ingredients
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ½ medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 2 bell peppers, roughly chopped
- 1 lb. tomatoes whole ( 2-3 medium sized tomatoes)
- 1 Zucchini , cut into round coin shaped pieces
- 4–5 large carrots, cut into round coined shaped pieces
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 2 tbsp Italian seasonings
- ½ tsp sea salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- 3 tbsp tomato paste
- ½ cup Heavy Cream or Coconut Milk
Directions
- Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Begin by chopping all of the veggies and spread them evenly on a large sheet pan.
- Add Spices (Italian seasonings, salt, black pepper and red pepper flakes) and drizzle with olive oil
- Place in the oven for 45 minutes. Check periodically to make sure garlic isn’t burning. If you see garlic is burning, remove and set aside.
- Remove tray from oven and spoon veggies into your Vitamix or high speed blender
- Add tomato paste and heavy cream and blend until smooth
- Pour sauce into a pot and add cooked pasta.
Bake With Me Banana Oatmeal Muffins
It's certainly easier (and less time-consuming) to make the recipe yourself, but taking those little moments to get them involved [in the cooking] or to introduce a new food or spice can go a long way.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Cups Oatmeal (old fashioned oats)
- 1 ¼ Cups Flour ( Can substitute Gluten Free Flour)
- ½ cup sugar
- 3 Bananas Mashed
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- Small Pinch Nutmeg
- 2 whole eggs
- ¼ cup neutral oil, ghee or butter
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
Directions
- In a large bowl mix oatmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and sugar together.
- In a smaller bowl mix both eggs, oil and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients and stir.
- Stir in mashed bananas
- Divide into 12 sprayed or paper lined muffin tins.
- Bake at 375 for 18-20 minutes
- Enjoy! These are perfect for breakfast with yogurt + fruit or as a high fiber playground snack!
For further reading:
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS "KIDS' FOOD": ANICIA NGOZI ON BREAKING THE PICKY EATER MYTH
