Rainbow Salad: Exposure, Exposure.....

Rainbow Salads for All!
This is an example of how repeated exposure has paid off in my house. By consistently making colorful salads and presenting it without giving a choice, it has become OK to try.
I hand out the salad and then say: "Dressing? Or no dressing?"

Given the option, the right answer becomes "no dressing" rather than "no thank you". I then randomly include new veggies in there without saying a word. If they are curious, they ask me what it is or ask me for more. If not, I don't mention it initially. If it gets eaten, I will say: "Looks like you liked the cauliflower."

Cheese and Veggie Muffins

A pleasant surprise and a great opportunity...

The plan was to make this with my 7 year old, but with all this cooking, my 3 year old has developed an ear for the sound of flour being poured. As soon as she walks by and sees a chair pulled up to the counter, she MUST be part of it: "Oh...Can I help?"

I think that if she hadn't helped, she would not even have taken the 2 "picky foodie" bites that she did take.

Cheese and Veggie Muffins

Great with a little butter or cream cheese. Very fluffy texture.

Ingredients:

• 2 loose cups of grated cheese (Gruyere, mozzarella, cheddar or whatever you like)
• 2 cups of flour
• 2 1/4 tsp of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cup of milk
• 3/4 cup of corn kernels
• large handful of baby spinach/ chopped and fresh
• 1/2 zuchini shredded 
• pepper to taste
• can add a fresh basil leaf on top

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Mix flour, cheese, baking powder, salt and pepper, and veggies.
• In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and milk.
• Make a well in the flour mixture, add all the other ingredients and mix until combined.
• Spoon into greased muffin tray, pop a basil leaf on top of each, and bake for 25 min. or until the tops are golden brown. 

Enjoy!

Carrot and Dill Salad...

You can find these colorful carrots at TJ's and they are delicious!

I used my pressure cooker this time for the carrots. I took a chance on overcooking them to figure out the timing. Turns out that, once the pressure is on, 6 minutes in the pressure cooker, for whole carrots cut in half, is perfect!

Once they cooled, I sliced them up with a wavy slicer, added a little olive oil, salt and dill, and VOILA! Oh, and a little lemon juice would also be awesome. 

Sweet Potato Fries

INGREDIENTS

•Olive oil for tossing

•3 sweet potatoes

•Salt

•Pepper

DIRECTIONS

1.Preheat oven to 450F.

2.Peel sweet potatoes and slice into ½” inch thick fries.

3.Toss with oil and salt and pepper.

4.Lay on parchment paper and bake for 30 minutes, turning them over midway.

5.Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

Zucchini Pancakes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 large zucchini

•1 Tbsp. minced garlic

•1/2 to 3/4 cup of breadcrumbs

•1/2 cup of 4-cheese Italian blend

•1-2 eggs

•Kosher salt

•Freshly ground pepper

•Olive oil

DIRECTIONS

 1. Shred zucchini using the large holes of a cheese grater. Squeeze the shredded zucchini inside of a clean towel until you’ve removed as much liquid as possible.

2.  Add minced garlic, breadcrumbs, cheese (shredded), egg and kosher salt and pepper to taste. Stir with a fork until well mixed.

3. Heat olive oil (about ¼ inch deep in bottom of skillet) to a medium heat. When the oil is hot enough drop a glob of zucchini batter into the skillet and flatten it a bit. Cook 2-3 minutes on each side until golden.

4. Serve with the dipping sauce of your choice and enjoy!