Sneaky Greens {Pesto}

For the next few weeks we will be doing a mini-series called "sneaky greens". Each week we will look at ways to incorporate more veggies into your child's diet in ways that they will enjoy! We have a guest post today from Trieste, who is sharing one of her favorite ways to incorporate greens into her little guy's meals with sneaky greens pesto.

My 1 year old LOVES pasta, and as I've been trying to get our family to eat more plant-based, whole foods, I have tried to be creative with getting a ton of veggies into him, especially during the phases he decides to be a bit picky. One day we were eating pasta with pesto on it, and it got me thinking. I was trying to think of what I could coat his pasta in, to make it healthier than just what we had been doing, usually butter & parmesan.

So I decided to steam kale, puree it, keep in fridge, and toss his pasta in it. I still added a little butter and parmesan to "normalize" it for him. He loved it; he gobbled it up!!
Experiment with seasonings that you think your child will like. Some ideas for mix ins are: butter & parmesan, coconut oil, salt & pepper, garlic and fresh herbs.

Here are a few pictures of the process:

Try this on various pastas; there are so many healthy tasty options available now - brown rice, quinoa, ancient grains. We love the brown rice penne & fusilli from trader joe's, organic ancient harvest brand quinoa spaghetti from safeway, and I'm dying to try the organic truroots brand ancient grains penne from costco! All of these pastas are also gluten free!

Mix the sneaky greens pesto into red sauce; add it to lasagna; soups; any pureed foods (canned pumpkin is a good one to mix it with since it adds some natural sweetness); add to eggs before scrambling... Sky's the limit! :)

Remember it can take several tries for a kid to like something. I am always surprised that after 3-7 times of my son being given a veggie or fruit, he may not like it at first, but it eventually grows on him!

Happy sneaking! :)