How do you hide veggies in other foods for toddlers?

[lill72]

I'd love to hear how you hide veggies in other food, so your toddler doesn't know they are eating it?

If you have any thoughts on hiding meat too, that would be great as DD does not like meat that looks like pieces of meat.

thanks!

Cauliflower in mash, anything you like in pasta/pizza sauce, don't forget to also offer whole veg though.

I wouldnt worry about meat too much, some toddlers just don't like it until they're older. Fish can flake quite well into a sauce though.

I have never hidden veg, I just put a bowl of mixed veg or salad on the table with each meal and my dcs help themselves to what they want. After a few months of looking at something and seeing me eat it, they always tend to want to try it. Sweetcorn, carrots and pepper is their favourite. If I hide veg it tends to spoil the meal for them as they will always find the tiny pieces of mushroom, tomato etc, even if as small as a dot!

Good way to serve meat is using mince. I make mini home made burgers and mini meatballs. Or fry up tiny pieces of chicken in a stir fry and mix with noodles.

I put all sorts of veg in pasta sauce, sweet pots and other root veg in mash and also often make chicken pie packed full of lentils and pulses. If you do it in the slow cooker, they turn out so soft that they've no idea that are eating it.

Pasta sauce. Never really had to hide veg . Ds only disliked carrot and sprouts but used to load up veg in pasta sauce

Don't hide it. Just keep serving it up in tasty ways (grilled zucchini, roasted peppers and tomatoes, raw grated carrot, cauliflower florets in cheese sauce?). They'll find veg they like. Sometimes it takes a mind-numbing long time, though.

Mandolin anything you could eat raw and cook it at 85 degrees in a single layer for about 4 hours makes vegetable or fruit crisps. Carrot cake. Parsnip muffins (yes really). Pea soup. Sprouts and other brassicas taste very different (and much better) fried than steamed.

Chocolate courgette cake? I keep meaning to try it

Have you tried soups? Dd will eat any veg blended in a tasty soup

They like "Bubble n Squeak" because it has a cool name. Basically just a whole lot of mashed veg reheated with a bit of egg mixed in. Somewhat bafflingly, this is household favourite.
I read on here, and can verify, that a really good way to get them to eat veg is to serve up 'crudites' (i.e. raw veges) while you're cooking or preparing the main meal. They'll eat raw carrots or capsicum or whatever because they're hungry and it's there. My DD will scoff raw cauliflower but won't even taste it if it's cooked and on her actual dinner plate. Go figure.

Hiding it is good as long as you offer normal veg as well, if they're not eating any at all. Do the 5 veg pasta sauce, but put chopped up pepper/onion/peas whatever in it as well.

I used to mash up potato and broccoli to make green mash, and potato and carrot to make orange mash.

Your DC might be keener on raw vegetables like cucumber circles rather than cooked veg?

Soups : I make green (brocolli) soup and orange (carrot and coriander) soup.
Green pasta: Pasta with pesto and spinach (and cheese)
Homemade pizza: Bread, chopped veggies, cheese on top grilled
I also offer roasted veg and plain veg - peppers, tomatoes etc. Also add veg into pasta and rice dishes.

DD is not too hot on veg. I make her take 4 bites/spoons as she almost 4.

Just noticed my mumsnet doppelgänger has posted above :)

Thanks - some great suggestions. Lots to try! I have been giving lots of veggies not hidden. DD loves broccoli and used to love corn. I will continue to offer and talk about veggies - she just seems to more fussy and eat less than she used to be, hence the want for hiding the veggies so she at least gets some! At the moment she is even wiping sauce off pasta!

Did get some carrot into some mash the other night which she gobbled... will all be alright in the end. I am relaxed about it.. think it is the best way to be.

To super trick my friends 8 year old I pile ; celery, courgettes, mushrooms, peppers, carrots, onion, spinach (basically all and any veg I have into the house) blend it all down and make a bolognese from that. He never knew the difference

Don't hide. Just put out a selection of raw veg and let dc help themselves. Much less stress and they often make choices that surprise you!

there was a mention of frozen peas on here the other day - dd and my niece both enjoyed a bowl the other day..

I made 'crisps' from neg. Sliced sweet potato, beetroot, parsnip, courgette etc reeeeeally thin, baked them in the oven with a tiny drizzle of olive oil. Ds loves them. Works a treat.

I have heard of savoury muffins eg courgette muffins but I have never tried them.

various muffins

more

Ds went through a non veg phase but he would eat vegetable soup and ask for more and more. So I made sure we had some every few days. Else I found a good trick was e.g. When cooking a stew, take some of the veg and liquid and purée it into a sauce. Put this back in as the sauce. But leave half of the veg as solid veg. He would pick out and leave the solid bits, then eat the "sauce" and ask for more.

Beyond that, I never tried to force him. I did find once when I made a courgette pasta with both yellow and green courgettes that he wouldn't eat them until I agreed to swap all his green ones for my yellow ones. Then he ate all the yellow ones (had an anti-green veg phase!).

I just lie.

'DS, didn't you realise that parsnip carrots come in white too?'

'DD, that's a special sort of sweet potato pumpkin'

When I make something like a spaghetti bolognese I always add loads of vegetables including peeled aubergine which melts into the sauce so, I know that at least he is eating that when he starts vetoing the veggies.

My ds loves pasta but it always seems like a large amount of the sauce with hidden veggies is left at the bottom of the bowl. I'm sure he must be getting some of the sauce in him, but I'm worried that it's not really enough?