Any tips on hiding veg?

[HoleySock]

My kids are okay at eating some vegetables but one of them refuses to eat any fruit and they are picky about trying new things.

Obviously I'll continue to offer veg that looks like veg but i would love ideas for veg that I can dice up and hide in curry/bolognese etc. I always add onions, carrot and mushroom which is very uninspired. I add spinach to curry but they sit and pick it out. Anything more exciting I can chuck in there?

Veg sauce with aubergine / courgette / celery / carrot / mushrooms / peppers / tomato (any or all of the above), chuck in a tin of tomatoes to hide it all and blend the hell out of it. Use as pizza sauce / pasta sauce / Base for spag bol / water down for soup. I make a huge batch and freeze portions. Good luck

@Tobuyornot99 well that's just genius!

Will they eat tomato sauce like on pasta or rice? If so, you can add red pepper to it by either buying skinned peppers or by roasting them the removing the skins. Then pop it in a blender to reduce it to a paste and stir it into the tomato sauce. You could also put it in a soup. It's smooth with no skin or pips or seeds or other textures that children take against and the taste is sweet. You can also use the tomato and red pepper sauce for pizzas.

You could also add any mashed root vegetables to mashed potato, e.g. carrot, sweet potato, butternut squash, swede, parsnip, pumpkin. Again, these also make great soups, will blend to totally smooth pastes and have sweet tastes.

@LockedOutOfMN thankfully they love any pasta sauce so hiding stuff in there is great. My 4 yo won't eat soup although I keep trying!

If they eat onion they should eat leek as long as it's very finely chopped and soft, like the onion?

Also I have seen frozen skinless peppers in M and S just last week. I was thinking how handy they would be (we live abroad). You can also buy them in jars here, so presumably in the UK too. Saves a great deal of time and if they are going into other dishes there is no difference in taste.

Macaroni cheese with white veg blended into the cheese sauce. Cauliflower boiled with the pasta then get the hand blender on it. Or peeled, grated aubergine and courgettes, cooked in the sauce for a bit and then blended. Needs to be well peeled to get rid of the colour!

I make bolognese with equal parts mince and veg (onion, carrot and celery in equal parts) chopped up super fine in the blender.

Or zap an aubergine in the microwave about 5 minutes, then puree it into a tomato sauce with lots of basil and, optionally, mozzarella in little cubes added at the very end.

zucchini muffins?

raw vegetables with some irresistible dip?

salad?

Sweet potato and butternut squash mash up well into a cheese sauce for pasta.

Grated peeled courgette hides well in and omlette or on top of a pizza.

Get frozen mashed carrot/swede I think Aunt Bessie do one in little pellet. Throw a generous handful into EVERYTHING with sauce (except carbonara!)

I still do it know that DS likes veg as it tastes nice.

Awesome ideas folks thanks! I'm feeling a bit disheartened with it all after making a make your own wrap lunch, getting them involved, helping them choose what to put in it - all stuff they like - for them to both refuse to even try it. I was feeding the baby and not really set for a food battle so left it. I don't want to force them to eat but similarly I am so done with pasta and rice dishes 😂

For a vegetable dhansak I use sweet potato, potato, carrot, onion, pineapple, courgette, peas, green beans.

Will they eat smoothies using fruit or yoghurt blended with fruit?

Do stir frys get a pass? I make one using onions, courgette strips, carrots, pineapple, peppers, green beans, and bean sprouts. The spices are garlic, ginger, sesame oil, soy sauce (low sodium one), and chilli sauce. I add cashew nuts for protein.

@TheMysteriousJackelope stir frys are a nope at the minute. I made sweet and sour the other day and they looked at me like I'd given them dog poop on a plate. It crazy because they love noodles they love paella and curry so it seemed a certain win 🙄

I love the sweet potato idea in curry I'll definitely try that one, I try to bulk out our meals with as much veg as possible to make the budget stretch further,

@TheMysteriousJackelope I'll give smoothies a try again, I tried boy child on one once and he didn't like it but was too polite to say so he ended up just carrying it for the next two hours 😂

I make this thing where I microwave some fresh salmon, do some steamed carrots, sweet corn and broccoli (the mincrowave kind!), mix it in a pan with some tomato and basil sauce and wholemeal rice. It's my daughters favourite.

One third bean sprouts to two thirds pasta. Boiled together, covered in sauce they'll never know.

Tell them to eat what they are given - no desserts, no snacks until its eaten.

@cdtaylornats we don't give desert or snacks till they eat a decent amount and if they don't eat it they generally go without till the next meal. The issue is they're almost four and almost two. The oldest understands consequence the younger doesn't so it's easier to provide food they will both eat and hide the goodness until she reaches a point where her comprehension is better. We still offer veg in it's more natural form and I offer her fruit throughout the day but she's not taking it.

Have you tried them with falafel? They have a kind of nugget like quality! And are great for getting veg in, I do sweet potato, butternut squash and beetroot ones.

@AtleastitsnotMonday I'm Googling a recipe now!

Frozen chopped spinach in pasta sauce or bolognese. Can't be picked out, and can be pasted off as "herbs"

@NonStopDisco can you buy it frozen and chopped?

Banana smoothie thing?
Peanut butter, frozen banana and milk blended. Bit of nesquick or choc powder is good too

@HoleySock yep,from most supermarkets, comes in portion sized blocks.

@NonStopDisco well you learn something new every day!