Breakfast of Champions

By Andrew Hunter

The other day I said to Marilyn, “I don’t get it, the boys fight over green cars, puffles and army men. Green is their favorite color until veggies are involved.

My friend Lucinda, Martha Stewart’s food guru and author of Mad Hungry, Feeding Men and Boys, likes to say, “vegetable eaters are made, not born.”

Our boys naturally like some vegetables like carrots and edamame because they are sweet, easy and fun to eat…kind of like fruit. But it’s the green leafy veggies like spinach, broccoli and kale that we would love them to acquire a taste for. Since a portion of steamy green spinach leaves is all but impossible to “get down” we’ve taken a different approach.

It’s function over form in the Hunter household to expand on our vegetable successes. The answer (iron, potassium, fiber and lots of vitamins) is hidden in blended smoothies!

We sneak in a portion of leafy greens with vanilla yogurt, blueberries and bananas. Nicky now looks forward to his “Puffle Puddle” every morning…and he’s the finicky one who wonders why we have to start every day eating.

Here’s our recipe for a basic smoothie. Sneak in whatever you like.

1 banana
1 cup frozen berries
1 cup vanilla yogurt
½ cup nonfat milk

Sneak in a small amount of any of the following items: spinach leaves, chopped broccoli, kale, avocado slices, chopped cooked carrots, silken tofu, ground flax seeds, edamame or another veggie of your choice.

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Once your kids are secure in their love for morning smoothies, break the news that they’ve been eating vegetables for the past few weeks. Then, slowly transition to steamy green spinach leaves at dinner, maybe sautéed with a little butter, which actually helps the body absorb the vitamins, with fresh ginger, garlic and lemon zest.

Here’s to their health! Cheers!

Special Fork bloggers blog Monday through Friday. For more recipes and ideas on your smartphone, check us out at www.specialfork.com. Join the conversation on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @specialforksndy.

Comments

[Lynise McDonald]

Marilyn & Andrew this is a great idea. What irritates me the most is when I go grocery shopping the portion sizes are for a large family. I only need serving sizes for one. I will buy things and they will either ruin in the fridge or freezer burn in the freezer. Necie

[Special Fork]

Thanks Necie! Stay tuned for a great summer soup recipe that will help use up leftover veggies in the crisper.

Cheers,
Andrew