Vegetable Kids Books, Blog, and Activities

Jimmy Dean Sausage Cornbread Dressing

11/24/2015

Jimmy Dean Sausage Cornbread Stuffing Casserole

Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage adds flavor and vegetables add color to a delicious dressing for Thanksgiving. If you have been following the Vegetable Kids in the Garden book, website, and blog you know that I have fun adding colorful vegetables to recipes and Thanksgiving is no exception. The traditional fixins' of mashed potatoes, gravy, and dressing can look beige. But last year I added chopped orange carrots, red bell pepper, and purple onion to the usual green celery for a delightful dressing. This year I will fix cornbread for the dressing and also add sourdough bread chunks. (I will post a picture of my dressing after Thanksgiving). I typically look in the refrigerator for leftovers usually vegetables to add to a recipe since I go to the Farmer's Market on most Saturdays. Have a lovely Thanksgiving with family, friends, and VEGETABLES!

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MacnCheese With Carrots

11/5/2015

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What a fun morning with Lexi making macaroni and cheese. I grew up with macaroni and Velveeta cheese. I loved it! As I got older, I added peas or broccoli. Now I rarely eat MacnCheese unless our Grands come over. They are used to boxed MacnCheese so we buy Annie's since it is more natural. Then I like to add a vegetable. Today it was carrots blended in the cheese sauce.

Lexi will be two in two days, and she loves to come in the kitchen with me. This morning she put the silverware in the drawer while I cleared the dishwasher. She doesn't like the sound of the blender so I blended the carrots milk and cheese while she was in the playroom. Then I put the bowl on the floor after microwaving the sauce so she could stir in a little more milk. She loved watching the bubbles as the macaroni cooked.

Lexi loved the MacnCheese and asked for seconds. She ate a tiny slice of raw carrot and enjoyed the blended carrot. Max said he likes the macaroni shells and didn't want the macaroni. He ate a toasted cheese sandwich and a small raw carrot. Lexi had some yellow bell pepper and Max had green. They each have their own way of eating vegetables.

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Vegetables in the Spaghetti Sauce

9/13/2015

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There are so many ways to add vegetables to your meals and snacks. But why bother adding a carrot here and spinach or cabbage there? Adding vegetables to sauces, cookies, and snacks adds nutrition, creates a desire for vegetables, and gets everyone used to eating in color. Add a splash of natural color whenever possible.

For variety: Add vegetables you wouldn’t normally want to eat.
To use up: Check the refrigerator for vegetables that are ready to be eaten.
Add color: Add color to beige meals, cookies, and frosting.
For those who are particular: Picky eaters will eat vegetables if blended and added to their favorite food.
A little at a time: Gradually add vegetables especially for those who like things the same.
Cooked and raw: Add grated carrots to cookies and sauces then eat the raw carrot end. You will get the beta-carotene from cooked carrot while maintaining some vitamin C in the raw.

Spaghetti sauce is so flavorful it begs for more vegetables. Last night I might this delicious sauce that was a hit for my husband and 5 year old grandson.

Quick Spaghetti Sauce with Vegetables

1 jar prepared spaghetti sauce (Newman’s Own is my favorite––find it on sale)

8-10 ounces tomato sauce

1 medium cut up carrot and wedge of purple cabbage with enough water to blend (the purple cabbage will give it a good color) start small and gradually add more orange, red or purple vegetables)

2 tsp Italian seasoning to taste

1 tsp Oregano to taste

½ tsp Salt or Garlic salt to taste

Mix and microwave in covered microwave dish approximately 4 minutes on high and 4 minutes on medium depending on microwave (make sure it doesn’t boil over). Keep warm until pasta is cooked and ready. Enjoy!

Watch for more ideas for adding vegetables at www.vegetablekids.weebly.com/activities
Fun with vegetables in the print or eBook, “Vegetables Kids in the Garden” at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.

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MacnCheese Sauce

6/5/2015

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Sauces are a tasty place to add vegetables. Today's lunch with Max and Alexandra was Macaroni in cheese sauce. I am in the habit of blending carrots with the milk and adding to Velveeta cheese for a warm cheesy sauce the kids love. Hmm. No carrots in the fridge. How could that be?

Sweet potatoes match the color of cheese. Thought I would give it a try. I cut up and blended a small chunk of raw sweet potato with the milk and melted it with the cheese. I scraped down the sides of the blender for a smoother mix, but it still had tiny bits of orange in the sauce. Max will usually spot vegetables from a mile away and steer clear, but to my surprise he loved the macaroni and cheese.

At 5 years old Max has decided most vegetables should not be on his plate so I blend a small amount of vegetables in the his favorite food, add color with orange and red bell peppers that he can't resist especially since they can be made to look like alphabet letters or appear to shoot things across the room. Of course talking peppers are the best!

I added more color to our lunch by adding peas to my macaroni and cheese. It gives Max the chance to say, "I don't like that," and he can see that I do like peas, especially in with cheese.

Why bother with a little vegetable at every meal? Because it's a little vegetable––better than none! I gradually add more vegetables as the body and tastebuds get used to them while offering a variety of fresh vegetables.

Kids love vegetables if served the way they like them. How do your kids like vegetables?

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Add Vegetables

Jimmy Dean Sausage Cornbread Dressing

MacnCheese With Carrots

Vegetables in the Spaghetti Sauce

MacnCheese Sauce