The green machine(s)

Green veggies get a bad rap, especially with kids.  In one of Juliet's favorite books, Pinkalicious, young Pinkalicious' skin turns pink after eating too many pink cupcakes.  The only antidote is a diet of green vegetables only.  She "chokes down artichokes, gags on grapes and burps up Brussel sprouts."  Juliet thinks this is hilarious.  She also refuses to eat most anything green.  I am guilty of this myself.  Most mornings, Joel makes himself a green smoothie, complete with spinach and kale.  I tease him relentlessly but it is really healthy and an easy way to get the benefits of leafy greens.  I just can't bear the thought of drinking spinach!  But, I am really the one missing out on the healthy goodness.

August gives peas a chance!

Jude loves his green goodness!

Peas are a great first green food for babies.  Juliet did not enjoy peas but August and Jude loved them from the start.  They are pleasant to eat.  1 cup of peas contains more protein than 1 tablespoon of peanut butter.  Peas are also packed with calcium, vitamin A and iron.  I buy frozen organic peas, steam and puree them.  The boys have enjoy peas mixed with a ton of different veggies and fruits: carrots, zucchini, apples.  I gave them their first taste of beef mixed with peas.  Peas can be chunky when pureed so if you want a smoother blend, rinse them in cold water first.

Green beans are another good first green food for babies as they are a low allergy risk food.  Green beans are high in calcium, vitamin K and vitamin C.  The first time I bought green beans, I found them already trimmed, washed and bagged at Whole Foods.  I cut them in half and steamed them with peas and Jude and August really enjoyed the combo.  The second time I decided to buy frozen and that was a huge mistake.  I may have gotten a bad bag but the frozen green beans smelled awful and pureed into the chunkiest, nastiest mix that I could not feed to my babies.  Now I just buy them fresh and a favorite combo is green beans/carrot/squash.

I wanted to give spinach to my lil Popeyes but, to me, it tastes so bitter.  I decided to mix it up with butternut squash to start and the combo was a raving success!  I couldn't believe it.  This is the combo that started the name "green machine!"  After a few tries with this puree, I learned to add more butternut squash and not go too crazy with the spinach.  Spinach has a ton of calcium and is a great source of iron and vitamin A.  I buy organic frozen spinach though I have read that fresh is probably a better idea.

Whether your kids gobble down greens or not, they will all grow up healthy and strong!  Here are my 3 loves on Halloween.