My first son, Zach, is THE BEST EATER ... always has been. Loves veggies, isn't afraid to try new foods, always eats what is prepared, asks NOT to go to McDonald's and actually prefers my home-cooking {blush.} And then ... there is Lily. Picky, picky, picky. There was a day when she actually ate veggies ... used to ask for bites of my salad, etc. But, sadly that is no longer the case. And then Nic ... well, he seemed to come out of the womb with an aversion to anything that isn't a cracker.
So ... a few months back I purchased this ...
Read it cover to cover. And then decided it was too much work and besides ... I want my children to learn to eat and LIKE readily recognizable vegetables as part of their meals.
Ok, well ... that was then. I feel like nutritious food consumption on my younger kids part has been on a swift and scary decline over the last month or so. I'm getting nervous. So, I am really trying to incorporate new and exciting vegetables, fruits, etc. into our meals. And yes, I actually thought I would give this recipe a try and sneak carrot and spinach into brownies. Yes, that is correct, Veggie Brownies.
So ... the process started with me steaming then pureeing carrots and spinach. That actually was the most time consuming part. If you follow Jessica's plan you actually set aside a day to steam and puree all your veggies, then package them in neat little containers so you can pull out the required "liquid gold" at a moment's notice. This was all very last minute yesterday, so of course I was a bit under-prepared. But steaming, and pureeing aside, the rest of the recipe was fairly easy.
I baked the brownies and they were done at 35 minutes. I didn't check them before then as the recipe called for a baking time of between 35 and 40 minutes. They were definitely done. Next time I'd probably pull them out a little bit sooner. Mine did not have the smooth top like the ones pictured in the book, but if they taste good, well, who cares!
I let them cool for hours (as recommended, otherwise Jessica says you can taste the spinach.) I tried one after dinner, and ...
blech.
Ok, too be fair, they weren't HORRIBLE. But there was something discernibly off about them. I decided to let them sit over night and see if the flavors melded better.
Today's verdict: Not too bad! Maybe I am just getting used to the flavor, but the strong "off" flavor I was detecting yesterday seems all but gone today. I taste more of the chocolately goodness I was hoping for. They remind me a bit of a dense chocolate zucchini bread.
And guess what ... my baby actually ate one last night! He who snubs most brownies and chocolate cookies (I'm convinced that is because he had a steady stream of them in utero.) I couldn't believe the little man, notorious for chewing up and spitting out anything he doesn't like, actually swallowed a spinach brownie ... and pointed to the pan for seconds.
Another triumph ... Miss Picky downed one today for a snack. Okay, so maybe the occasional hidden veggie isn't too bad!
