Mealtime maladies to Deceptively Delicious

Ok, most of you who know me know about my Treyden's eating aversions. He has been in Occupational Therapy for the last 2 years to deal with his oral sensory aversion to many food textures and flavors. The poor kid has a physical reaction to textures or tastes that are aversive to him, so he basically lives on pasta and chicken nuggets. With the exception of breakfast, I loathe mealtimes in my house. I become giddy when I can get my kids to eat PIZZA, and I bribe them with trips to Sea World and the movies to eat 3 measly corn kernels. It's a CONSTANT struggle within myself to achieve a balance of peace and healthy eating at mealtimes. Having a degree in Health Promotion, I understand the risks of eating poorly. It goes against every fiber in my being to let my kids get through the day without the recommended daily allotment of fruits and vegetables, but who has the energy, and for mercy's sake, the constitution to fight with their kids every time they put something in their mouth. The most tragic thing of it all, being that Caleb idolizes his big brother, he has now adopted this wayward way of eating. Caleb was once my garbage disposal, now my cantankerous copy cat.

I heard about this revolution a few weeks ago, but didn't understand the magnitude of it's life-changing ability until I just (literally - 15 minutes ago) watched the Oprah spotlight on this fabulous woman and book. Jessica Seinfeld (yes, she belongs to Jerry) has also fought the good fight and although she stopped fighting, has won. She has discovered a way to sneak healthy foods, no not just apples and bananas - we're talking spinach, broccoli, and beets, into her kids IN EVERY MEAL!! Any fool can get their kid to eat apples, or most fruits for that matter. She has revolutionized the way we can view mealtimes with our children to make them more peaceful on all fronts.

Are you ready? She puts veggie purees into her kids favorite foods, and the beautiful thing of it all, they CAN'T EVEN TELL!! She has elected to share her brilliant brain child with the rest of the world in the form of a cook book entitled Deceptively Delicious. Some of the shockers include beet puree in decadent chocolate cake, WHOLE chickpeas in chocolate chip cookies, and my personal favorite (or should I say Treyden's), butternut squash in Macaroni and Cheese.


So, I had to share my exciting discovery with you. I plan on putting to good use as soon as it's in my precious possession, and I'll keep you abreast of it's success. Keep your fingers crossed!!