Our first vegetable is the beet! I know a lot of adults are even turned off by beets so I really loved this challenge! Beets have a beautiful vibrant color which benefits us in two ways! The purplish color of the beet is produced by phytonutrients called betalains; this pigment has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and detoxifying properties that protect cells from damage. Beets are also full of potassium, folates, and fiber and help protect against heart disease and even cancer! These guys are a must have in every one’s diet! Plus, the color is also what makes the beet so fun! It’s the perfect all natural way to color food red/pink/purple!
My kids love home made apple sauce, it’s a staple in our house and it’s so easy to make! I decided beets would be the perfect addition to my regular apple sauce recipe and boy was I right! I marketed it to the little ones as pink/red apple sauce and they thought the color was so fun! My kids saw the beets before hand so they knew what they were getting but if you have extra picky ones you might want to sneak them in under the radar! The amount of beet you add determines the color of your apple sauce so if you’re going for a light pink about half a beet or less should do. We used an entire beet for a deeper reddish/purple.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED//
Six organic medium sized apples
1/2-1 whole organic beet
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp clove
1 tbs organic cane sugar
pinch of ground ginger
1/2 cup water
Peel, core, and roughly chop apples and peel and chop the beet. Place all of your ingredients into a medium sauce pan over medium/low heat. Let the mixture simmer for 35-40 minutes stirring occasionally.
All in all this recipe was a success for my little ones. They loved the taste of their new apple sauce and the color was so fun! Marli is already asking if I can make more so we don’t run out! I have a feeling this is a new staple for us, even I can’t stop myself from eating it!
If you try out this yummy beet applesauce be sure to tag me on Instagram, or leave a comment for me here!
Have a veggie your kid despises that you want to make “kid friendly”? Leave it in the comments and I may feature it on Operation Veggie!
Enjoy!
I have a feeling this series is about to become a favorite of mine…my daughter's about to turn six and getting her to eat any veggies other than baby carrots – and sometimes even that – is a huge struggle. It's so frustrating because we've done everything "right" – she ate veggie purees as a baby, and since she could eat solids we've given her whatever we eat at meals, and we're big veggie eaters. I find myself bargaining ("eat six leaves, three carrots, and a tomato and you can be done with your salad/have dessert/etc") and I don't want to go that route. So…pretty much any vegetable you want to feature, I want to see how you can make it kid-friendly!