White Pumpkin Pie Hot Cocoa
Remember a few years ago when there was all the controversy over whether it was a good idea to "sneak" vegetable into your kids' food without them knowing? In one camp, Moms declared that veggies were so good for kids that if they refused to eat them outright, they should be pureed and snuck into their food anyway. On the other side of the debate, were Moms who said that veggies were so good for kids that they should be taught to love vegetables, not just be tricked into eating them.
Well, I've found a recipe to answer both sides of the debate and it's name is White Pumpkin Pie Hot Cocoa. It's creamy, it's warm, it's full of pumpkin spice goodness and just look at all these healthy ingredients. (Okay, so you're going to have to ignore the white chocolate chips for this illustration.)
Do you see that measuring cup full of pumpkin puree? That's straight up veggies in a cup right there: 7 grams of fiber, 3 grams of protein and 763% of your daily allowance of Vitamin A.
And we're not going to lie to the kids about the fact that it's in there, we're going to embrace the pumpkin and throw in the word "pie" after it, you know, just in case they get suspicious. Oh, and we're also going to add some white chocolate chips for camouflage, like so:
Ingredients:
3 cups 1% milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
Mix all ingredients, except white chocolate chips, in a medium saucepan over medium heat.
When pumpkin mixture begins to simmer (just before it gets to the boiling point), remove the saucepan from heat and add white chocolate chips.
Stir or whisk until chips are melted and spices are incorporated.
Serve warm with a dollop of whipped cream and sprinkle of cinnamon. I also like to add a cinnamon stirring stick.
When my 10-year old had her first sip of White Pumpkin Pie Hot Cocoa, she breathed a giant sigh of satisfaction and said happily, "This tastes like Fall!" She's right, and I think she just might be a Fall Girl.
How do you get your kids to eat their veggies? Are you a veggie sneaker or a veggie embracer? Leave a comment below and let me know.
I don't believe in feeding my people vegetables, because I hate vegetables and do not want to be a hypocrite! And it wasn't just the bitter taste I could never bear, it was also the texture. I literally gag. I have decided that I am most definitely allergic to cruciferous vegetables. With this in mind, I am a big huge gigantic fan of hiding vegetables in whatever you can hide them in. But I don't believe in lying to children, either. They've gotta learn to deal with reality at some point. I hide vegetables in things for my own sake, so that I can handle them. I was so excited to get a Nutribullet when I was pregnant with Rocco, because I can stuff a ton of green vegetables in that thing, and as long as I can just chug those vegetables down, I don't mind consuming them! As long as i don't have to chew them up! So we have smoothies with kale and spinach every day. Win, win!! This sounds like a delicious recipe! I'd call it "sneaking your candy into your vegetables." Ha.
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