Deceptively Delicious . . . Or Just Deceptive?
Have you had a chance to take a look at Jessica Seinfeld’s book, Deceptively Delicious, yet? It’s garnered a lot of attention—some kudos, some criticism. On the recommendation of some readers, I took an afternoon at Barnes & Noble to fully explore this cookbook that delves into controversial territory: hiding vegetable purees in kids’ foods. And not only hiding them, but not tellin’ the kids that the good stuff is in there.
My daughter was sitting at the table with me checking out her own book selections, and inquired about the book I was perusing. I showed her how all the recipes had nutritious veggie purees hidden in them—and mentioned that some parents have to do this to make sure their kids eat veggies.
She immediately looked stricken—and aghast.
“You didn’t do that to our foods, did you? Or do you now?” She waited for confirmation.
“No,” I said. “I never had to since you and your brother have always liked to eat so many wonderful varieties of foods.”
“Oh good,” she visibly relaxed. “I don’t think that would be a very nice thing to do.”
But what do you think? Is this something that desperate parents should resort to? Since I’ve been asked to comment on this book, I’ll share my thoughts with you about this, but I’d love to hear your thoughts too – just click the comments button at the end and let us know what you think. All comments will appear publicly.
The book is attractive. I like the notebook style pop-open binder. I do like a cookbook that will lay flat while I’m cooking. It’s also well written and compelling. I can certainly relate to Seinfeld’s premise of wanting to have her kids eat well. I like what she says about being a parent—that it’s challenging—all the time. Add mealtime conflict to it and it just makes for another unpleasant parenting pressure point.
And her solution is one that brings familial peace—not only at the table, but also to a parent’s dreams at night. Who doesn’t love the premise for food that is simple, fast and nutritious—that kids will actually eat? Gotta love it.
Seinfeld further purports that kids don’t always have the innate desire to eat healthy foods … but then again—do adults? (And come to think of it, do adults always set a good example? Ha!) However, she states that as parents, we make their choices for them—yet as we all know, forcing that broccoli and red cabbage isn’t an option either. If you (like me) are into mealtimes that offer happiness and conversation, but not power struggles and strife, perhaps her approach could be a temporary stop-gap … one that, if you’re willing to do the pureeing and prepping, would create peace of mind for yourself—and a tad healthier bod and immunity for your kids.
And yes, it does take commitment and organization—can’t say that I ever have cauliflower or butternut squash puree on hand, much less sweet potato, carrot or pineapple puree.
And then there’s the point of what I’ve been writing about and encouraging here for almost two years, an idea that seems to be glossed over: get those kids cooking. Let them in on the whole process. Don’t be the mom doing all the work and mysteriously presenting a full plate for dinner. Talk about what they like, what they don’t like, how to peel, chop, puree. Get into the nitty-gritty together. Explore cookbooks and recipes together. This is the tried-and-true, long-term method of building kids who know and care what they put in their bodies.
If you’re faced with a picky eater who won’t dally out of his/her comfort zone, delving into the deceptively delicious zone certainly can’t hurt for awhile. But get those same kids into the kitchen and put some wooden spoons, bowls and ingredients into their hands. Put them in charge of making a few dishes and see what happens. Honor what they like—and what they don’t. Start out simple.
With a slow and steady introduction into the ways that foods interact and combine to create different flavors, getting kids cooking is a sure bet to building adventurous tastebuds that won’t need to be deceived at mealtime. They’ll be too excited to try the latest new food they’ve whipped up.
Kristen McNutt, Ph.D. concluded succinctly in J.D. Consumer Magazines Digest: “Children who learn to cook eat 20 times more whole grains, legumes and vegetables than their noncooking counterparts.”
What say you? Have you gone the deceptive route out of desperation? Does it work? Have you chosen to involve your kids in food prep – and how’s that working?
Inspired by Seinfeld's Lemon Raspberry Cupcake Recipe that contains beet and yellow squash puree - here's a recipe with a surprise - but it's not deceptive. This surprise will bring a smile to your kids' faces when they bite into the middle of each sweet treat. And if you have it on hand, perhaps you want to try throwing in a half cup of yellow squash puree. Or not.
Made with fruit jam, sugar, oil, eggs, milk, lemon extract, flour, baking powder, salt
Serves/Makes: 12
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup oil
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup fruit jam (we used strawberry-rhubarb)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place 12 papers in cupcake tin and set aside.
Stir together sugar, oil, eggs, milk and lemon extract. Stir together flour, baking powder and salt, and add to liquid mixture. Mix together briefly.
Place large scoop (about 1/8 cup) of batter in bottom of each cup. Place one teaspoon of jam on top and follow with another scoop (about 1/8 cup) of batter, completely covering the jam. Bake for 20 minutes.
Cook's Notes: Inspired by Seinfeld's Lemon Raspberry Cupcake Recipe that contains beet and yellow squash puree - here's a recipe with a surprise - but it's not deceptive. This surprise will bring a smile to your kids' faces when they bite into the middle of each sweet treat. And if you have it on hand, perhaps you want to try throwing in a half cup of yellow squash puree. Or not.
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13 comments
I started hiding vegetables in food years ago. My husband was a mostly meat and starch kind of guy. I basically pureed spinach and mixed it with the sauce for lasagna. The next time I made it I did not have any spinach and left it out. He said it was not as good and asked what I had done differently. He did not want to believe me when I told him about the spinach but I have adding spinach ever since and everyone loves my lasagna. I also add shredded squash to soups and casseroles. It just makes it heartier. That started when I had an over abundance of zucchini from our garden one year and had shredded some for zucchini bread. My oldest son (and my husband) would not eat cooked squash and I had so much of it. I will still shred a bunch and freeze it in a snack size ziploc (about 2 cups worth) which is perfect for a batch of zucchini bread or to drop in a pot of soup. I support disguising vegetables if need be. The rule at our house is you must try one bite of everything. If you don't like it this time, you don't have to eat any more but I have found that eventually they develop the taste for good food, too.
Comment posted by Melissa
I vote that parents shouldn't try to fool their kids with foods. My boys don't always like what is for dinner, but they realise that each meal is the only one being served. So they'll have at least a few broccoli pieces if they have to. Just put melted cheese on whatever veggie in question-lol!
Comment posted by Tabitha P.
I agree with you that deception is not the way to get kids to eat what is good for them. Too many parents bring the food battle on themselves when their children are very young. Begging a child to eat turns into a power struggle. They will eat when they get hungry enough and at that point they will eat what is offered. My children are allowed to have dislikes, but as another comment here said, they usually will later like what they didn't at another time. All my seven children are taught to cook and are responsible for making one meal a week. As you say, they become more adventurous with food when they are doing the cooking. Deception is not the answer. However, adding extra veggie puree to add to the nutrient content is a different story.
Comment posted by Karen
I don't see why it would be necessary to deceive children,,,My Mama made dinner and put it in front of us...if we ate it fine,,if we didn't, then we could just go hungry...we were not coddled the way kids are today. I didn't like corn until the day, Mama gave us corn that had been cut off and fried,,I loved that,,,my sister like cream style corn,,,there is always a verison of a veggie that a child will like,,,my nephew wouldn't eat carrots until my SIL gave him a dip to go with his carrot sticks,,now he loves them...you don't have to decieve a child...just find a way to make them, that they will like...cheese on brussel sprouts,,will work,,as well as white sauce with bacon bits on caluliflower....be creative, not deceptive...
Comment posted by eve
I found with my children and grandchildren that by offering them everything available in pureed baby foods form exposed them to a wide variety of tastes (in spite of my mom's opinions to the contrary). Most foods are still eaten and requested as each of them has matured. If a particular food or a form of that food ( i. e., mashed instead of raw) then I made allowances. After all, I don't care don't shrimp as I get older and don't choose to eat them. I can tolerate their not liking a certain food without needing to go to the further work of pureeing and hiding vegetables or fruits. Even my special-needs grandson eats a wider variety of foods than most adults of my generation. Like my husband, he is a pleasure to cook for.
Comment posted by joy
My kids regularly cook with me and I have had them very involved in vegetable recipes which they still would not eat. I can't wait until their taste buds mature!! I have begun to add vegetable purees to all kinds of food - the children are aware I do this and are happy that they are liking the food and it is healthy at the same time. So, I am not deceiving them because they are told what is in the food but at the same time, my hope is that adding the flavours in will subtly and slowly change their taste interests to include more foods. I wasn't as keen on the Deceptively Delicious book as I found the authors comments to often be quite condescending - I don't need to be told not to answer the phone at meal time!!! I have since tried the Sneaky Chef cookbook and have found it wonderful - more variety on adding healthy foods to cooking (i.e. adding wheat germ, whole wheat flour, etc.) That's my take!!
Comment posted by Jan
Has anyone else come to the conclusion that Jessica Seinfeld must serve half cooked food? Every recipe I have tried (except for the Blueberry Oatmeal bars) has required about double the cooking time. I have a new oven and there is nothing wrong with it. I'm frustrated and want to know if anyone else has this problem. Thanks!
Comment posted by Suzanne
My kids are 6 & 4, and both are going through this "picky" stage - foods they loved a year ago, they won't touch now. This includes nearly all vegetables. We do the "one bite of everything" thing, but it hasn't been as successful as I had hoped (yet, we're not giving up!). I took my daughter to the doctor just today with "potty troubles" - she's having issues with constipation, it's really becoming a problem. Her doc suggested, of course, dietary changes. The only way I'm going to be able to get any veggies in the child right now is if i manage to hide them in something she will eat (and I'm not certain how successful i'll be at that, I've never tried it & i'm not certain what to add to what). We'll still work on getting them both to eat healthy & make healthier selections, but for health reasons, right now I'm going to attempt the "hide it" route.
Comment posted by Angi
Angi, I highly recommend Missy Chase Lapine's The Sneaky Chef. I've tried her recipe for brownies which has spinach and blueberry puree (AKA "purple puree") mixed in as well as oats and wheat germ. They're surprisingly delicious. My daughter loved them. Even my husband and mother in law were impressed. You can probably find this book at your local library if you prefer to try it out before purchasing. I also mixed in some cauliflower puree (about 1/4 cup) into macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes and my daughter ate them without suspecting a thing. There's also a recipe for spaghetti and meatballs in which you mix in spinach and pea puree into the meatball mixture along with whole wheat breadcrumbs and tomato paste. My husband loves spaghetti and meatballs and he ate this without question. He's a good eater regardless though. These could be some ideas you try to add some fiber to your daughter's diet.
Comment posted by Mom of 3
who cares if they know the sweet potato baby food is in the mac and cheese? I don't necessarily share the igredients of any recipe with my 2 and 4 year old. If they ask, I'll be sure to tell them! If they eat it, and it tastes good, and it's healthy then yippee! Don't waste your time chopping and pureeing, just buy baby food and dump it in there.
Comment posted by vero
I have 2 kids. One is autistic and one has ADHD, they both have OCD tendencies. When you do the research and discover how important veggies are in cleaning out our systems and possibly preventing these types of syndromes you are eager to hide as many as possible in order to help your kids and yourself. I don't like the taste of veggies but I have discovered that since I like salad I can buy brocolli slaw mix and put some in and not taste it at all. I also like soup and as long as I use a meat broth and the whole thing tastes like meat I will eat all the veggies too. I don't see anything more deseptive in this than the easter bunny and santa claus both of which my kids believe in and this is good for their health.
Comment posted by suzzette
Well, I am using this for my 14 month old so really I don't think there is anything deceptive about it... she wouldn't understand what was in it anyway! Of course I would prefer her to eat steamed veggies, but most of them she just won't unless they are submerged in cheese and then, not all the time. I keep trying at least once a day, hopefully someday she will acquire a taste for them, but until then I feel better knowing she is getting them in somewhere... Suzzanne - cooking times in the book have been spot on for me. Hope things even out for you.
Comment posted by Amber
I used to hide finely copped veggies in foods, but not because of the kids. My husband refused to eat veggies. Except canned corn and green beans. Nothing else. So, chopped up stuff, and hid it in the entrée of the day! This went on for about 4 years, And, he lept on commenting how much better things tasted! Well, one day he came home early and saw what I was doing, and he got mad at first, but when he finally understood why things tasted better, it became HIS idea!
Comment posted by Jacquelyn
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