Improving Nutrition One Treat at a Time?

I know lots of kids that are picky eaters.  I am always amazed at how they still look so healthy and are able to function.  My daughter overall is not a picky eater but if she eats to many sweets and/or not enough protein it is obvious.  She has no energy and acts like a demon has taken over her body.  Let's just say I am very careful with her diet because of this.  On occasion I like to pretend she does not have this issue and let her eat whatever she wants (mainly sweets and junk food).  Every single time I regret it.

Eating protein is not an issue, grains are ok but Veggies, not a chance.  Leafy Greens might as well be worms crawling on her plate.  Actually I think she would rather eat the worms than spinach and the likes.   Nutrients in Leafy Greens are important to every one's health but they especially benefit kids with Hypotonia.  They are loaded with Vitamins that help with energy production.  They don't really create energy but help with more efficient energy production and utilization.  I have to say I notice a visible difference in my daughter when she is eating leafy greens vs. not.

So how do we get them to eat leafy greens!  There are lots of cookbooks with recipes for hiding veggies.  I use some of these but am not 100% convinced that a vegetable that has been cooked twice still holds a lot of the nutrients you are trying to get into you kids.  Don't get me wrong some is better than none but I wanted to find a way to get more....

So I decided to trick my daughter with a treat.  I put Spinach or Kale into a Smoothie.  The secret - Blueberries.  The skin from the blueberries has a similar texture to the greens and she doesn't notice them.  The color from the blueberries also masks the green color in the smoothie.  I get a lot of greens into her this way, plus they are raw and provide the most nutrition!

Recipe:
Berries - fresh or frozen but must include blueberries
Bananas - also can be fresh or frozen (I often freeze brown bananas, they are super sweet and always on hand)
Greek Yogurt - I prefer plain but flavored is always a bonus
Kale or Spinach - Just wash and shove in the blender
Ice - optional, if fruit is frozen not necessary
Honey - optional, if fruit or yogurt is sweet not necessary

Place ingredients into a blender (I actually use my Cuisinart because I keep breaking my blenders with the frozen bananas). Blend until smooth.  For best results pour into a covered cup so they can't see what is in there.....

I also take this one step further and make fruit pops.  I love my Zocu for this.  It makes pops in less than 10 mins.  So when my daughter is sick and doesn't want to eat I can easily blend up some fruit and veggies and serve it a fruit pop!!  Yay.