#Cookbook Review: Stealth Health Lunches Kids Love

Let’s face it, getting kids to eat healthy foods is not always easy.  I had such plans with all of my children: they were going to love broccoli and hate Sweet Tarts.  I did achieve the former; all five of my kids are broccoli lovers, but dang it, all five of them love red and blue dye, ascorbic acid and corn syrup laden candies, too.  As babies and toddlers, I had so much control over their diets.  They really were pretty good eaters.  However, when they got to be school aged and started playing and eating at friends’ homes, all of my good work went out the window. 

Tracy Griffith has written a new cookbook called Stealth Health Lunches Kids Love: Irresistible and Nutritious Gluten-Free Sandwiches, Wraps and Other Easy Eats
filled with gluten free, nutritious ideas for wraps, stuffed pitas, sandwiches and more.   She includes recipes for gluten free tortillas and pitas.  There is also a very detailed section on how to make sushi rice and how to roll sushi.

This book is divided into three main parts: pitas, wraps and rice rolls with or without gem wraps.  There is another section on “sidekicks” and another on spreads.   You can certainly use store bought gluten free bread, tortillas, pitas or whatever to make these lunches.   If you aren’t eating gluten free, use the regular stuff.  The ideas for fillings are pretty wonderful, from ham/apple/cheddar/pesto to turkey/Swiss/grape.  There are pizza fillings, Asian fillings, sweet fillings and so many more.  All of them have fun names like The Wolverine, The Hello Kitty, Tom Tacos and the Unicorn Roll.  What kid isn’t going to want to try lunch with a super cool name?

I was impressed with the entire book, but it was the Dips and Spreads that really caught my eye.  From Orange Zinger, a mayo-cream cheese spread with carrots, ginger and orange, to Green Slime, a sour cream-avocado based dip with lime and jalapeno, there are some pretty amazing ideas to jazz up any sandwich.  I chose to make Schmoo, a cheese and pesto spread made with fresh parsley, basil and spinach.  It was fantastic.  In fact, I not only used it on wraps, but I also used some in some twice baked sweet potatoes later in the week.    I think each of the spreads and dips in this book can be used in multiple ways to jazz up veggies, casseroles, sandwiches and even omelettes!

Schmoo (pesto cheese dip)

Author: NewsRecipes

 

Ingredients

• 1 cup chopped fresh spinach
• ¾ cup fresh basil leaves
• ½ cup fresh parsley
• ½ cup grated Parmesan
• 8 oz cream cheese
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ tsp lemon juice
• ½ clove garlic, minced

Instructions

1. Place all of the ingredients into a food processor.
2. Blend until it becomes a smooth, thick paste.
3. Refrigerate unused portions for up to 1 week.