Taco Time!

I don’t know whose side I’m on in the Deceptively Delicious vs. Sneaky Chef squabble, but I’m thankful to any- and everybody who provides healthy, easy-to-make recipes that kids will love and therefore EAT. When I first saw a taco recipe listed in the contents of Seinfeld’s book (Lapine has a recipe for tacos, too) I thought, “Come on, who needs a recipe for tacos—everybody already knows how to make those, and they aren’t all that healthy anyway.” But they’ve truly transformed an old tasty hit.

First point: tacos can most definitely be healthy. Every dish is as healthy as its ingredients. I use ground turkey, ground chicken, or soy “meat” in place of ground beef, and that cuts way down on fat and grease. Plus, turkey has more protein. And you can add everything plus the kitchen sink into them and they’ll always come out tasting like tacos. I’ve added some combination of the following minced or pureed veggies to the pan of browned meat every single time: carrots, peppers (red, green, yellow, or orange), spinach, squash, pumpkin, zucchini, onions, garlic, black beans or pinto, and always a healthy dose of ground flax meal. I use a mild organic seasoning mix from Whole Foods, and instead of adding water, I follow Seinfeld’s suggestion to add a can of crushed tomatoes. Better yet, you could even hand squeeze 2 or 3 ripe tomatoes from your garden and I bet that would provide enough liquid. Haven’t tried it, but why not? Mash it up good and throw it in. I think I’ll try that next time. Cut out a can. But when using canned, Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted are my favorite. Once it’s all cooked together, it simply looks and tastes like taco meat. Cut veggies smaller or puree them to keep them as visibly unobtrusive as your child requires.

Second point: how you serve food to the children makes a big difference. Calling the shells “boats” and letting children add their own passengers “All Aboard!” makes it fun for them. Set out all the topping choices in little bowls and let them build their own. By now every parent knows children are more likely to eat food they’ve had a hand in preparing. Get blue and yellow shells and let them choose colors. Then they’ll be more likely to eat two—one of each! Or use tortillas for a softer version. Set out corn kernels, olives, grated cheese, lettuce, beans, lentils, or whatever you want. My 22-month old likes an open-faced taco. We break his shell in half and top it with “just meat” and cheese. Of course, the “meat” is really meat plus a million veggies.

For “dessert” mine like to break up a taco shell and dip the pieces into any leftover guacamole. I use 2 avocados and a minimal amount of organic seasoning mix from Whole Foods. My older son loves to mash up the avocado and stir in the seasoning. Why not? It’s squishy fun.

I’m interested to know if this recipe works for people with picky children. Do say.

Check out this other idea I found from Kraftfoods. They make crisp taco “bowls” using tortillas and a muffin pan. Use the healthy meat/veggie mix in these bowls. Edible bowls are a big hit! Edible utensils could be, too. Carve/flatten the wide end of a long carrot, or just leave the carrot alone and refer to it as a spoon and see if the power of suggestion works.

--Sweet B