Deceptively Delicious Applesauce Muffins

I’m one of the lucky parents who hasn’t had major struggle with getting my kids to eat their vegetables. Don’t get me wrong, there are some vegetables they may not like, but they almost always eat whatever I put in front of them. But y’all have asked me about how you can get your kids to eat more veggies and after doing some research I came across the book Deceptively Delicious. Author Jessica Seinfeld, shares all kinds of yummy recipes like these applesauce muffins, that have a serving of vegetables “hidden” in them, usually in puree form.

I personally don’t think we should have to “deceive” children to get them to eat their vegetables.

But I do know that there are some kids that just will NOT eat vegetables. Nope. They’re not going to do it. They’d rather starve. They really don’t care that children in Africa would love to have their peas or carrots. “Let’s send them Priority Mail, Mom!” For those kids, you may want to add a little something to food so they can get the added nutrition.

In the spirit of seeking vegetables into your children’s food, today we’re making applesauce muffins with the added secret ingredient: pureed carrots (or butternut squash). Surprise! But not a bad surprise like mystery meat. This mystery ingredient actually makes for a moist and sweet muffin.

I always have applesauce on hand.

My preference is to have my freezer stocked with homemade applesauce but when the little cups are on hand, I buy those to keep in my pantry. They are just the 1/2 cup serving that most recipes call for and that way there’s no waste.

Cook the carrots in minutes by just microwaving them in a little water until soft (about 5-6 minutes) or boiling them on the stove. To puree the carrots, you will either need a blender,  food processor, or even a mini food chopper. Add a little of the cooking liquid if the carrots aren’t quite pureeing. And this is definitely something you could make a big batch of to have on hand in your freezer or as well!

I use my cookie scoop a lot in the kitchen – especially when I make muffins.

It works great for these muffins, less mess and equal portion sizes. I like to be fair. I would never want Barry getting a bigger muffin than me… LOL.

What did I think about Jessica Seinfeld’s Deceptively Delicious Applesauce Muffins?

I would make these again! It was a very nice and moist muffin and I loved the addition of the carrot! I left mine a little chunky because I thought it would be pretty, and it was. But you can puree them so they totally mix in if your kids fear the carrot. The consistency wasn’t like a normal muffin; the applesauce makes them a little on the heavy side. But the kids and I still really liked them! If you have a child who doesn’t love carrots, I don’t think they’d ever notice them in these! And just think of all the beta carotene, Vitamin K, Vitamin B6 and potassium they are getting!

Okay…time to go add these to your next baking day. Do it. NOW! 🙂