Spinach Balls and Other Fun Stuff

I’ve been through quite a few recipes for my kids.  They are really picky eaters.  I go back and forth beating myself up between, “you shouldn’t obsess about food so much and just give them whatever and they’ll probably be healthier on their own and accept more variety” and “you shouldn’t let them snack so much, need to be more ‘Bebe-ish’ and give them anchovies all the time” and “you need to make each meal and snack healthy and get those veggies in them or they’ll eat nothing but french fries and ice cream, be morbidly obese, get diabetes and cancer and you’ll fail completely as a mother.”  Oh and not to mention my 4 year old and 1.5 year old like completely different stuff.  As does my husband (a steak and potatoes guy) and myself (a relapsed vegetarian forced into eating organic chicken because I can’t continue to make myself delicious veggie entrees that no one else eats).

Similar issues to what every mother deals with…or at least that’s what I tell myself.  Good times for all.

Anyways, the real winners are when you find recipes that are easy to make, not overly complex in flavor but taste good, and healthy.  Enter Spinach Balls.  Found them on the website Picky Toddler Recipes.  I changed her recipe up a bit (see my version below) and they were a big hit with my toddler – got two lunches and a snack out of them!  Then I found my husband sneaking them in the middle of the night as well!

So, here they are…good luck :)

Ingredients
• 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 2 cups whole wheat Italian seasoned bread crumbs (Whole Foods has a good version)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 3 eggs, beaten

**I found the mix a bit dry, so I added some EVOO – Probably a tablespoon or two to make the balls stick better.

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl combine spinach, stuffing mix, Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, black pepper, Italian seasoning, melted butter and eggs. Shape into walnut-sized balls and place on a baking sheet.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until heated through and browned.

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