Food is Once Again Fabulous!

I have a new all-time favorite book!!! No, it doesn't involve a vampire, a wizard, or even a hobbit. It does involve spinach! :) My mom, bless her bacon, bought me Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld (Jerry's wife). It is a very happy book to read...it oozes with cuteness...kind of like a Target commercial. It is my new little miracle, and here's why...

Zerin has a lot of sensory issues, and we have never been able to get him to do more than hold a fruit or vegetable in his fingers (and that was with a lot of screaming and crying), let alone eat one. Spaghetti sauce that isn't completely lumpless is a wash! Yogurt with litte raspberry seeds is a no go. And don't even get me started about fruits and veggies in their true form.

For months, we had him in occupational therapy trying to get him to eat, but to little or no avail. I would mix things into his food, but he could always tell. One night, in an effort to wear him down, I decided I would be tough and not let him leave the table until he ate one little tiny cooked carrot (it was a tiny diced square piece). He sat there til he fell asleep...with no food. The next morning, I told him he had to eat it before he could have breakfast...again, nothing. Lunch...same thing. I realized after that, and after talking with his OT therapist that he would almost definately starve to death rather than subject himself to eating vegetation. We weren't getting anywhere with this approach....so for a while, I kind of gave up.

Then this book! Tonight, I made sloppy joes, and hidden silently inside, was some butternut squash. And guess what?! He gobbled it up!!!! I couldn't even tell it was in there! No more doctors' appointments hanging my head in shame because I know my son eats less than a third of the food pyramid! Her recipes are easy (which for me is a huge bonus) but she teaches you how to do it so you can hide things in your own recipes successfully. I am seriously giddy :)