Sweet Spinach Muffins
Got a picky eater? These kid-favorite muffins are 100% whole wheat, refined-sugar-free, and packed with fresh spinach!
“I like all the muffins you make, but these ones are my favorite.” My kind (and diplomatic) kindergartner told me this last week, after I served him a warm, buttered Sweet Spinach Muffin.
And I have to say, that boy has good taste. These muffins are addictively delicious, and chock full of fresh spinach to boot–an entire bag of it!
Speaking of the spinach, don’t be fooled by the verdant hue of these muffins; the greens don’t make waves, flavor-wise. Instead, the taste is sweet, cinnamony and moist, like a treat you’d serve with a cup of tea. This is true even though we only use half the sweetener you’d find in most muffin recipes.
There’s more goodness packed into these muffins: 100% whole grains, creamy banana, eggs and whole milk.
Plus they’re portable, freezable, and easy to eat with your fingers… I’m not trying to gush here, but did we just discover the world’s most perfect kid food?
What’s in a Name?
Some kids might shy away from the green color of these muffins; my daughter is one to reject a food just by the look of it. That can be aggravating, of course, but it’s a fact of life when feeding kids.
That doesn’t mean you can’t help them come around to new foods with a little help from branding. (Yup, that’s right. Sometimes you gotta use the same tricks as the marketers!) Here are some of the nicknames my kids and I came up with to give these muffins a little imaginative appeal:
Hulk Muffins
Green Goblins
Monster Muffins
Frog Muffins
Whatever you call them, be sure to tell your kids that these muffins are filled with spinach–tell them the spinach is what makes them so moist and colorful! That way they’ll know they love spinach, at least some of the time.