Dear Ms. Missy,
"For my science fair project, I'm going to do a taste test. I will make people taste cookies and brownies with vegetables in them. We are going to tell them that sample b has vegetables in it. Sample a we are not going to say anything about the vegetables.
How do you get the vegetables in them?
How do you hide the taste of the vegetables?
How do you pick vegetables that will taste good in treats?
How healthy is the brownies and cookies as the brownies and cookies without vegetables?"
from Emma R.
Grade 1
Mom's Note: Thanks again for all of your help with this project. Emma is "too scared" to talk to you on the phone. So, she wanted to email her questions to you. As you can see, the questions are in her own voice. Please, don't hesitate to ask if you need clarification!
Hi Ashley and Emma,
It’s my pleasure to help with your science project. You seem to be an A++ student and I am very impressed with your hard work!! So here are the answers to your excellent questions:
How do you get the vegetables in them?
I like to blend or “puree” vegetables (after I steam them a little) and then they are creamy and smooth and I can mix them into sauces and batters. It helps to hide them if they smooth, not chunky – that way kids can’t see them in the food.
How do you hide the taste of the vegetables?
I choose really healthy vegetables that don’t have a lot of taste on their own. They are “bland” in flavor. Surprisingly, even raw baby spinach is mild and bland in flavor (not like canned or frozen spinach…yuck!) It also helps to cover up the taste of the veggies by using a “decoy” yummy taste like chocolate (in the brownies) or cheese (in the pizza) or tomato sauce (in pasta sauce).
How do you pick vegetables that will taste good in treats?
I try to pick fruits and veggies that will make the treats taste naturally sweeter and even better. Like blueberries in my chocolate brownies—they make the brownies taste sweeter (and you definitely never taste the spinach). I like to bake treats with carrots and sweet potatoes (or “yams”) because these vegetables are naturally really sweet and when you mix them with peanut butter or banana or into a cake you can’t taste them at all, but somehow the treat taste sweeter (and you can use less sugar).
How healthy is the brownies and cookies as the brownies and cookies without vegetables?"
In my opinion, you can have treats in “moderation” – that means not too much or too often! I try not to forbid any “junk” food in my house, because if I do, my daughters will just eat more junk at friends’ houses! But using Sneaky Chef methods, you can see I’m making treats taste just like yummy desserts, but with better-for-you ingredients. Like the brownies – almost all of the ingredients are healthy (although I wouldn’t recommend skipping lunch and just eating the brownies!) They have whole grains, blueberries, and even spinach, so they are pretty healthy as far as brownies go! And I was able to use less sugar and butter (the “not-so-good” stuff) and put more good stuff into them, so they are way healthier than normal brownies and cookies. Most brownies and cookies at the bakery have more than double the amount of butter and sugar!
GREAT JOB EMMA!! PLEASE SEND PHOTOS!
MISSSY