Charlie's favorite food. Chocolate chip cookies. He loves them. No matter what time of day, if I ask his opinion on what we should eat, he answers - "Cookies". For dinner? Yes, he says. So in my first attempt to trick Charlie into eating vegetables, it was totally fitting that I go for something he could not resist. I have the Deceptively Delicious cookbook by Jessica Seinfeld. I've had it forever and never once made anything out of it. It's basically about ways to hide healthy fruits and veggies in kid friendly food by pureeing them. I am a single mom with a full time job, and a five year old. Who the hell has time to puree things?
But now, I've been beaten into submission by that five year old. I need him to eat veggies and he won't. And I am going to puree.
Back to cookies. These are from scratch chocolate chip cookies with chickpeas in them. Yes, chickpeas. I don't like chickpeas at all, personally, and Charlie would never (ever, ever) eat a chickpea if asked to do so, ever. Here is the review:
These cookies were super easy to make. For this first recipe I didn't even have to puree! Chickpeas go in whole. WHOLE! They took no more time, really, than box cookies but, yes, a few minutes more than break and bake. I didn't expect much on flavor, and when I saw the final, baked product I was no more confident than before, although the chickpeas didn't appear obvious - they didn't look like toll house. However, after they cooled, I ate one and was immediately surprised. Delicious. DELICIOUS. Oh yeah...Charlie is mine. They are chocolatey and smooth, substantial yet not heavy. Really quite good. And filling!
I was nervous to give Charlie the cookie, because he is super big on the visual. If he doesn't like the looks of something, it is not going in his mouth. It's just not. I introduced them when Charlie was at his weakest. He gets in the car after his day at school/summer day camp (since it's summer time) and he always wants a snack. I was prepared for him today.
His first words struck fear in my heart - "This doesn't look like a chocolate chip cookies." He's not going to eat it, I thought. I have two dozen chickpea cookies and he isn't even going to taste it.
Amazingly, I convinced him it was just big, and he should try it and he did. First impression, "YUM!" He wanted more, he wanted them for dessert, he wanted them now and later and tomorrow. These are delicious, Mommy, he said.
I was on top of the world. Elated. I let my guard down. Ha.
Fast forward two minutes. "Mommy? I need something." What darling, what do you need, a drink? "No. A paper towel." By now I'm at a stop light and look back. He is chipmunk cheeked and making sort of a grimace. "I can't swallow, I need to spit it out."
And he did. A big chocolate mouth full of chickpea cookie right into a napkin for me to then take in my hand and hold until we got home. Joy. Sigh. I asked if he took to big of a bite, and he said yes. (I'll explain this another time) I asked if he still liked them and he said no. I asked if he wanted to try again later and he said no.
But try again we did, after dinner. He spit it out again. "I don't like these cookies he said. I just like the real chocolate chip cookies." Foiled.
I don't really know why. The texture seemed really good and I'm surprised he didn't eat it. I plan (Ha! Plan!!) to write a few posts about why I'm pureeing, and Charlie's food issues and such to explain some of maybe why and maybe not why Charlie does what he does with food, but bottom line is - Once I got past the visual of this cookie and it went in his mouth, I thought I was home free.
And so now I do have two dozen minus a few chickpea chocolate chip cookies, and a failed first experiment of sneaking veggies into Charlie's diet.
My spirit is already dampened but...Up, maybe tomorrow - Spinach Brownies.
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