Kid Approved Broccoli "Meat" Balls

When Max was little I never ever had a problem getting him to eat his veggies. He was never the wiser about all the amazing sour candies and sugar cereals that his daddy was indulging in. Now that he is the big five and he..."can do whatever he wants",figuring out a way to get him to eat them now makes me feel like I am searching for the fountain of youth. It takes some serious thought and planning.

Max loves, loves, loves spaghetti...it is his favorite and what he requested for his birthday dinner. I always blend in carrots, and cauliflower into the sauce and occasionally I roast a big spaghetti squash and use that instead of noodles. *If you haven't done that and would like to know how comment and let me know, I would love to share that recipe! Along with his spaghetti obsession he loves meatballs. I came across this recipe the other day and thought, "What if I could make a 90% vegetable version of spaghetti and trick him into eating it. We eat spaghetti once a week and this would be perfect!"

This recipe took some work, I will be honest but Max got involved and helped and the final product was approved by my sugar loving carnivorous five year old! I followed the original recipe which calls for Parmesan cheese but in the future I may use cheddar cheese and increase the amount of egg.

You will need:

One head fresh broccoli
1/4 cup pine nuts or almonds
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese or cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cup bread crumbs
3 eggs (this is the increased ingredient)
salt and pepper

I added bread crumbs, cheese and salt and pepper.

I mixed the eggs with my hands, so you can do that if you do not have a food processor. 

Let the kiddos help!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut broccoli into workable florets and steam until tender. In a food processor combine broccoli, cheese, breadcrumbs and eggs. Blend well until the mixture forms. Form "meatballs" and place in a greased muffin tin. Option: you may top with a bit of cheese. Bake for 20 minutes. Let cool and then remove from pan carefully. Serve with pasta, on a hoagie like a meatball sandwich or eat them by themselves! SO good!!!!

This is what cooking is like for me! I know I am not the only one who has a baby or several begging for your attention while you are busy! Isn't their timing great! #thestruggleisreal lol