Monica Irwin, the creator of Veggie Buds Club, recently Skyped with Twin Cities Live to discuss 4 simple snacktivities (1-2 ingredients!) that are guaranteed to keep your kids entertained and well-nourished. A snacktivity is simply a snack and activity combination, they are all guaranteed to make veggies fun for your kids!

September is Bean Month at Veggie Buds Club and we are excited to bring you this super green recipe from Katie at Eat Pretty Darling!

Sometimes children are apprehensive about trying foods because they don’t know how it will taste. Other times they are uncertain of the texture or they worry that if they eat one bite then they will have to finish all that is in front of them. Enter FOOD ART! Being creative with foods allows for a child to have food exposures without the commitment of actually eating the food AND it allows them to touch it to learn more about the texture. Children love crafts and it has been my experience that my boys creativity far outweighs my own. When we do food art they have incredible suggestions to add to my initial vision. ​

This month in honor of Veggie Buds Club's “bean theme”, the boys helped me make a vegetable based flower garden using beans and peppers. I had a vision for what we would do but they took over and added pepper seeds as “bugs”, and more shapes in the sky as birds and butterflies. After we made it everyone asked to eat some of the food and of course I said YES!!! A total win-win for fun with food followed by a nourishing snack. 

We are excited to bring you a new monthly series from Katie Blauser, the creator of Eat Pretty Darling. Each month on our blog we will feature a "Color of the Week" that corresponds with Veggie Buds Club's veggie of the month. We're featuring BEANS this month so we can't wait to focus on GREEN veggies!

​Let’s face it, we don’t all have access to farm stands and gardens year round to source our fresh produce each week. It’s not always feasible to have our kids helping to grow the food we eat either. Most of us have to count on the grocery store to fill our bellies, but there’s still a fun way to get the kids involved!

Each week we head out to to grocery store with a color to find! We stick to the produce section and try to pick 4-5 items that fit our color. Sometimes it’s the color on the outside, sometimes it’s the color on the inside. It’s a great way to get the kids excited about trying new things! Let your kids pick the items out. We try to get at least one thing he likes and some other things he hasn’t tried or is still learning to like. Even if I’ve offered him something a million times, he gets more interested in trying it if he had a hand in picking it out. Getting kids involved every step of the way can help your picky eater become a little more adventurous. Now go explore your grocery store! A colorful bounty awaits.

Now what to do with all of your colorful food? Try to incorporate these items into your weekly meals. How about a totally green meal such as these Green Bean Sticks with Green Dip?!

Ingredients

• 1 lb fresh green beans ends removed and cut in half
• 1/2 cup fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 avocado pitted and diced
• 3 green onions, remove roots and dark green
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

  Instructions

1. Blanch green beans in lightly salted boiling water 2-3 minutes until beans are tender. Quickly plunge beans in ice water. Once cooled, drain beans and place in a large bowl and set aside.
2. Put basil, lime juice, avocado, green onions, honey, Parmesan, and garlic in a food processor. While pulsing, drizzle olive oil through top until dressing is smooth, scraping down sides if necessary. Season dressing with salt and pepper.
3. Serve the bean sticks & dip right away or place covered in the fridge until chilled.

The dip can also be used as a sauce over zucchini noodles (another all green meal!) or even spread on a piece of toast.
 
Get the kids involved in cooking!
​Here’s some ways they can help for this recipe:

• Tear up the basil leaves
• Break off the ends of the green beans
• Press the button on the food processor
• Pull the beans out of the ice bath

These green beans are crispy, crunchy, and completely addictive. Kids can get their hands into all aspects of this recipe: use a kid-safe knife to trim the beans, measure and mix the ingredients for the flavorful breadcrumb coating, and take part in the “assembly line” breading of each green bean!

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound green beans
• 1 cup whole wheat Panko breadcrumbs*
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese**
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 large eggs***
• 1/4 cup flour
• Creamy Honey-Mustard Dip (recipe below) or other dipping sauce

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or coat with cooking spray.
2. Trim ends off of green beans and cut into 2 to 3-inch length pieces
3. Mix the bread crumbs, cheese, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and oil in a bowl. Whisk the eggs in a separate bowl. Place the flour in a third bowl.
4. Make an assembly line with the three bowls, first dipping the green beans into the flour, then the egg and finally into the bread crumb mixture, coating the beans evenly and repeating with the remainder of the beans. 
5. Place all of the coated green beans on the baking sheet. Arrange beans so that they’re not touching and bake for 12 minutes or until the bread crumbs are golden. Serve warm with a squeeze of fresh lemon and dipping sauce, if desired.

*Can use any kind of breadcrumbs, including gluten-free or substitute ground 
​almonds for a grain-free option. Flour can also be replaced with a gluten-free flour
blend or any starch (cornstarch, tapioca flour, or potato starch).
**For dairy-free option, substitute nutritional yeast or omit cheese.
***For egg-free option, use ¼ cup milk mixed with 1 tablespoon ground flax seed.

Simply dip broccoli florets in washable paint and use them as "paintbrushes" and/or slice broccoli florets in half to make "tree stamps". So simple and so fun!

Download this FREE letter "B" tracing sheet from Veggie Buds Club.

Download these FREE letter "B" coloring pages from Veggie Buds Club.

Have fun with these broccoli activity sheets! Create the letter "B" by using dot stickers or dot paint with Activity Sheet #1. Fill in the letter "B" with broccoli florets with Activity Sheet #2 (bonus if you have a laminator!).

Make a Tic Tac Toe board out of green beans and use two different types of dry beans as the X's and O's! You can also go a step further and create the letter "B" with dry beans and greens beans. Be sure to eat some green beans as a snack while you play!

We hope you enjoy this recipe that was included in Veggie Buds Club's "Kids Love Veggie Soup" box this month! It was developed by the very talented Heather Staller of Happy Kids Kitchen.

Get kids involved in the kitchen:

• Peel carrots
  
• Chop veggies (you can purchase our recommended kid-safe knife made by Foost in our shop)
  
• Add veggies to the pot
  
• Stir in those fun alphabet noodles

​
Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
  
• ½ small onion, cut into ¼-inch dice
  
• 1 large carrot, peeled and cut into ¼-inch dice
  
• 1 stalk celery, trimmed and cut into ¼-inch dice
  
• ¼ teaspoon Kosher or coarse sea salt, plus more to season
  
• 1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 1 medium sized waxy potato (red or yellow skinned), cut into ¼-inch dice
  
• ¼ teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
  
• ½ 15 ounce can crushed tomatoes (about ¾ cup)
  
• 3 cups vegetable broth, chicken broth, or water
  
• Handful of green beans, trimmed and cut into small rounds
  
• ½ cup frozen peas, frozen corn, or a combination of both
  
• ½ cup alphabet shaped pasta*
  
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil or micro basil
  
• Freshly ground pepper
  
• Parmesan cheese, for the top (optional)​

Instructions

1. Heat olive oil in a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, celery, and ¼ teaspoon of salt and cook until vegetables have softened slightly, about 5 minutes.
   
2. Add garlic, Italian seasoning, and potatoes. Stir an additional minute.
   
3. Add tomatoes, broth or water, green beans, and alphabet pasta. Bring pot up to a simmer and cook until vegetables are tender and pasta is cooked, about 10 minutes.
   
4. Stir in frozen peas then turn off heat and stir in fresh basil.
   
5. Taste soup for seasoning then add in pepper and additional salt, as needed.
   
6. Ladle into bowls and top with grated Parmesan cheese and a sprinkle of  extra basil, if desired.

*Cooked pasta will absorb lots of liquid if left in the soup for an extended period of time. If you’d like to make this soup in advance or freeze a portion to enjoy another time, you will want to cook your pasta in a separate pot, drain, then add to the portion of the soup you will be eating right away.