What’s your easy healthy dinner? When I don’t have time, I often make pasta and pesto for my kids. And they love it. It’s fresh, tasty, it has grated cheese on top, and is basically a treasure hunt in itself, because they look for what ingredients I added in there.

What is so special about my pesto?

I have several pesto recipes. One is fresh rosemary pesto, made with pecorino ( sheep cheese). One is “regular” pesto, meaning the most famous basil pesto. I make in the spring / summer with my fresh basil and pine nuts. I don’t use traditional parmesan but pecorino instead.

When I make pesto in the summer, I make several jars and keep them in the fridge with a tick layer of olive oil, for a few months (it does not last that to finish my enormous jar).

Pesto Three Ways

My last recipe is a pesto I make in the fall winter when I no longer have fresh basil or rosemary. I use dried basil and one leafy vegetable, kale or parsley, and mix it with some nuts or seeds (walnut, hemp, pumpkin seeds or pine nuts) or a mix of them. This pesto is the one I use in the winter when I run out of the other ones. I do not keep that pesto more than one or two weeks, so I won’t make a huge jar. I make it with raw vegetables.

They all taste great with organic wheat or gluten free pasta, pesto sauce and a 3-5 different steamed vegetables. Sometimes it is a totally vegan recipe, sometimes I add steamed chicken to the mix. Either way this recipe is very customizable.

Why do I love pesto so much ?

If you have picky kids, that don’t like anything green for the sake if its greenness, pesto is a great way to make them eat green stuff.

I started my kids on pesto early on. At first I fed them simply steamed vegetables, immersion blended with some olive oil. Pesto was one of the next steps with other foods like rice, pasta or else. I ALWAYS feed some vegetables first, most of the time it would be the first thing I’d serve. They developed no aversion towards green things because one of the things they loved the most were dark green !

Will my kids eat the Steamed vegetables with the pasta and pesto?

The answer is Yes, at least as far as my own kids are concerned.

But I have brought this dish to as a meal train many times, always adding many vegetables to the mix, and they always loved it. One friend summed it up nicely “there was something for everyone”! And because there is a vegetable everyone likes, they are more amenable to eating all of them.

Steamed Vegetables mixed In

I prefer mixing all the vegetables in one meal rather than serving a plate and everyone picks what they like. Why? Because when we are presented with a choice, we tend to get what we know and like, and rely on our preconceived ideas of what we don’t like, so we won’t eat that.

Like adults, kids won’t try something if they think they don’t like it, (unless you, parent, eat it and seem to love it!) . If everything is in the dish, they are more likely to eat it with the rest. I do believe that’s how I got my kids to eat almost everything without hiding them: they know what it looks like.

My philosophy of kids feeding Healthy

My philosophy of feeding kids is : I am trying my best to buy healthy ingredients and make food with it for everyone,, I have no money or time make two menues. I sometimes say: if you won’t eat so you’ll go hungry! It would be sad not to try. You never know, you may actually like it!!

Our house rule is: we all eat everything that there is in the dish. And if we don’t like it, we at least try three bites.

Always try a few bites!

The reason they absolutely need to try what mom ( or dad) makes is : our tastebuds do change and adapt to what we eat. The more we expose our kids to healthy options ( ideally only healthy options at least the first few years) the more these will grow on them. No more pressure needs be applied

Usually it is not much of a problem, because steaming foods retains most of the natural taste and preserves taste intensity and texture, so vegetables are not tasteless, mushy and bitter, as in when foods are cooked for an excessive amount of time..

Why feed Raw or Steamed vegetables first every meal ?

I start meals with vegetables ( whole or grated carrots, salad,, a green dip) or the warm dish, and I will only serve sweet foods ( dessert is a fruit in my house) after they have their dinner. If they really don’t like it, I’ll help and take some off the plate.. The reason is, it’s harder to eat savory foods after eating sweet foods ! So the sweet comes last.

Pasta and pesto… and more!

Yes I do love a great pesto sauce in my pasta. But then my plate feels so empty, with only two ingredients ( or one, if you just see green pasta). I do need more texture than that. Is that me?

So I always add more. So much “goodies” that one of my roommate once thought I was having a (assumedly cold) pasta salad.

What do I add to pasta and pesto ?

• Mini tomatoes, for the juice. I cut them in half and add them at the last minute. If I don’t have any, I sometimes add sun dried tomatoes;
• Shaved almonds, for the crunch;
• Slices of zucchini ( steamed 3 minutes, so it is still crunchy);
• Steamed bella (or mini bella) mushrooms, sliced;
• Shallots, or onions, diced and steamed;
• Sometimes, steamed broccoli;
• Sometimes but not always, steamed chicken mixed in pesto;
• Kale ( steamed ONE minute) or raw baby arugula;
• Diced pepper ( steamed or raw);
• You may add diced and steamed eggplant!

How much raw and steamed vegetables?

It depends on how much pasta I make. For my kids and I, a pound of pasta is more than enough, especially with all the veggies and if I add chicken.

I usually steam all vegetables a few minutes.

Then I transfer to a skillet for 3 more minutes where I mix with olive oil, salt, pepper, and the juices mix up together. If I am in a hurry, I skip that step.

After removing the veggies from the sieve of the steam cooker, I drain the pasta, move them to a big bowl or return them in the empty pot, add oil, salt, pesto sauce to taste, and the mix of vegetables, arugula if appropriate ( to taste), and chicken. At the end, I add shaved almonds.

And dinner is served !

My kids love to grate pecorino (sheep ) cheese on top, of course, whether my pesto has cheese in it or not.

An easy and fast meal

It is really an easy meal, and it may take a bit more time than simple pasta and pesto with nothing else, for sure. But for veggies lovers out there, it does not take much to add veggies to the pesto pasta. Just turn on your steam cooker (with water! ) just before boiling water for pasta. Cut veggies while the pasta water and the steam cooker heat up, steam a bit of chicken right after veggies are cooked. Steamed vegetables and chicken are cooked, or close to be, within the time you would be ready to serve pasta and pesto sauce alone…

Without further ado, I give you my winter vegan pesto and veggies!

Want more Kids Friendly Recipes? Try

• Mediterranean Tuna Salad
• These days you should definitely try the Einkorn King’s Cake
• Tired of Pizza? Kids still love a good Tomato Tarte
• The whole family fills up great on the Kale and Quinoa Lemony Goodness Salad
• An appetizer? Try the Zucchini boat with egg sauce!