Somehow, we have been gifted a baby who will eat anything. We haven’t had a flat-out refusal at all … yet. I keep holding my breath because I know it can’t be this easy for ever. Or maybe he will always be easy with food and just not in other areas. After all, the tantrum potential from the baby Irishman is high. There are a few little signs brimming away. I just know that at some point, I am going to be trapped in a grocery store with a screaming toddler who is so furious he’s foaming at the mouth. I probably shouldn’t speak it into existence, but at the same time I feel like I should mentally prepare myself.

The latest success came when Atticus started drinking my green smoothie. I’d given him a taste and then he just kept going and going. It was so nice to see banana, peach and a whole lot of spinach flowing into that little body …. admittedly it’s not so nice on the other end, ha, but hopefully his Dad has to deal with that. The bigger Irishman is a killer diaper changer and, gosh, I love him for it!

Anyway, I digress. If you are able to get some greens into your weaning baby or older children, that’s wonderful. But if you are struggling and can’t even get a smoothie to work, then consider these amazing green muffins. All the wet ingredients go into a blender and then you just lightly whisk them into the dry. There’s so much goodness and not a lot of sugar — I would always just serve it after a dose of protein though to keep blood sugar as steady as possible. At breakfast, try some scrambled eggs first, or as a snack, try it after some plain Greek yoghurt, cheese or almond butter on a cracker or rice cake (whatever is age-appropriate for your kiddos.)

These muffins really do turn out bright green, so they are super fun for kids! They are fun for adults too.

Green smoothie muffins

Ingredients (makes 12)

(Wet mix)

4 cups fresh baby spinach, packed

1 cup frozen banana slices, defrosted

¾ cup room temperature almond milk

¼ cup maple syrup

1 large egg

½ cup extra virgin coconut oil, melted

(Dry mix)

2 cups Bobs Red Mill Paleo grain-free baking flour *

1 ½ tsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

Substitutions:

Frozen banana — fresh banana but make sure it’s very ripe

Almond milk — any regular milk or unsweetened plant milk

Maple syrup — honey

Grain-free baking flour — wholewheat or white wheat flour

Directions:

1, Preheat the oven to 350F

2, Prepare muffin cases by placing them in tins, and if necessary, spraying with non-stick spray. You can also use mini-muffins if you like and adjust cooking time as per below

3, In a large bowl, hand-whisk the dry ingredients together so they are well blended

4, Melt the coconut oil in a small pan on the stove top

5, Whiz all the green smoothie ingredients except the coconut oil together in a blender or bullet

6, Open the blender/bullet, add the coconut oil and whiz again. Make sure you remeasure the coconut oil once melted as the cold/warm measurements sometimes change! (When coconut oil hits cold/frozen ingredients, it can go lumpy — this is why we have the bananas and the almond milk at room temp. If this happens to you, just wait for the mix to warm a little and blend again.)

7, Hand-whisk the smoothie ingredients into the dry mix gently. Don’t over-mix

8, Fill cases two-thirds full and bake for approx 20 mins (regular size) or 17 mins (mini size.) Muffins should be firm but bouncy. They shouldn’t brown much at all on top!

• The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns, BA Hons, Dip ION, BNTA, is a fully qualified Nutritional Therapist trained by the Institute for Optimum Nutrition in Britain. Join Catherine on Facebook: www.facebook.com/nutrifitandnaturalnutritionbermuda or instagram @naturalbda