This isn't much of a secret...for years nutritious have been telling parents to puree vegetables into recipes fo conceal the vegies from their kids and make mealtime more pleasant.

I believe that this idea was made popular first this last year by a woman named Missy Chase Lapine, whose cookbook "The Sneaky Chef" was made popular when featured on the Today Show. She has come up with a series of vegetable puree's to be used in anything from mac-n-cheese to brownies.

You're right! I've been doing this since my 11 yr old was a baby. I didn't buy store baby food - I made my own. It progressed from there. I am going to buy the book. I'm very curious about the dessert recipes! If she only would have added to use safe plastic containers instead of adding more baggies to our landfills, it would be the perfect book!

This weekend 7 friends and I got together to compare recipes from The Sneaky Chef (TSC) and Deceptively Delicious(DD). Our primary loyalty is to our kids and getting good food into them. We don't really care who did it first, just what works. We've been successfully sneaking for months and need more recipes now, so we were eagerly awaiting the release of Deceptively Delicious. We chose six duplicate recipes from each book (12 total) and did double-blind (where neither the server nor the child knows which is which-only the cook keeps track) side by side taste tests. The whole process took all day Sunday. We chose to make mashed potatoes, mac n cheese, peanut butter & jelly muffins, brownies, chicken nuggets and meat loaf. Summary: For one reason or another, **kids clearly preferred the recipes from TSC*.* The main reasons seemed to be that DD's were too sophisticated in flavors and the textures were off. The cooks felt that TSC was more geared towards kids' tastes, especially where picky eaters are concerned, and addressed the needs of the cook better. Roughly half of the recipes in Deceptively Delicious are the same as in The Sneaky Chef, which was disappointing since we're starved ; ) for new recipes at this point. The following are the detailed results: +Mashed Potatoes+: Kids' preference: TSC. Main reason: "Creamier." DD was called "watery" by most kids. Cooks found both recipes easy to make and would do so regularly. +Mac n cheese+: Kids' unanimous preference: TSC. Main reason: "the same as they're used to." Kids rejected DD version as "adult food" and would not eat it. Cooks' also preferred TSC. Reasons: DD has too many ingredients, is too expensive and time consuming to make regularly. +Peanut Butter & Jelly Muffins+: Kids' preference: none. A clear tie. This was probably due to the dominating peanut butter flavor in both recipes. Kids did prefer the appearance of DD, though, as the jelly was visible on top of the muffin and TSC is hidden inside. +Brownies+: Kids' unanimous preference: TSC. Main reason: DD had a slightly bitter to some kids but all found the texture "too pasty." Cooks found both recipes easy to make and would do so regularly. +Chicken Nuggets+: Kids preferred TSC overall. Main objection to DD: "too spicy and mushy." Cooks' also preferred TSC. Reasons: DD has too many ingredients and the flax meal contributed to the too-soft texture. +Meat Loaf:+ Kids unanimously preferred TSC. Unanimous objection to DD: "too spicy and mushy." Cooks' unanimously preferred TSC for texture and flavor. Note: The layout in DD is more clear and concise, and having the photos next to the recipes is also very helpful. TSC would take a lesson here. Finally, we hope that many more authors get on this sneaky bandwagon-we need more recipes!

If the secret is pureeing fruits/vegetables and adding it to everday recipes, well than that isn't a secret. I've been doing that for years. No biggie, very easy to do and kind of fun to watch your kids eat healthfully without realizing they are, lol.

Recipes similar to these have been around since my kids were small (they are 28 and 29 now!) but I think that we need to have a revival of these ideas frequently as a reminder to feed our children properly. All we have to do is look around us and see that the vast majority of people aren't paying attention. Maybe a few more parents will "get it" this time.

This idea isn't just good for kids, but for teens, and men too.

Yes, this has been going on for many years! My 85-year-old mom used to bake "zucchini muffins." And, I fed these vegetable purees to my 3 children (now teens) instead of jar baby food ... I still do it in pasta sauces for my picky 18-year-old. Shhhh!

I fed my babies pureed veggies when they were on baby food...so I can attest to how good they taste and the nutrition of them


however, I don't see how sneaking veggies into kid's food is going to help their eating habits in the long run. How is letting them believe they hate veggies going to help?

Isn't it better to teach children to try different things....this way they can learn to like certain foods w/ the nessisary vitamins and take that with them for life.

My kids certainly don't like every vegitable out there (the little girl choking on her lima beans reminded me of my kids and a few vegitables) but it's not hard to try different foods until you find something that clicks....my son loves peas and brocoli, my daughter's favorites are asparagus and mushrooms....so, that's what we cook the most. On other nights we will vary things up, looking for new things they like.

The rule in my house is, you take a bite of everything on your plate. At least one bite. There are no substitutions.

My husband and I also don't make a big deal about things WE don't like...if the kids hear me say that I don't care for cauliflower, of course they won't eat it! My husband doesn't eat mushrooms....yet, I cook with them and he quietly makes sure he doesn't scoop more than just a few onto his plate. The kids don't hear us talk about foods we don't like, so they don't get preconcieved notions.

anyway, I don't want to act on a high horse...the idea behind the book is good, at least kids are getting nutrients...but my opinion is that it's better in the long run to encourage kids to try new things, make the diet varied so that each kid can find a healthy favorite and teach them long term good eating habits.

-Katie in Virginia Beach.

What I did with my boys (usually 8 boys in state custody at the Texas Boys Ranch) was still serve veggies with every meal and used the take one bite rule. Because we were on a strict daily meal plan, if i knew my boys didn't like say, corn, then i would puree about 3/4 of it so they still get the nutrients they need. I would serve the other portion i didn't use as the side. Three bites and they were done! Works on my husband too...

Our daughter did not eat one bite of store bought baby food. I made it all at home from canned vegetables that I bought and ran thru the blender and then put in ice cube trays. After they were frozen, I took them out and put them in ziplock bags. I labeled them with the food and the date. I also made cubes of chicken and turkey and ground beef. I cooked them thoroughly and added some baby formula to make them like puree and then froze them. When it was time to eat, I just took out the cubes of food and thawed them in the microwave and she ate everything on her plate always. Also did the same thing with fruits. Applesauce went straight from the jar. I ran peaches and pears and fruitcocktail thru the blender. Then these were frozen. She never had a food allergy and I know for a fact that they tasted better than what comes in those baby food jars. I probably left out some food. But you get the idea. This is a whole lot cheaper than jars of baby food, too.

I'm glad to see so many viewers referencing Missy Chase Lapine's book "The Sneaky Chef". It does seem to be the same as what Jessica Seinfeld is talking about. WOuldn't have been better to have both guests on?? or is Jessica on because she is a celeb's wife? Seems Oprah staff should've done a little bit more research.

I'm watching the show right now and it is getting annoying with all the credit given Jessica Seinfeld. Oprah just said that Jessica is really onto something. I don't personally do the purees, but I know moms who do. Isn't it great that a celebrity can write a book on a subject that's been around for a while and people treat her like she's brilliant? I'm wondering how much nutritional value can really be packed into the coating of a chicken nugget. I'm not convinced.

Ditto to what most people are saying. We have hidden food in food in Ohio for decades so our kids will eat veggies.. I hope her book does well for her.

Please Oprah! Do not chew food with your mouth open, worse yet talking with chewed food in your mouth. My 7 year old daughter was grossed out.