My daughter loved green foods from her first bite.  Spinach, zucchini, peas, brussel sprouts, asparagus - you name it! Out of the green family, her most favorite is broccoli. Her eyes would light up and start jumping out of her high chair when she saw me coming with it. She couldn't get enough. I felt like the luckiest Mom on the planet.

However, my luck was about to change. We were into the first couple of weeks of Kindergarten when, suddenly, she didn't like broccoli anymore. Ah, the joys of peer pressure.

I was no longer allowed to send her to school with broccoli and dip in her lunch bag because it was 'yucky'. If I did, it would come back the same way I sent it. I was so disheartened because we had worked so bloody hard from the age of 6 months to 11 months; the time frame most children are likely to eat anything and set the foundation for a lifetime of healthy eating habits, only for her to go to school and have all that work flushed down the toilet in one day. I had to find ways to get her to eat it again.

I stumbled upon this recipe a few weeks later when I was sitting in the dentist office, reading old issues of Cooking Light. I had 5 heads of broccoli in the refrigerator at home, one stubborn little girl, and desperation on my back. Willing to try anything, I made it that afternoon hoping for the best. Guess what?

Broccoli's back bitches!

BROCCOLI BREAD

Recipe adapted and slightly modified from Cooking Light Issue March 2002

4 eggs, beaten

¾ cup fat-free cottage cheese

½ cup fat-free sour cream

2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, melted

¾ teaspoon salt

1 package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and drained OR 1½ cup fresh broccoli, chopped

1 package corn muffin mix (such as Jiffy)

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl.

Add onion, broccoli, and muffin mix; stir until well blended.

Pour into 13 x 9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake for 27 minutes.

Yields: 12 servings.

Happy Baking!