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That smoothie didn't have a chance. And, yes, he drank most of my portion, too. by Sarah Henning

So, last week was our first week of the year without a CSA. Which stinks, but which is also inevitable when living in our neck of the woods (stupid hard winters). That said, one of the questions I consistently get when blogging weekly about what my family eats is this:

"Does your kid REALLY eat that?"

Well, yes and no.

Truth be told, my little guy (who is nearly 3) is just as picky as any other toddler out there. There are days when he would give any college student a run for his or her mono-mealing money. Yes, he'll request cheese morning noon and night. He ate dried cranberries at every single meal last Sunday. Whenever we eat out he'll eat nothing but French fries, no matter where we are.

But, at the same time, he does tend to make pretty good choices (French fries aside). And one of his favorite choices is also a really sneaky way to keep his fruit and veggie intake high, no matter how much cheese he ate in the last 24 hour period: smoothies.

If you've checked out the other smoothies (and juices) on this blog, you may have noticed there's not much to them. They're usually just fruit and water, maybe some spinach thrown in for color or protein powder for an extra kick. I don't like to add a bunch of bells and whistles because then I become accustomed to them and so does my little guy, who will drink nearly anything we give him as long as he gets to "pick his straw" (we use the "decorative dots" from Glass Dharma).

So, generally, anytime I make a smoothie, he'll drink it. And yes, there is photographic evidence of him drinking:

The kiddo tears into his smoothie. He doesn't seem to care what flavor it is, as long as he gets to pick out his straw (we use reusable glass straws from Glass Dharma). by Sarah Henning

So, Saturday, before a trip to the Lawrence Farmers' Market, I made a double version of one of my favorites, the Cherry Chocolate Bomb Smoothie from my friend Kristen.

And he drank all of his, plus half of mine. Such a hoss (as you can see from the first photo). Try it on your kids and you might just have them thinking they're getting a treat when really they're getting super nutrition.

Cherry Chocolate Bomb Smoothie (Recipe by Kristen Suzanne)

1 cup filtered water

1 frozen banana, chopped

1 cup frozen cherries

1/4 cup hemp protein powder (I rarely use it)

2 tablespoons hemp seeds (Not necessary, but they have a bunch of good fats!)

2 tablespoons raw chocolate powder

Splash vanilla extract

Blend this goodness up, and enjoy it as it helps make your day one of the best days ever!