• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Veggie Mama

Where friendly veg recipes and the 90s combine.

  • Home
  • About
    • Contact
    • Freelance Writing and Editing/Social Media Services
  • Recipes
    • Baking
    • Basics
    • Breakfast
    • Kid Food
    • Lunchbox
      • Lunch
    • Dinner
    • Vegetarian
    • Vegan
    • Soup
    • Side Dishes
    • Snacks
    • Dessert / Sweet Things
    • Special Occasion
    • Party Food + Little Bits
    • Sauces / Relishes / Jams
    • Drinks
  • Life + Family
    • Health + Happiness
    • Kid Food
    • Blogging
    • Motherhood
    • The Throne Rangers Podcast: For Big Fans of the Royal Fam
    • I’m a ’90s kid
      • Sweet Teen Club Podcast
    • The Veggie Mama Dream Book
  • Home + Hearth
    • Around the Home
    • Grow your own food
    • Read
    • Make
    • Activities for toddlers
    • Craft
    • Stuff For Kids
  • Travel
  • Throne Rangers Podcast

Meatless Monday kid food: carrot and avocado quinoa bites

May 6, 2013 by Stacey 35 Comments

quinoa-balls-for-kidsRemember the other day on Facebook I mentioned Abby finally ate something for dinner other than a sandwich? I was ecstatic. After almost a year of sandwiches, cereal or yogurt for dinner (and not much variety at other times of the day either, despite my repeated offerings of everything from apples to zucchini), she didn’t immediately just say “no!” when presented with a plate of something she’d never eaten before.

That plate was this one – little quinoa balls filled with grated carrot, cheese and mashed avocado.

I have tried everything to get her to eat a wide variety of food, but I also never pushed it. I was convinced she would grow out of it and if she didn’t, then I could deal with it when she was old enough to reason with. The problem wasn’t taste, or texture, because the food never made it to her mouth. She would literally look at a plate and refuse it, never even taking a bite. But I pushed on and I am so glad I did. (Mind you, when Pepper was a newborn I slacked off a bit, but have stepped it up again recently and have had several successful attempts with pasta and boiled eggs with toast soldiers. Baby steps!)

The funny thing was, she wouldn’t even try things most kids like. My mum tried to give her ice cream once and she just about screamed the house down.

quinoa-balls-for-kids-2What I realised when I bit into one, how much like a meatball they were. I think with similar seasonings you could throw them in a spaghetti and meatball situation, or make them slightly bigger for rissoles or burgers. I tried very hard to make them balls, but I also wanted to make them gluten free so the ended up being mini burgers as they were quite soft and wouldn’t hold their shape when flipped! Feel free to sub regular flour if you like.

The main thing is they tasted good AND THEY GOT EATEN. Score.

As mentioned in the recipe card, they can be baked. And for the record, the broccoli never went near her mouth.

Carrot and avocado quinoa bites

Print recipe
  • Print with main photo
  • Print text only
Carrot and avocado quinoa bites

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cooked quinoa (cooled)
  • 1 Medium carrot, grated
  • 150g tasty cheese, grated
  • 1 Avocado, mashed
  • 2 eggs, beatend
  • 1 pinch each salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1/4 cup buckwheat flour

Directions

Step 1
Mix all ingredients together.
Step 2
Heat a frying pan over medium heat with a little oil. (alternatively you can place them on a baking tray and bake at 200C for 20-30 minutes until golden brown and firm) Form into little balls or patties and fry 10 minutes on one side until golden brown, and then turn and fry a few minutes more. You just want the binding egg to do its work.
Step 3
Drain on absorbent paper (omitting this step if you have oven-baked).
Powered by GetMeCooking



Filed Under: Kid Food, Lunchbox

Previous Post: « Simple and easy bagel burgers + onion rings
Next Post: Veggie Mama reviews: Eco Tan »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Reannon Hope says

    May 6, 2013 at 11:33 am

    I’m always looking at ways I can convince myself I like quinoa so I might give these a go 🙂

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 11:40 am

      I like it way better than cous cous and things like that. I’m actually really stoked I like it as much as I do!

      Reply
  2. Sitdownmummy.com says

    May 6, 2013 at 11:40 am

    Yay Abby. These look great VM. I’m going to try them this week.

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:58 pm

      Maybe they can fling these at each other instead of other things? 😉

      Reply
  3. Lizzie B says

    May 6, 2013 at 11:54 am

    Yay for something getting eaten! These sound delicious too, definitely not just kid food!

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:58 pm

      Oh I definitely enjoyed them!

      Reply
  4. Miriam Simmons says

    May 6, 2013 at 11:58 am

    Having just found out that hubby is away until Friday for work now (2 day trip turned into 5!) I will be giving these a go tomorrow night. Emily is the same as Abbey and there’s only so many vegemite sandwiches I can hand out for dinner…..

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:58 pm

      Oh man, I’ve got a solo parenting gig at the end of this week too… sandwiches all round, I’m guessing!

      Reply
  5. foodforlittlesouls says

    May 6, 2013 at 12:04 pm

    Oh i will definitely be trying this recipe. I too have a little girl who on some days lives on cereal, yoghurt, bananas and that is it. Have limited success with anything else but these looks delicious so i will give it a go. Will let you know how it goes. Thanks

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:57 pm

      oh yep, bananas are king here! Please do let me know, I’d love to hear if someone else’s tinies are interested 🙂

      Reply
  6. MotherDownUnder says

    May 6, 2013 at 12:30 pm

    What is it about a ball that makes kids want to eat them? Toddler C loves a ball.
    He doesn’t do sandwiches though…weird kid.

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:55 pm

      haha it’s the first savoury ball I’ve had success with! the date and coconut ones were a hit.

      Reply
  7. Nikki | Styling You says

    May 6, 2013 at 1:12 pm

    I want these for me! Promise I’ll eat my broccoli too.

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:56 pm

      I had half the batch for lunch… so good!

      Reply
  8. Kirrily Whatman says

    May 6, 2013 at 1:22 pm

    No wonder she did, they sound awesome. Thank you! Recipe printed. Anticipating awesomeness.

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:56 pm

      haha if they’re for adults, then make sure you add a bit more salt or flavour – or serve them with an amazing sauce!

      Reply
  9. Polly says

    May 6, 2013 at 2:40 pm

    Whenever I can get my kids to eat something other than a sandwich I almost backflip with excitement. Spaghetti bolognaise is a huge winner here and at last I have cottoned on to the reason why we ate so much of it as kids!

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:56 pm

      oh yes, my mom made that so much that I can’t stomach it now! I’m going to try spaghetti and “meatballs” next.

      Reply
  10. Katie Rainbird says

    May 6, 2013 at 3:00 pm

    She didn’t eat the broccoli? Get out! (Ha!) Nice invention Mama 🙂

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:55 pm

      tonight she had a spoonful of pureed pumpkin and broccoli that pepper was having… win.

      Reply
  11. Shari Wakefield says

    May 6, 2013 at 4:33 pm

    They sound delicious – even for adults… Congratulations on getting your little one to eat them.

    Reply
    • Veggie Mama says

      May 6, 2013 at 8:55 pm

      Thank you, I still can’t quite believe it!

      Reply
  12. Erica says

    May 6, 2013 at 8:58 pm

    Sounds yum!

    Reply
  13. Diane says

    May 6, 2013 at 11:18 pm

    Kids and foods can be discouraging. My kids are tweens and still go through weird periods with foods they like and don’t like. I just keep making one meal for the family sometimes they eat it; sometimes they don’t. I try to remember my pediatricans advice: a kid may need to be exposed to a food 10 times before he will be open to it. When you think about it, that’s a lot. Good luck, the quinoa bites are a big success, such a nutritious food.

    Reply
  14. fritha strickland says

    May 7, 2013 at 12:14 am

    Brilliant, am so making these for Wilf. He is bonkers, he wont eat cheese sandwiches but will gobble down quinoa like its nobody’s business. It’s embarrassing, SO middle class 😉 once he ate quinoa for dinner then blueberries for dessert, I found myself taking a photo of it then laughed at the thought of frozen potato waffles he had had for lunch. Anyway I digress, good ideas again lady! xx

    Reply
  15. Lisa Mckenzie says

    May 7, 2013 at 2:29 pm

    Yummy I am going to make these as a recent convert to Quinoa I have made one thing with it and it was not a total success but these will be,If Abby will eat them maybe my husband will ,though i know he won’t eat the broccoli either,Thankyou for sharing your recipes,and Abby will get better at eating some day,my daughter lived on a diet of breast milk and toast for quite some time and then one day she started to eat and i didn’t say much cause you have to pretend you don’t care,just keep on leaving food around and she may well eat it x

    Reply
  16. Mushroom Enthusiast says

    May 7, 2013 at 5:22 pm

    As a parent of a fussy eater (one who has grown out of it and another in the thick of it), I feel your pain. Perhaps you could blend in some mushrooms (yes I know that generally young ones don’t like mushrooms) to give it some more meat-like texture and mouth feel. Who knows what will prove a winner. Well done on winning this skirmish with a great little recipe.

    Reply
  17. Angela Smith says

    January 18, 2014 at 12:14 am

    If you soak the quinoa overnight and then cook it with a very small amount of water for about 30 mins it will stodge up nicely and stick together to make balls. I’ve just made some indian spiced ones for dinner tonight, mmmmmmmm.

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. In my kitchen – Meatless Mondays: Orange Veggie Soup | Addicted to Handmade says:
    May 6, 2013 at 8:56 pm

    […] I’m linking up with Veggie Mama for Meatless Mondays.  Check out her post from this week here. […]

    Reply
  2. best cooking websites that i love | theparentingfiles says:
    May 26, 2013 at 10:48 am

    […] are the best!!! But of course, she has other fabulous recipes too! I am soon to make her carrot and avocado and quinoa bites, hoping that the kids will eat them if I display them as a funny face like she […]

    Reply
  3. Kid food – lunch | The Veggie Mama says:
    May 29, 2013 at 4:31 am

    […] her palate, but I was just so busy. And tired. Anyway, I’m still tired, but I’ve had some luck recently with Abby deviating from her normal food schedule, AND Pepper is on solids, so I’ve […]

    Reply
  4. The Fussy Eater: How far we've come - The Veggie Mama says:
    May 14, 2014 at 6:29 am

    […] since that day when she was 13 months old and refused her lunch, she has been wary of new food. For the longest time, she point-blank refused to eat anything except peanut butter sandwiches, fruit, yogurt, and […]

    Reply
  5. RECIPE: Quinoa "Meatballs" - The Veggie Mama says:
    July 27, 2014 at 1:52 pm

    […] than the lovely fluffy grains I’m used to. Crossed with the ideas that came after these veggie-packed kiddo quinoa bites that were such a hit with my […]

    Reply
  6. 10 Whole Food Meatball Recipes - Natural New Age Mum says:
    October 15, 2015 at 9:36 pm

    […] Carrot and Avocado Quinoa Balls by Veggie Mama […]

    Reply
  7. The Ultimate Coronavirus Cooking Guide: Using your stores, making the basics, stretching it out. | Veggie Mama says:
    March 19, 2020 at 10:14 pm

    […] – veggie quinoa bites – lemon quinoa salad with herbs and feta – carrot and avocado quinoa bites – quinoa fritters – roasted veggie quinoa burgers – roast vegetable and quinoa […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

 photo bloglovin_zpsc08b1cb6.png photo facebook_zpsbe931930.png photo pinterest_zps5f953e84.png photo twitter_zps0bd5425a.png photo instagram_zps798a3f4e.png photo google_zpsfc9b6d2c.png

View posts by category

View posts by month

Dispatch from the Kitchen Front

Sign up for the newsletter - it's a Very Nice Time.

Thank you!

You have successfully joined our subscriber list.

Blogroll

  • Kimba Likes
  • Down to Earth
  • Style and Shenanigans
  • Champagne Cartel
  • Lavender and Lovage
  • Cooker and a Looker
  • Patchwork Cactus
  • The Shady Baker
  • Clairey Hewitt
  • Suger Coat It
  • Styling You
  • Mogantosh
  • The Pioneer Woman
  • Our Ash Grove
  • Posie Gets Cozy
  • Whole Family Rhythms
  • Smaggle
  • Normal Ness
  • Miss Chardy
  • Local is Lovely
  • Meet Me at Mikes
  • Faux Fuchsia
  • The Back Yard Lemon Tree
  • Picklebums
  • Pinky Poinker
  • Allison Tait Author
  • Blossom Heart Quilts
  • Cook Suck
  • Baby Mac
  • The Art of Simple
  • Local Milk
  • Woogsworld
  • My Wholefood Romance
  • Apples Under My Bed
  • Me and Orla
  • Attic 24
  • Not Quite Nigella
  • Samelia's Mum
  • Hugo & Elsa
  • My Darling Lemon Thyme
  • MagnetoBoldToo
  • The Plumbette
  • Foxslane
  • Tinned Tomatoes
  • Green Kitchen Stories
  • I Spy Plum Pie
  • From Berkshire to Buckingham
  • Naomi Loves
  • The Annoyed Thyroid
  • Practising Simplicity
  • Duchess Kate
  • Motherwho
  • Design Mom
  • The Little Mumma
  • Handbag Mafia
  • Fat Mum Slim
  • 101 Cookbooks
  • Lunch Lady

The Organic Place Recipe Roundup #3

Gnocchi with Ratatouille Sauce

Categories

Archives

Copyright © 2021 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress