So, for the life of me I could not tell you the last time Leon ate a vegetable voluntarily. Because despite his arguments, tomatoes don’t count. Well, they do, but when he’s eating them and only them and saying he’s getting his 5 a day that way, just no.
As has become mine and Demi’s speciality, we took it upon ourselves to bake something with a hidden vegetable inside. She thinks it’s great we’re getting one up on her brother and I think it’s great the kid is eating carrots.
We had a bag of different coloured carrots in the fridge, orange, yellow and purple, courtesy of Costco. They’re actually super cool, Demi and Louis love eating the random colours, and I know that the brighter the food, the better for you it is. Win win.
While Leon was distracted playing with his cars, Demi and I sneakily pulled out the carrots and added them to our mixture. The end result? Leon had no idea! Something beautiful happens to carrots when you bake them, and with the addition of the vanilla and bit of honey, the carrot flavour was completely hidden and just added to the sweetness.
These are a must if you have fussy kids, have a bag of sad looking carrots lying in the bottom of your fridge, or if you just simply feel like a healthy cake. They smell delicious while they’re baking and my kids devoured them in two days. These will be my new go-to when Leon has gone awhile without a vegetable. Or, you know, when you buy the jumbo sized bag of carrots and then ignore them for that bit too long.

Low Sugar Carrot Muffins
Ingredients
8 small or 4 regular sized carrots
1/2 a cup of rolled oats
1 cup of wholemeal self raising flour
1 tsp of baking powder
2 eggs
1/3 of a cup of full cream milk
1/2 a cup of melted unsalted butter
1 tbls of honey
1 tsp of vanilla extract

Makes 10 muffins

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180°c.
2. Using either a grater or a food processor, depending on how hidden you want the carrots to be, work them into your desired consistency.
3. Melt the butter and honey in either the microwave or on the stove top until they are liquid.
4. In a large bowl mix together all the ingredients with a rubber spatula until a wet batter forms.
5. Grease a standard sized muffin tin and spoon the mixture in until the trays are 3/4 full. The oats will make them heavier at this stage but the baking powder will give them a rise and make them soft and fluffy once baked.

6. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
7. Cool on a wire rack.

Keep stored in an airtight container on the bench for up to five days.

And there you have it. Super light, super tasty carrot cakes. So easy to make, and if we can get more vegetables into our diets in the form of a sweet treat, then why not?

Nutrition facts based on one muffin.