Food Network's Iron Chef Cat Cora

I am the mom of a picky 3 year old. At our early childhood and family education classes we call this the macaroni and pb&j diet. He will not eat most vegetables the only one he really eats straight out is corn. I have found that he will drink the new v-fusion juice and morning selects vegetable breakfast sausages. Do you have any recipes/ideas for sneaking in vegetables? How parents can make a homemade veggie sausage patty? Also if you have any tips on how to create a good basic shopping list and menu plan that is quick and easy for us parents that maybe organizationally and/or time challenged that would be of great help! Thanks in advance!

One trick I use is making pancakes for lunch or dinner, yes, that's right pancakes! Most kids love pancakes and mine is no exception. So, I put all types of veggies, corn, broccoli, peas and more in the processor and grind them up. Then, I add small dices of chicken or any protein. I mix it all into a healthy pancake batter (using soy milk and go light on the eggs). I serve the pancakes with a little drizzle of maple syrup or honey and voila! he's eating his vegetables and protein. He loves it and I have peace of mind.

Making homemade sausage is also quite easy. Just take ground turkey, pork, chicken or whatever you like and add in some seasoning...oregano, fennel, garlic powder or onion...and make patties. Sear them in a pan until they are done and serve! Delicioso!

One last time is to plan your menus in advance, say a Sunday night, for the whole week. Get your kids involved as well. Maybe each of them gets a night where their menu is presented. Then make a shopping list based on the menu that is within your budget.