Baking is what I do when I am feeling stressed and what I do when I am happy. I like to think that baking as a stress relief is a healthy practice… unfortunately it usually leads to eating as a stress relief, which is a less healthy practice.

But fear not…I’ve found the solution! Spinach muffins!

spinach muffins

Before you judge, hear me out. The ingredients are healthy ones…whole wheat flour, honey for the sweetener, a bunch of spinach, and a banana…but they are still muffins. In my mind, at least, they are a healthy snack! AND…they are delicious! My little Paddy friggin’ loves these!

my paddy

He asked specifically to make them a few weekends ago. We were smack dab in the middle of a move, but who am I to say no?

My sensitive, sweet, little boy is not a huge fan of loud noises. He is, however, willing to put on a brave face and tolerate the sound the blender makes if it means he gets these muffins (the same is true of the mixer for cookies and other treats). He helps me put all the ingredients in and we talk about why it makes a loud noise. He then holds my hand while it is on, just to be safe.

Baking with a toddler can be rough on my perfectionist tendencies, but the amount of joy and excitement Paddy gets when I let him help makes it worth it. And there is always the chance that he will pick up some skills and in a few years maybe he’ll be the one baking for me!