Did you know that today’s food holiday is National Zucchini Bread Day? Well, I didn’t make bread for today, but I did make a delicious dinner last night that included zucchini!

Since my daughter just turned a year old (!!) yesterday, I’ve been putting my “chef” hat on to come up with easy dinners for her to eat that also includes vegetables. Her first experience with zucchini was not a positive one. I pureed it and she ended up having quite the visceral reaction, spitting it up all over the place. Since she now has four teeth (with two more poking through), I figured it was safe enough to create a dish that I could reintroduce the vegetable to her. And I’m happy to report that she ate the entire serving I gave her! I checked to make sure it wasn’t hiding in her high-chair or to see if it made it onto the floor; it was not and it did not!

Before I get to the recipe I just want to say a HAPPY BIRTHDAY (yesterday) to our dear sweet daughter! Mommy and daddy love you very much!

Turkey & Zucchini Meatballs
Makes 15 Medium-Sized Meatballs

Ingredients
1 1/2 lb ground turkey (I used 93% lean)
1 cup finely chopped zucchini
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated parmesan
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons parsley
1 egg

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 375*
2) Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray (or use a silicone liner).
3) Add all ingredients (except the egg) in a bowl.
4) Whisk the egg, then add to the ingredients.
5) Mix well
6) Roll into medium sized balls (I just eye-balled the size)
7) Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the center is at 165*.

Serve and enjoy!

I added mine to some angel hair pasta with pasta sauce.

David is a bit of a tough critic and even he enjoyed these! They will definitely be added to our meal rotation. 🙂

What is your favorite recipe to use when trying to introduce a new food?