With school starting soon for our kiddo, school lunches have been on my mind. My little one is a, shall we say, a “selective” eater. (I use the term “selective” over “picky” so that when she reads these blog posts in 5 years, she won’t get quite so mad at me. Love you kiddo!)

Because of said selectiveness, I’m working a little harder on trying to come up with a variety of foodstuffs that she’ll actually eat when she opens her lunchbox at school.

To that end, we’ve spent a bit of time together browsing blogs and books for kid-friendly recipes to try, including the ever-inspiring weelicious. These breakfast cupcakes cued a jaw-drop for our daughter, but because of the cream cheese frosting, she ultimately gave them a thumbs down. (Note that this in no way a reflection of the recipe – most new foods are a bust with our kid, and everyone else gobbled them up!)

I really liked the base muffin recipe though, and wasn’t ready to let it go. It uses very little sugar, has a bit of protein from the nut butter, and is totally tasty with a little smear of jam.

And, I soon discovered, when you cut these cute mini muffins in half and put the jam inside, you’ve got the little mini muffin sandwiches! Even cuter!

Not only are they cute, but with the jam inside, they’re perfect for travel. Say, for school lunches!

Oh, and does our daughter like this version? Well, no, to be honest. No she does not. Because (silent sigh) … she doesn’t like jam. A smear of Nutella gets the thumbs up, though!

Baby steps, right?

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Homemade granola has been a favorite thing of mine for ages, but I’d never really ventured into making homemade granola bars until I started whipping up these bad boys. Why, oh why did I wait so long? Rhetorical question – I’m not really sure. But I am definitely happy I finally started.

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I first heard of it a few years ago when my friend, whose daughter is allergic to peanuts, started sending Sunbutter sandwiches to school as a substitute for peanut butter. And because I’m being kind of a weenie about introducing nuts to my own child, I bought some Sunbutter to see how she liked it.

She loves it – and so do I. This Sunbutter hummus might be the first of several Sunbutter recipes you see around here, because it’s kind of got my wheels turning. Sunbutter oatmeal cookies? Sunbutter no-bakes? Sunbutter, cheddar, and apple tortilla wraps? I must try them all. And then some.

(Note: I realize it sounds like it, but this is not a sponsored post! The Sunbutter people know nothing of me. I’m just kind of obsessed with the stuff right now.)

This recipe is simply an adaptation of my favorite classic hummus recipe. Instead of tahini, I used Sunbutter. And then I sprinkled the top with salted, roasted sunflower seeds.

I loooove this hummus. It still tastes like the real deal, but the sunbutter and sunflower seeds give it an unmistakenly sunflower-seed vibe. We dip carrot fries into it, spread it on rosemary crackers, and use it as a sandwich or wrap spread. And my toddler has been known to just eat hers plain by the palm-full.

And because I’m using Sunbutter on so many other things, I’m much more likely to have it in the refrigerator than the tahini it replaces. Bonus!

More Hummus Recipes

• Simple & Easy Classic Hummus
• Pumpkin Hummus
• Big-Batch Make-Ahead & Freeze Hummus
• Loaded Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
• Jalapeno Black-Eyed Pea Hummus
• Green Hummus
• Olive Hummus
• Roasted Beet Hummus

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Sunflower Hummus Recipe

A twist on classic hummus, this recipe substitutes Sunbutter – sunflower seed butter – for the tahini.

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 2 cups

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 1 can garbanzo beans aka chickpeas drained, liquid reserved
• 1/4 cup [url href=”http://www.sunbutter.com/products-creamy.php” target=”_blank”]creamy Sunbutter[/url]
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• ½ teaspoon salt plus more to taste
• Olive oil and salted roasted sunflower seeds for garnish

Instructions

• Add everything except the liquid from the garbanzo beans into your blender or food processor.
• Pulse, adding a tablespoonful of bean liquid at a time to help get things moving. Continue pureeing for a minute or so until completely smooth.
• Scoop into a bowl, top with sunflower seeds and a liberal drizzle of olive oil, and serve.
• Keeps refrigerated for 3 – 4 days.

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