This healthy and filling Sunshine Sammie is made with a golden beet, orange and cream cheese spread topped with a sprinkle of shredded carrots, that will instantly put a smile on your face!

Kid friendly vegetarian sandwich with carrots and beets in a metal lunchbox.
This Sunshine Sammie is all like  ✨☀️😄☀️✨

Don’t mind the fact that I am being annoying and calling this a ‘sammie’ instead of just a normal sandwich, embrace it now because this sandwich is worth it in the end. Trust!

This Sunshine Sammie is full of everything magically fresh and happy that I could think of all rolled into one sandwich, everything also happens to be yellow or orange!

Golden Beets 💛
Oranges 🍊
Carrots 💛
Honey 🍯

It’s a fact, you just can’t help smiling like a crazy person while making this sandwich! And I swear, when Ellie saw this sandwich for the first time, her face lit up and she gasped in delight.

I am not even making that up.

She then tore the sandwich apart, licked off all of the beet spread, ate most of the shredded carrots and then completely discarded the pieces of bread. So there is that…

This sandwich is a nutritional powerhouse – loaded with protein, fiber, iron, beta-carotene, and vitamin C. You gotta love a delicious sandwich that is filled with 2 servings of vegetables that your kids ‘might’ eat!

I also recommend serving it with a side of Spring Fling Finger Salad and a Blueberry Oatmeal Cookie for a gold star lunch!!

Let’s get cracking, I am hungry and lunch is calling.

First, we are going to peel and roughly chop up a golden beet, then we will toss it into a food processor or blender and let our machines finely chop the rest of it up for us. Then we add in the cream cheese, honey and a splash of orange juice <—— I’m talking about juice from an actual orange here. Just cut an orange open and give half of it a quick squeeze with your hand straight into the food processor (careful to remove any seeds). Freshly squeezed orange juice makes all of the difference in the taste of this spread. Plus, you can then slice up the rest of the orange and serve as an easy side or a quick snack later in the day.

Couple things for you –

1. This beet spread is going to be pretty runny when you blend it up. You will hate me. First of all, be a lover not a hater. Secondly, just pop the spread into the fridge for an hour or overnight and it will firm up and be the spread-able yumminess that you want in your life. This wait time, while annoying, goes with the territory of blending up cream cheese. I usually make this at night while I am making dinner, pop it into the fridge and completely forget about it until I am frantically making lunches the next morning.

2. Texture – it can be a ‘thing’ for some kids. So if you want a super creamy spread, a blender is going to work better for you. If you want a chunky spread, just pulse in a food processor until all the ingredients are combined. My kids like a smooth beet spread, so while I show the food processor in the pictures, I usually use my blender for a creamier spread.

3. As I mentioned, Ellie (and Parker) don’t care for bread (not even sure what that is about) and if your kid has the same issue, I have found that this beet spread makes for a great dip, Just serve as a dip along with your favorite crackers and cut up vegetables.

Finally, if the sun is shinning and the sky is clear, this sammie is the perfect addition to a picnic in the park with your little ones. Enjoy!


Sunshine Sammie

For Beet Spread
6 oz cream cheese
1 small golden beet, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon orange juice, freshly squeezed
1 tablespoon honey

For Sandwich
2 slices bread
1/4 cup shredded carrots*
2 tablespoons beet spread

Instructions
1. In a blender or food processor, add in the beets and chop for 30 seconds, scrapping down sides if needed. Add in the cream cheese, orange juice and honey and pulse or puree, depending on the chunkiness of the spread you prefer. For a smooth puree, blend for 45-60 seconds in a blender, scrapping down sides as needed. For a chunky spread, pulse for 10 seconds in a food processor until all ingredients are combined.
2. Spoon into an air-tight container and place in fridge for at least an hour, preferably overnight.
3. To make sandwich, spread 1 heaping tablespoon of beet spread onto each piece of bread. Sprinkle shaved carrots onto one piece of bread on top of the beet spread. Place the other piece of bread ontop of the carrots, beet spread side down. Gently press and wiggly the bread together so the carrots stick to the beet spread. Cut into triangles or squares and serve.

*You can also use sliced cucumber, chopped red, orange or yellow pepper sticks, sliced tomatoes, or any other combo you like if your kiddo doesn’t like carrots.

Yield – 1 sandwich, with enough spread to make 4 full sandwiches
Storage – store Beet Spread in fridge for a week, re-stir if needed