Actress Sarah Michelle Gellar may have slayed vampires on her hit television series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," but now she's busy in the kitchen slaying foods her kids fear. Asparagus? No problem, she turns the cooked spears into mock French fries with a dipping sauce. Your child doesn't like antioxidant-rich super fruits? Fine, turn them into toppings for a secret weapon sweet pizza.

Gellar, who has two children with actor husband Freddie Prinze, Jr. as well as being involved in an online company that sells healthy cooking kits, recently wrote "Stirring Up Fun with Food," which features more than 100 recipes. The dishes, organized around seasonal occasions, are meant to spur kid creativity and critical thinking skills.

The ingenuity is aimed at getting children to eat well. Recently, Gellar commented that such strategy can be surprisingly simple, such as introducing a stick, a jar or a muffin tin into the equation. When foods are served that way, kids usually munch, even if they wouldn't have otherwise.

That switched a light bulb on for me. The philosophy is an immediate route to innovation and fun. Following are a few of my recipe revelations. All ingredients are to taste. Adults should supervise when kids are making or eating foods on skewers or sticks.

BE A STICKLER FOR FUN

Mix diced vegetables, such as carrots, corn, peas and bell peppers with dried blueberries and curry powder. Place inside double layers of phyllo dough (so they will later stay intact on skewers) making small packets. Bake according to phyllo dough package instructions. Let cool and serve on skewers with store-bought or homemade chutney as a dipping sauce.

SUPER FRUIT STICKS

In the market, let kids pick an array of fruits that they never have tasted. At home, you cut them into pieces and thread them onto skewers. Sprinkle with dried minced fresh basil or dried basil. Serve with fruit-flavored Greek yogurt as dipping sauce.

JARRED BY FLAVOR

Blend well soft or silken tofu with fruit-only spread (found in supermarket jam aisles). Layer in Mason jar, along with sweetened coconut, thin slices of peeled kiwi, sliced strawberries and drizzle of fresh orange juice. Cover and refrigerate if not serving immediately.

DON'T MISS THIS MASON JAR

Combine well pouched or canned salmon from the market's tuna aisle with low-fat mayonnaise, diced celery and dried tarragon. Layer in a Mason jar with shredded arugula, peeled and sliced jicama and pecan pieces. Cover and refrigerate if not serving immediately.

MOLD YOUR MENU

Mold coconut macaroons into bottoms of muffin tins. Set aside. Gently stir into whipped cream diced fresh mint, a dash of fresh, peeled ginger and a dash of unsweetened cocoa powder. Spoon into macaroon molds. Top with a dried pitted cherry.

Lisa Messinger is a first-place winner in food writing from the Association of Food Journalists and the author of seven food books, including "Mrs. Cubbison's Best Stuffing Cookbook" and "The Sourdough Bread Bowl Cookbook." To find out more about Lisa Messinger and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com