Oops, Missing Pictures

This picture is totally how I feel right now.

I'm sorry about the posts with missing pictures.

I'm new to apple and just realized that deleting pictures in 

iPhoto also deletes pictures in flickr as the two are synchronized.

My previous work flow involved deleting pictures off my computer that were already in flickr and were specifically for blogging.

As I repeat previous recipes I will be filling those pictures back in.

I'll have some new recipes up shortly... as I've apparently just erased all the pictures I just took.

Oh well, live and learn. 

:)

Chicken with green beans & brown rice

Green beans are just one of those things I haven't made much of.

They are great as a first food but you lose so much in the cooking,
pureeing and straining process that I never really did it.

However, now that Peanut is used to texture in his foods, it's perfect.

I also had this great brown rice blend from Trader Joe's that I used,
which is why there are dark spots that almost look like pepper.

Chicken with Green Beans & Brown Rice
1 small chicken breast (about 4 oz) cut into chunks
8 oz frozen green beans (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup brown rice
2 cups water (or unsalted stock), divided

Bring 1 cup water to a boil and add the chicken.
Rinse green beans to remove ice crystals and add to the boiling water.
Bring back to a boil, cover, reduce heat and
simmer for 4 -5 minutes until fork tender.
The color should be bright green, if they are starting to turn brownish/dark then pull them out.

Meanwhile, grind your brown rice in a blender or spice grinder.
You can grind to a powder, into smaller pieces or not grind at all,
depending on the texture you want for your little.

When the green beans and chicken are done, add them to the food processor,
reserving the liquid.
Puree, adding cooking liquid as needed.

Bring 1 cup water to a boil.
Sprinkle brown rice powder into the boiling water, whisking constantly.
Turn the heat down to simmer the mixture,
whisking constantly until the liquid is absorbed and the grains cooked.
Mine was ground to a powder and it took about 8 minutes.

Add the rice mixture to your pureed veggies and stir in
(or pulse the food processor to incorporate).

Enjoy!

*Variations
-Although Peanut loves this I thought it would be even better with herbs.
Add some minced fresh herbs like cilantro, basil, chives or parsley.
-This would also be good with a bit of garlic or onion
-Substitute a different kind of rice or grain like barley, quinoa or spelt.

*Storage
Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
When you reheat, make sure you heat completely to bring it back to a nice consistency,
 then allow to cool to the right temp for your little.

*Benefits
Green beans are high in folate, potassium, vitamin K, fiber and even a bit of calcium and vitamin A.
Chicken is a great source of lean protein in addition to potassium, phosphorus, niacin,
calcium, iron, selenium and zinc.
Brown rice still has it's bran layer which allows it to retain more fiber (4x more then white rice)
 as well as nutrients like niacin vitamin B6, magnesium and manganese.

Banana Avocado Whip

Banana and avocado are one of those combinations that I have seen over and over on baby sites.

Seriously, don't knock it until you've tried it.

The color is that gorgeous avocado green but the majority of the flavor is the sweet banana.

The secret ingredient in my banana avocado whip is the silken tofu.

Years and years ago I made a Cooking Light recipe for strawberry mousse that had silken tofu.

It blends right in and noone would ever know that it's in there.

It's softer then firm tofu, making it perfect to blend and you can put it with just about anything.
Add it to your fruit or veggie purees, serve it as finger foods
or pretty much mix it into anything.

Banana Avocado Whip
1 banana (Make sure it's ripe! The riper, the sweeter)
1 avocado
1/4 cup silken tofu

Simply puree all the ingredients together!

*Variations
-Serve it chilled on a hot day.
-Mash into chunks with a fork.
-Eliminate the tofu to serve as a first food.
-Add yogurt and/or milk and make this into smoothie for baby or for you.
No really, people drink these shakes, just google it!

*Storage
Hmmm, this is really a matter of opinion.
It will easily refrigerate for up to 3 days but it does get brown.
Both the avocado and banana get brown like guacamole that has been sitting out.

This doesn't mean that it's bad.

You can avoid this by putting the puree in a container and filling it to the top
or covering the top with plastic wrap, making sure the wrap sits on the top of the puree.
I would still put a lid over that.

If the air doesn't get to it then it won't brown.
If you do get some brown parts you can mix them in,
eat them yourself or skim it off the top and throw it away.

I used 2 ounce containers and filled them to the brim.
These keep perfectly until opened.

*Benefits
Bananas are packed with potassium and fiber but they are also good for the digestive system
and have been known to be binding (which is a nice way to say that it aids in diarrhea).

Avocados are fantastic for your baby.  Yes, they do contain some fat but it's the good fat.
The fat in avocados is monounsaturated which helps lower cholesterol and is high in omega-9.
Besides, babies could use the healthy calories in avocado.
They contain lutein, an antioxidant that helps maintain the health of your eyes and skin.
All this in addition to fiber, potassium, folate & vitamin A and you have a perfect first food.

Tofu is a great, simple source of protein without the added fat of some meats.
It also provides iron, omega-3 fatty acids and calcium.

Roasted Roots

Although this might seem more a fall dish, I make it pretty often because Peanut loves it.

A combination of several different "roots",

I used carrots, parsnips, rutabaga and sweet potato but

you could certainly use any kind of root vegetable in this.
Typically I don't even have equal amounts of everything.

Roasting brings out their natural sweetness, requires very little as far as effort goes

and maintains a maximum amount of nutrients.

I usually do twice as many veggies as listed below, splitting the batch

and placing half on a sheet tray for B & I.

Toss with extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and roast.

Roasted Roots

2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1" chunks

2 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 1" chunks

1 small sweet potato or yam, peeled and cut into 1" chunks

1 small rutabaga, peeled and cut into 1" chunks

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Place all your roots into a baking dish and cover/seal with a piece of foil.

Bake for 45- 1 hour or until fork tender.

Puree to the desired consistency, adding water or unsalted stock if needed.

If you want to make your puree chunky then puree only half of the cooked vegetables.

Mash the other half with a potato masher or fork and add it to the puree.

*Variations

-Use any combination of root vegetables

-Add fruit like apple or pear to the mix before baking

-Once cooled, mix in minced herbs like oregano, sage, chives or basil

-Add in some onion for some extra flavor

-This would be perfect mixed with cinnamon or nutmeg
-Add cooked chicken or turkey

-Top with a pat of butter and serve the family for dinner

*Storage

Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

*Benefits

Sweet potatoes are rich in vitamin A, potassium, fiber and beta-carotene.

Parsnips are packed with folate, calcium, potassium and fiber.

Carrots are a great source of antioxidants, boosting the immune system and building eye strength.

Rutabaga has loads of potassium as well as calcium, magnesium, vitamin C and fiber.

Big & Little: Minted Melon

I suspect that some of you have been baking in the summer heat these days.

A few days ago I had veggies to roast but I could not bring myself to turn on the oven.

Peanut was lying on the floor in nothing but his diaper and looking slightly wilted.

Well, as wilted as a moose can look.

So I decided to make us both something refreshing.

What could be more refreshing then sweet summer melon and the cool touch of mint?

I've broken these down into 2 very, very simple recipes.

I did them each twice using both cantaloupe and honeydew

but you could just pick your favorite and stick with it.

Each recipe uses half of a melon (both about 4 lbs) but could easily be adjusted to use the whole melon

or more for one recipe and less for the other.

Make sure your melon is ripe!

Ripe melon = yummy sweetness

"I cantaloupe, I cantaloupe"  "Please honeydew, please honeydew"

Get it?  Can't-elope? Honey-do?

Anyone else say that or was it just my mom?

I say that in my head whenever I see either one of those...every.time.

When B and I lived in LA above Grand Central Market we would head downstairs 

to this amazing booth that sold tons and tons of different kinds of agua fresca.

It's basically a drink made from fresh fruit and very little else.

The possibilities really are endless.

Minted Melon Agua Fresca

-adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Half of a 4 lb cantelope or honeydew (or 1 small 2 lb melon), 

seeded and cut into 1 inch cubes, roughly 4 cups

3/4 cup water

1/2 cup of mint leaves

1 tablespoon of lime or lemon juice

pinch of salt

2 cups club soda

extra mint for steeping or garnishing

Add melon, water and mint leaves to your blender and puree.

Place a colander lined with cheesecloth, a kitchen towel 

OR a muslin swaddler for your baby drawer :)

over a deep bowl, add the puree and let it drain for about an hour.

Gather the towel/swaddler and gently squeeze any excess juice.  

Throw away the solids, stir in remaining ingredients and taste.

If you want more mint flavor add in a few sprigs of mint before chilling

Chill for at least an hour, it should be ice cold when served.

Pour into 4 glasses and top with 1/2 cup of club soda each.

Enjoy!

*Agua Fresca Variations

-hold the club soda and serve this to your little

-Add vodka but don't mix it up with the ones you set aside for your kids

-Try this with watermelon although you may want to cut back on the water a bit

-Omit the water and soda and freeze these as popsicles

Now on to the baby food.

This puree is refreshing and Peanut really enjoyed eating it straight from the fridge.

I'm sure it was cooling for a hot day and 

probably a relief from the 4 teeth that popped up in the last 10 days.

This recipe could easily be cut in half.

Also note that the puree in the pictures had less mint and I ended up adding more later.

I added apples for texture more then anything as the real star here is the melon.

Minted Melon Puree

Half of a 4 lb cantelope or honeydew (or 1 small 2 lb melon), 

seeded and cut into 1 inch cubes, roughly 4 cups

2 apples, peeled, seeded, cored and cut into chunks

1 1/2 teaspoons of minced mint

Steam your apple chunks or simmer in 1 tablespoon of water, 

until the apples are fork tender.

Allow the apples to cool.

Puree the apples, melon and mint.

Enjoy!

*Variations

-Leave out the mint (or add more if you like)

-Try this with watermelon

-Mix with peach or blueberries

-Instead of mint substitute a small amount of grated ginger.

I would start with 1/4 teaspoon and taste, adding more if needed

-For older kids serve this semi-frozen, like a healthy slushy or granita

*Storage

Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months

*Benefits

Cantaloupe is packed with potassium, beta-carotene, fiber and vitamin A.

Honeydew also has loads of fiber and potassium as well as calcium, magnesium and vitamin C.

Big and Little

As soon as flickr starts cooperating with me, I'll be posting my first "Big and Little" recipe.

It's basically 2 different takes on the same ingredients or the same basic recipe.

One recipe for Bigs (adults) and the other for Littles (kids).

Yes, kids can often eat adult foods and adults can often eat baby foods,

but I thought I would show you a few variations anyway.

I'm all about variety.

I'll be back with Minted Melon,

a pureed version of cantelope and honeydew as well as an agua fresca version!

Baby Food Jars

Everyone wants to know where I get these baby food jars!

The answer is... from family who save them for me!

I also save the glass jars when I buy commercial baby food.  

The jars are passed to me, I strip them of their paper labels, 

sanitize them and use them for storing my baby food.

I love that I can write directly on the outside of the jars (type of food and date made)

 and then scrub the writing off with the rough side of a sponge when I clean them.

So ask your friends to save their jars!

If you don't have anyone to give you jars you can find them on ebay.

There are actually quite a few people selling the empty jars.  

Make sure you get the lids.

This would be your cheapest option.  Well, besides the free ones.

OR

Just buy the 4 oz Mason or Ball canning jars.  You can find them at most grocery stores.

OR

You can also google 4 oz jars (or larger) and find them on various websites 

like here and here.

There are all kinds of glass jars to be had, they don't need to be specifically for baby food.

What do you use to store your baby food?

A note about freezing in jars:  Make sure you leave space at the top of your jar, about 3/4 of an inch will do.  As the food freezes it will expand up.  Leaving that space will give it some growing room.


Otherwise the food will press against the lid and then expand out causing the glass to crack.