Mamma's Cooking

Subsitutions: Using what you have on hand for recipes

Even though I am doing better at buying groceries only for the recipes I’m making for the week, I still don’t always have all the ingredients on hand because I forgot to put it on my list or used it for something else or it is an ingredient that is too expensive or hard to find.

Here are some of the substitutions I’ve used in recipes recently:

Sherry (and other alcohol) = I recently made French onion soup from Rachel Ray’s, Comfort Foods cookbook and one of the ingredients was sherry, which I never have on hand. I used balsamic vinegar instead and it tasted great. Here is a website I’ve found that has great information on substitutes for alcohol in recipes: http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/alcoholsubstitutes.htm

Most of the time you can substitute a vinegar or citrus juice and/or chicken broth.

Evaporated milk or heavy cream = Another thing I often don’t have is evaporated milk or heavy cream, so I just use whole milk because that is what I have on hand for my daughter.

Cake Flour = I don’t do much baking but some recipes call for cake flour, which I don’t always have so for each cup of cake flour you use 7/8 cup of all purpose flour + 2 Tablespoons of cornstarch.

Shallots = Don’t always have shallots on hand, so I use less onion to get the same flavor. For each cup of shallots I use 1/2 cup of onions (minced or diced) or add some onion powder to taste. You could also use one large leek instead of a shallot or vice versa.

The web site I linked to above for alcohol substitutions also has a substitution dictionary/search engine which is very helpful: http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/equivalents_substitutions.asp

Bread = Karina likes bread on its own but as a sandwich won’t eat it, so I use whole wheat pita bread, whole wheat tortillas or whole wheat crackers instead. The pita and tortillas have been most successful. I make a wide variety of quesadillas from traditional (cheddar/jack, tomatoes, black beans and chicken) to Florentine (mozzarella, spinach and ham).

If you use any others feel free to comment and let me know! Happy cooking!

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Using leftovers in different ways…

I’m usually not very good at this, but in the interest of being more economical I’m trying to be better. Last week I did a good job, if I say so myself 🙂

On Monday last week I made a pot roast in the slow cooker and served it with a mashed potato and sweet potato mixture and roasted asparagus. Tuesday we had quesadillas with the pot roast meat and some sauteed peppers. Wednesday I made lasagna (with slow cooker pasta sauce, see previous blog posting for recipe) and added the rest of the pot roast meat and sauteed peppers. The lasagna was great for dinners for Karina for a couple nights.

Happy Easter to those who celebrate it…more blogging coming this week…

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What is on the menu for the week?

Karina has been a bottomless pit. I know that seems like it shouldn’t be a problem, because most toddlers won’t eat anything, but to have to feed her every 40min to an 1hr…it is ridiculous! (Especially after I just put her back to bed at 10:30pm because she wanted a snack). I’m trying not to, but if she’s hungry then I will give her a snack. I am just really trying to keep it healthy. Maybe its because she started walking this week…

So, as I’ve mentioned before I have started doing meal planning for each week and then shopping just for what I need. It has made a difference in our shopping budget and the amount of space in our fridge!

Its been a while since I posted a meal plan for the week…so, here is what I have planned for the week: (who knows if it will actually happen, but most of it is what I have on hand)

Sunday

Breakfast = smoothie (I mix plain yogurt with frozen berries and apple juice.)
Lunch = sandwiches (turkey, cheese and tomato or roast beef cheese and tomato) or leftover swedish meatballs and cauliflower mashed potatoes
Dinner = Fish (still to buy tomorrow), rice (made in the rice cooker) with edamame (frozen and then takes 3 minutes to steam in the microwave)
Snacks for Karina = cheddar cheese, grapes, apple sauce, goldfish crackers, craisins

Monday

Breakfast = one egg, whole wheat toast and sliced pear
Lunch = leftover rice and edamame + deli turkey meat
Dinner = roast pork (cooked in the slow cooker with beef stock, balsamic vinegar, worchestershire sauce, dried rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper.), cauliflower polenta (buy the tubes from Trader Joes or Safeway and just mix in some steamed cauliflower, parmesan and milk) and salad
Snacks = yogurt, whole wheat pita with white bean hummus, carrot sticks, craisins and goldfish.

Tuesday

Breakfast = oatmeal and apple slices (or a whole mini apple that I discovered at Trader Joe’s last week. A friend turned me on to their mini pears, but I couldn’t find them, then I found the mini apples – perfect size for a toddler’s hand)
Lunch = quesadilla with leftover pork, black beans and cheddar cheese
Dinner = Whole wheat pasta with tomato sauce. (If I have time, I put a couple of cans of diced tomatoes in the slow cooker while Karina’s eating her lunch, with a diced onion, some garlic, bay leaf, touch of oregano, rosemary, salt and pepper. Otherwise, I just used jarred).
Snacks = orange slices, cheddar cheese, grapes, whole wheat pita, craisins and goldfish (sensing a pattern…?)

Wednesday

Breakfast = egg, cheerios and peaches (canned peaches).
Lunch = pasta, deli turkey and green beans (frozen, steamed in microwave for 3 min)
Dinner = French onion soup (this is more for me, its an amazing recipe from Rachel Ray’s Comfort Foods…mmm…we’ll see if she likes it) and leftovers.
Snacks = apple sauce, grapes, cheddar, carrot sticks, goldfish and craisins

Thursday

Breakfast = smoothie.
Lunch = turkey, cheese and blackbean in a whole wheat tortilla wrap.
Dinner = leftovers
Snacks = peaches, cheddar, whole wheat pita with white bean hummus, grapes, apple

Friday

Breakfast = egg, toast, orange slices
Lunch = peanut butter and jelly sandwich, mixed veggies (frozen, steamed in microwave for 3 minutes).
Dinner = TBD (either order food, see what’s on sale that day at the grocery store or my husband will pick something up at Pike’s market on the way home from work).
Snacks = apple sauce, yogurt, whole wheat pita and whatever else is left in the house until I go shopping on Friday 🙂

That is a fairly typical week for us. It really has taken a lot of the stress out of cooking to have the meals planned. Things always come up though, so having a couple nights of “leftovers” or keeping pasta and jarred sauce or tortillas, canned black beans and cheddar on hand can make easy pasta or quesadilla nights or allow you some flexibility.

Karina finally meet a cheese she didn’t like this week (to my surprise)…Gorgonzola. She really is her father’s daughter…

Happy cooking!

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Kale and Cauliflower

Everyone seems to be talking about kale this week 🙂 One blog I follow, Frantic Foodie, recently highlighted a recipe for Kale chips. At my bookclub last week the conversation was all about kale and cauliflower. So I’ve never been a big fan of either, but in the spirit of getting Karina to eat healthy food I’m willing to try new things. My guest blogger for the day is my friend Amanda (mom of 2). Here are some recipes she uses. I plan to try them out soon…I tasted the cauliflower delight and it was delicious (and I don’t usually like cauliflower or mayo)! Thanks Amanda!

Cauliflower delight!
Cut the thick stalk from the underside of Cauliflower
Place in microwave safe dish and add 1/2 cup of water
Cover and microwave for 6 minutes.

Prick with fork to check for tenderness…
if cooked to your liking, spoon a mixture of 1/4 cup mayo and 2 TB dijon mustard on top of cauliflower and then 1/4 cup grated cheese (cojack or mild cheddar)
Return to microwave for 45 seconds to warm topping and melt cheeeeeeeeeezzzzeeeeee
yum.

Easiest Kale Salad EVER (also from Cynthia Lair — below)

One head of Kale, rinsed and chopped
tsp cooking oil (oil is optional– you can cook kale with the water left on it from rinsing. This sort of steams it. Just as good and even easier)

dressing:
3 TB seasoned rice vinegar
1 TB sesame oil
1 tsp hot pepper oil
1 tsp maple syrup

2 TB sesame seeds

Cook over med-high heat stirring around the pan until bright green and 1/3 original volume.
toss with sesame seeds and dressing. good hot and cold

**If kale is a little strong in flavor for you when you first try it, you can toss it in boiling water for a few minutes (like 3)… just until the bitterness goes away. Keep tasting it. there seems to be a magical minute where it still tastes fresh, less kale-y, but not blah from being overcooked.

Massaged Kale and Currant Salad

Recipe reprinted with permission from “Feeding the Whole Family” (third edition) by Cynthia Lair (Sasquatch Books, 2008). FeedingFamily.com. *** the above cookbook is so good— totally changed how I cook and shaped my ideas about feeding kids.. Cynthia Lair is awesome.

Serves 6

Bastyr University adjunct faculty member Jennifer Adler contributed this recipe. Jennifer likes to make a large batch of this salad to ensure that she has dark leafy greens ready when busy days are ahead. It tastes better as the days go by.

Preparation time: 15 minutes.

1 bunch of kale

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/3 cup toasted sunflower seeds

1/4 cup diced red onion

1/3 cup dried currants

3/4 cup diced apple

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons unfiltered apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese

De-stem kale by pulling leaves away from the stems. Wash leaves, spin or pat dry. Stack leaves, roll up and cut into thin ribbons (chiffonade). Put kale in a large mixing bowl and add salt. Massage salt into kale with your hands for 2 minutes.

To toast sunflower seeds, put in a dry skillet over low to medium heat and stir constantly for a few minutes until they change color and give off a nutty aroma.

Stir onion, currants, apple and toasted seeds into kale. Dress with oil and vinegar. Taste for salt and vinegar, adding more if necessary. When at desired flavor, toss in cheese. This salad will keep for several days and still be great!

The other favorite recipe from childhood (that takes about 20 minutes start to finish) is …..

“Pepper steak!!!!!

put 11/2 cups rice/ 3 cups water on to cook

SAUCE:

mix 1 TB maple syrup and 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 water and 2 TB corn starch in a bowl–

cut up 2 carrots, 1 crown of broccoli, green peppers (or red or orange) onions, a few small thin matchsticks of ginger.

thinly slice a small serving of beef…

Stir fry veggies in a pan or wok with a little oil over high heat. Keep moving in pan so they cook but don’t burn.

Remove veggies from pan and set aside.

Add beef and stir fry that around until barely undercooked.

Add Veggies and sauce to beef and continue to cook until sauce thickens.

Serve over hot rice and enjoy.

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Brunch and other ramblings of the week…

As many of us parents know, brunch is often the best time to entertain. The kids are usually ready for snack and are in a good mood (most of the time), so parents can enjoy their coffee (or even a mimosa or bloody mary).

I’ve been practicing a frittata recipe that is super easy and tasty. Kids seem to like it too. Its a potato and cheese frittata I found on allrecipes.com. I like to use those websites to give me an idea on cooking time and amounts, but I have a hard time sticking to the recipe (usually because I don’t have all the ingredients in the house).

For four adults and two toddlers I use: 6 eggs, butter, salt, pepper, diced onions, garlic, fresh thyme (or any other fresh or dried herbs you have), shredded cheese (I used cheddar, mozzarella and parmesan once and substituted smoked gouda for cheddar another time), cream cheese or cottage cheese and potatoes (I used leftover mashed potatoes once and roasted potatoes another time). Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

First, melt about 1Tbs butter in a nonstick skillet that can go in the oven and add potatoes. After potatoes are heated through add onions + garlic. (I found a little tip on one of the comments on allrecipes.com to separate the egg whites and yolks for a fluffier frittata.) Beat the egg whites until soft peak stage. Beat the egg yolks in a separate bowl. Add salt, pepper, thyme, a Tbs or two of cream cheese or cottage cheese and some shredded cheese to the yolks. Then slowly add the yolk mixture to the egg whites. Sprinkle top of potatoes with shredded cheese then pour eggs over top and put in the oven for about 10 minutes (until top is light golden brown). I also sprinkled some more shredded cheese on the top. You can never have enough cheese 🙂

I’ve served this with turkey sausage or boerewors (a very tasty South African sausage that you can find at Uli’s in Pike Place Market) and some fruit. Today I also made my mom’s South African pancakes. Basically they are like crepes and then rolled with a cinnamon sugar.

We just got back from a trip to the East Coast. Travelling with toddler is not always easy, especially when there is a time change involved. Karina didn’t sleep much, but was always ready to eat. We even stopped at a Wendy’s one day and she wanted nothing to do with the jr. cheeseburgeer we got her. All she wanted was her turkey wrap (whole wheat tortilla with turkey cold cuts and havarti cheese. I was so proud! I’m sure this won’t last forever 🙂 She loved her Far Far’s grilled cheese sandwiches! Other than that, she basically only wanted to eat Craisins and goldfish.

I’m always on the look for new websites or blogs for kids food. Here are a couple I’ve recently found:

http://kidshealth.org/parent/recipes/index.html
http://hippoflambe.blogspot.com/

Let me know if any others or if you want one that you’d like me to highlight.

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My new finds…

Hi all. Sorry I haven’t blogged in a while. It’s been a crazy month. As I’m sure many of you understand, time is not always on our side. Even during this crazy busy time, I still have managed to cook for my family most nights. Although, we still order out or have eaten out of course once or twice a week 🙂

Especially with the economy the way it is right now, it is on all of our minds, how can I be more frugal? I have started meal planning for the week. This is something I never thought I would do. I used to be the one who went to the grocery store and bought what looked good and what was on sale regardless of what I had a home. Now I have taken stock of what I have in my pantry and freezer and decide on a menu for 5 nights, then I go shopping.

I also used a gift card my husband’s grandparents gave me for Christmas at Macy’s and spent one wondeful afternoon off in the kitchen section of Macy’s. I came across the Jessica Seinfeld cookbook, Deliciously Deceptive. It is amazing! Now, I have to admit I have a daughter who loves her vegetables, but mommy doesn’t always like to eat them 🙂 The recipes that I’ve tried so far have been big hits. One is tortilla cigars – mix cream cheese (I used the low fat neufchatel cream cheese), with some shredded cheese, carrot purree and sweet potato purree and whatever you have leftover, like chicken or pork. I also added some black beans. Roll in a wheat or multigrain tortilla and bake for 5-10 min. Soooo good! I cut them in half and Karina ate it all! She loves it.

Seinfeld’s cookbook just gave me alot of ideas. I also used a modified version of one of her recipes and made mashed potatoes but just added a cup of purreed cauliflower. Again, sooooo good! Another good tip is to add some purreed vegetables (I’ve been buying canned pumpkin) and adding that to soups. I made a chicken and brown rice soup the other day and just added a 1/4 cup of canned pumpkin to the broth. It adds flavor and nutrients, sooo good! Karina loved it!

The other new discovery I’ve made is barley risotto. Oh my. It was sooo good! I have become the person who makes risotto in my rice cooker because its easier, but I saw a recipe somewhere for using barley instead of aborrio rice and wanted to try it out by hand. I added some parmesan, sage and canned pumpkin. It used alot more liquid than aborrio rice, about twice the amount actually. Next time I’ll try the barley risotto in my rice cooker, but I don’t know if its big enough for all the liquid.

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Post-Holiday pressures…

We all have pressure around the holidays with travel, entertaining and this year with all the snow days. After the holidays the pressure seemingly goes away, but now its keeping new year’s resolutions, getting organized and turning a new leaf. Cooking for your family should not be another source of stress, although I know for many it is. I hope through this blog to help make it less stressful by pointing people in the direction of easy recipes and providing tips from my (and my friends’) experiences.

I have a few new blog ideas “cooking” (pun intended) for this year: helpful substitutes (recipe calls for marsala wine and you don’t have it in the house or don’t want to use alcohol, so use…), bringing food with you while your traveling by plane, train or automobile, my go to cookbooks (not specifically for kids) for making weeknight meals and many more!

One of my New year’s resolutions is to stop impulse buying at the grocery store. I have been successful so far this year in not buying items for the sake of buying them because they’re on sale or I may need them for a recipe in the future. That usually leaves me with a pantry and fridge full of items that don’t necessarily go together and makes me spend more than I need. So, now I am trying to take 10 minutes away from Facebook and instead I pick 5 recipes for the week that I will aim to cook those meals. Then I make a list of ingredients I don’t have, buy them and stick to my list, which is hard!

Some of the things I cooked this week: lemon cod (another one of my resolutions is to eat more fish) with potatoes and spaghetti squash, beef stew, potato leek soup, polenta and sauteed lima beans with roast chicken.

Lemon cod, fingerling potatoes and spaghetti squash: Take about a pound of cod (or other white fish) and 1st coat with mixture of 2-3 tbs melted butter with juice of 1/2 a lemon and then coat with mixture of about 1/3 cup flour, salt and pepper to taste. Put the covered cod into a baking dish and into a 400 degree oven, after dousing it with the rest of the butter and lemon mixture, for about 10 minutes or until flakey.

I bought the bag of fingerling potatoes that you get at Trader Joes, where you just cut the corner and microwave for 4-5 minutes. While they are cooking in the microwave, I put a couple of tbsp of butter in a large glass bowl with some fresh herbs (rosemary, sage are what’s left in my garden), salt and pepper and then put the hot potatoes in the bowl, cover with aluminum foil and shake to cover potatoes.

The spaghetti squash, I cut in half, take out the seeds and put about an inch of water in pan. Place the squash rind side up and poke a few holes with a fork. Cook in a 425 degree oven for at least 45 min. When done, scoop out squash with a fork and mix with butter and fresh herbs.

Beef stew: Take about a pound of stew meat (good deal at Fred Meyer this weekend) and mix it with salt, pepper and ground coriander to taste. Dice one medium size onion (yellow, white, red, whatever you have on hand), peel, dice 2-3 carrots; dice one leek and a couple of handfuls of fingerling potatoes (probably about 1/2 lb of potatoes -diced) [you can ad lib for most veggies you have on hand. Use sweet potatoes instead of regular potatoes or add some frozen green beans]. In microwave safe bowl mix about 2 cups chicken stock (or beef or veggie stock, whather to you have on hand) with a few dashes of worchestershire sauce and a few dashes of balsamic vinegar. Microwave sauce for about 3-4 minutes until hot. Take a small bowl and mix 1-2 tbsp corn starch with 1/4 cup of the sauce. Pour back into sauce and mix. Place stew meat, veggies and sauce into slow cooker and cook on low for 5-6 hours. If sauce is not thick enough mix 1-2 tbsp cornstarch with 2-3 tbsp of softened butter (using a fork), until blended. After cornstarch and butter are blended, add mixture to stew and stir.

Leeky Potato Soup: 2-3 tbsp butter, 1tbsp olive oil, 3 leeks chopped, 1 shallot chopped (you can use a white onion as well), 1tbsp minced garlic (I buy the already minced garlic in jars from the grocery store, great time saver), 1/3 – 1/2 bottle white wine (or about a cup of white wine vinegar), palmful of coriander, 1 tsp lemon pepper, lemongrass (I buy the tubes from the grocery store and used one squeeze), salt to taste, about 6 medium potatoes (peeled and sliced thin or diced), 3 1/2 cups veggie stock (or chicken stock) and a bay leaf. Melt butter and olive oil in soup pot over medium high heat. Add leeks, shallot, coriander, lemongrass, salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another minute or two. Add wine and reduce for about 5 min. Mix stock and bay leaf in microwave safe bowl and heat in microwave for 3 -4 min. Add potatoes to soup pot and cook (stirring ever 3 min or so) for 12 min. Add stock and bay leaf mixture to soup pot and cook for about 25 min, stirring occasionaly. When pototoes are cooked, use an immersion blender (or transfer to blender or food processor) and blend until smooth. Mix in more stock or spices to reach desired consistency and taste.

Roast chicken: melt 3 tbsp butter in microwave. Mix salt, pepper, coriander, lemon grass with butter. Rinse chicken, pat dry with papertowel. Insert one onion (cut into 5- 6 sections) and 2 tbsp chopped garlic into cavity of bird. Rub butter and herb mixture all over the chicken. Place into 400 degree oven covered with foil for about an hour (I had a 3.8 lb chicken) and cook uncovered for 30 min. Let rest under foil outside the oven for about 15 min before serving. Here is a link for safe handling/cooking of poultry.

Polenta: I buy the tubes (Safeway or Trader joes) and cut it into cubes cook it with butter, milk (keep adding until desired consistency, 1/3 cup or more). Keep stirring until smooth, then add shredded parmesan for flavor.

Sauteed lima beans: I usually keep a frozen bag of lima beans to make in the microwave for Karina (a great source of fiber!), so I used what was left and put in in a non stick pan with some butter, olive oil, fresh herbs (I had sage on hand) and salt and pepper. Sautee for a few min until cooked. Serve immediately.

Best wishes for stress free cooking for the new year!

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More book reviews (all books from the Seattle Public Library)

Here is a list of books that are available from the Seattle Public Library on cooking for infants and toddlers (as well as some for older kids). There are usually wait lists for these books, but don’t be discouraged! Just put yourself on the list and they will contact you when the book is at your local library.

Super Baby Food, by Ruth Yaron. 2nd Ed. Revised. ISBN0-9652603-1-3. Very informative book. “Absolutely everything you should know about feeding your baby and toddler from starting solid foods to age three years.” A little on the judgmental side (except for one paragraph in the introduction on page 3). Not all of us have the time, energy or inclination to make of baby’s food from scratch. But she makes a good point that it is simpler than most think. Check our pg. 7 for a reference chart on prep and storage of food for infants. There is great insight into starting your baby on solids. As with any advice though, keep in mind that every baby is different. There are also tips on introducing finger foods, self feeding with fork and spoon and travel foods. Then there is a month by month summary schedule for introducing foods in the baby’s first year, methods for freezing and thawing foods and then recipes, recipes and more recipes! Don’t forget to check out the appendices!

Blender Baby Food, Nicole Young. ISBN 978-0-77880118-4. Great recipes for infants (purred veggies, fruits and grains) and even older kids (smoothies and dips). There are meal planning charts as well that are useful. This one had the longest wait list at the library, so definitely a favorite of moms around here.

Easy Gourmet Baby Food, Chef Jordan Wagman & Jill Hillhouse, BPHE, RNCP. ISBN 978-0-7788-0182-5. Some good advice in the introduction from the Chef and also from the Nutritionist. The Chef talks about variety being one of the best ways to introduce foods and set the stage for a non-picky eater. If your child doesn’t like sweet potato steamed, try giving it to them roasted. The Nutritionist talks about the importance of whole foods and fresh ingredients and gives her list of the 12 “Consistently clean” (least contaminated by pesticides) fruits + veggies: onions, avocado, sweet corn, pineapples, mango, sweet peas, asparagus, kiwi, bananas, cabbage, broccoli, and eggplant. The “Dirty Dozen” (most pesticide residue): peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, lettuce, grapes (imported), pears, spinach, potatoes. There are recipes for starting solids (6-9 months) like roasted Banana puree, roasted beat puree and avocado, carrot and cucumber puree. Recipes for Establishing Preferences (9-12 months) include: Mediterranean Fried Eggplant, Roasted Onion Soubise, Chicken with Roasted Butternut Squash and Leeks. Food for Toddlers (12 months +) includes recipes for: Citris Fruit Salad with Fresh Basil, Best-Ever Barbecued Corn, Warm Barley with Fresh Herbs and Parmesan Cheese and Pacific Salmon Cakes. The last two sections are Snacks and Desserts and “Not for Adults Only” Reading through this book made my mouth water! Definitely for those who love to cook and experiment.

Fun Food from Williams Sonoma. 25 Recipes that children can cook. ISBN: 978-0-7432-7856-0. Great first recipe book for kids and its broken up into: kids classics, after school snacks, oodles of noodles,, put on your oven mitts, don’t forget the veggies and time for a sandwich. Good step by step instructions to teach kids how to cook and get them involved and interested in food!

The Baby Food Bible, Eileen Behan. ISBN 978-0-7432-7856-0. Great informational/reference book. Its a good one to give you ideas on what to give your baby, how to prepare it and how to store it. There are also recipes for the ingredients discussed.

Better Baby Food, Daina Kalnins, RD CNSD + Joanne Saab, RD. ISBN: 0-7788-0030″Canada’s Complete Source”Good information on feeding newborns(breast milk/formula) through toddlers. There is a great chapter on Nutrition facts discussing recommended amounts (US and Canada) and foods which are good sources of vitamins and minerals. For example children from 1-3 years old need 40mg of Vitamin C/day (according to Recommended Dietary Allowances for U.S.) and can be helpful in enhancing iron absorption. Its found in fresh fruits like mangoes, oranges and strawberries and lesser amounts in fruit juices. Then there are chapters of great recipes, organized according to meal. For example – Scrambled eggs with cottage cheese for breakfast, French Toast cheese sandwich for lunch, Chicken Pad Thai for dinner, Tangy salsa for snack and fall fruit compote for dessert…among many more.

The Everything Cooking for Baby and Toddler Cook Book. Shana Priwer and Cynthia Phillips. ISBN 978-1-593337-691-8. A book full of recipes for 4months through 36 months. Great place to get some ideas and mix things up. There are simple recipes for mashed sweet potatoes to recipes for the more adventurous like homemade bagels. An intersting recipe too for tomato risotto…hmmm…I’m going to have to try that one.

Homemade Baby Food, Pure and Simple. Connie Linardakis. ISBN: 0-7615-2790-7. Seems like a good book although I was unfortunately turned off with the first chapter. (Feel free to ignore me up on my soapbox) My issue with it is that in the section on breastfeeding, she makes it sound like you either choose breastfeeding or formula, that it is black and white. While this may be true for many, I know many mothers (myself included) who physically cannot solely breastfeed (even after trying everything!) and must supplement with formula or do not have a choice but to solely provide formula. Making it seem like a black and white choice for all perpetuates the pressure and guilt that new moms feel, especially those who have trouble with breastfeeding. It does not come easily or physically possible for all. (I’m off my soapbox now) The recipes in the book however are good and definitely give you more variety to choose from, so its worth checking out.

Baby Food. Saxton Freymann & Joost Elffers. ISBN: 0-439-11017-3. This is not a recipe book, but rather a cute book with great pictures of animals made out of vegetables, like the whale calf made out of an eggplant, the baby monkey make out of a couple of kiwis, the baby giraffe made out of a banana and a lion cub out of a potato. Very cute!!

The library also has boxes available for different subjects. The baby food or “
Let’s eat” box contains a printout of finger plays i.e.
“Pancakes” to the tune of “Ten Little Indians” – One little, two little, three little pancakes, etc… It also contains a couple of board books – Let’s Eat/Vamos A Comer, ISBN 0-671-76927-8, with pictures of different foods and food related items with the English and Spanish words; Max’s Breakfast, Rosemary Wells, ISBN 0-8037-2273-7; The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Eric Carle. ISBN0-399-22690-7; and I smell Honey, Andrea and Brian Pinkney, ISBN 0-15-200640-0. There are three other books as well: Eat up Gemma, Susan Hayes, ISBN 0-688-08149-5. Pancakes for Breakfast, Tomie DePaola, ISBN 0-15-259455-8 – no words, just pictures and make up your own story; and Games to Play with Two Year Olds, Jackie Silberg, ISBN: 0-87659-169-1.

Ok, a long post, but hopefully it has some useful information for you. This selection of books from the library is better than what I’ve found in book stores.

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Holiday eating…

With all the food, shopping, and rushing around it can be hard to make sure the little ones get the nutritious food they need. I’ve been buying more and more prepared food. Earth’s best makes frozen whole wheat waffles (I found them at Ballard Market). I’ve been giving those to Karina for breakfast made in the toaster oven with peanut butter (or almond butter – found cheapest in the organic section of Fred Meyer, still more expensive than peanut butter though) and then some cut up banana. Easy and fast.

She has been shunning meat these past couple of weeks. Maybe the turkey leg was too much 🙂 The only meat she seems to eat are sausages. So I’ve been buying some chicken sausages and turkey sausages. Karina has really taken to polenta. I buy the already made polenta in tubes that you can by in the grocery store. I chop it up, put it in a saucepan with some milk (keep adding until its the consistency you want), a little butter and then a handful of shredded parmesan. On a bath night, I put some of the polenta on the tray with some shredded beef mixed in and started scooping it up with a spoon! Of course some of it was thrown on the floor and walls, but she ate it.

Using frozen vegetables is such a timesaver! Especially in the morning when we are putting Karina’s lunch together to bring to childcare. While she’s eating breakfast, I just put some frozen lima beans in a bowl, cover them with water and microwave for 2 minutes. Include that with some whole wheat toast, leftover chicken or sausage and you have lunch! For snacks I’ve discovered the Safeway Organics vegetable crackers (in the baby section), which Karina loves. Those along with a cheese stick and some cut up apple or grapes and snacks are all set.

I’ve been giving Karina tastes of other foods when we go out or are at a party. She loves to taste the different kinds of cheese (especially brie), loves olives and even pickles! Giving her different tastes and texture hopefully will open her palate to eating a wide variety of foods. It seems to go in waves – what she will eat and what she won’t, so if your little one isn’t eating something, keep trying, they may eventually decide they like it. Happy Holidays!

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Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! Karina sure enjoyed the turkey 🙂 She wouldn’t eat the little pieces we put on her tray, but gave her the drumstick and she went to town! She also enjoyed some mashed potatoes, stuffing and squash soup. I put the squash soup in a sippy cup (thanks Adriane for the tip) and she loved it! I think I am going to try to make her a smoothie in the morning and put it in the sippy cup (a cup without a valve) for her to enjoy.

With the turkey leftovers, I am going to make turkey enchiladas tonight. Some store bought mole sauce, shredded cheese, turkey, fresh salsa, cilantro, sour cream and whole wheat tortillas. Heat the sauce in a skillet, put some of the shredded turkey in. Wrap some of the turkey with mole in a tortilla and put in baking dish. Repeat until done with turkey. Leave some mole sauce to pour over the top and then cover with shredded cheese. You can also put cheese inside the tortilla. Bake in the over for about 30-45 min.

Salsa recipe:

1 large can of whole tomatoes

1 jalapeno (take out seeds and chopped)

about 1/2 a red onion roughly chopped

cilantro (to your taste – I usually grab a handful)

salt

pepper

about a clove of garlic, minced.

Put ingredients into a blender or food processor. Mix until it is the consistency you want. Less if you like it chunky and more if you want it smooth.

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